386 George Murphy

Biography

Experienced centre forward George “Spud” Murphy joined the Tigers in December 1947 for a £1,500 fee as manager Major Frank Buckley sought to build on a strong first half of the 1947/48 season. Murphy’s impact was immediate as he scored seven goals in five starts between a Christmas Day win at Southport and a mid-January 5-3 win over arch rivals at the time Rotherham United. However City scored only once in the next games and slipped down the table, and while Murphy added threee more goals five starts during March his initial impact had started to wane. At the end of March 1948 City signed Raich Carter from Derby County, the ex-England international immediately usurped George from the City first eleven and within a week Carter was installed as player-manager and Murphy was suspended for the remainder of the season by the FA for a string of misdemeanours including a sending off in February. By August 1948, just nine months after signing, Murphy refused the revised terms offered by City and was placed on the transfer list.

George Murphy was born in Wattsville, a row of mining cottages in the Sirhowy River valley between Cwmfelinfach and Newport in South Wales. After playing junior football for local side Cwmfelinfach Colts, Murphy had a trial with Tottenham Hotspur before beginning his professional career in October 1934 as a 19 year old at Bradford City. In the four seasons prior to World War Two, plus the season and a half after the conflict, Murphy made nearly 200 appearances in all competitions and scored nearly 50 goals. playing in a variety of positions including inside forward and full back, as well as centre forward. He was Bradford’s top goalscorer in 1936/37 season as they were relegated from the Second Division. His prime years as a professional footballer were denied to him by the World War, during which he served the RAF a an electrician. He did play in many wartime fixtures, embracing the fashion of the time to turn out for multiple clubs in the wartime leagues where player registrations held by clubs were temporarily suspended. At one point George played for eight different clubs in a nine week period. He also represented his country twice in non-capped 1943 and 1944 wartime internationals against England. Bradford City retained Murphy’s suspended registration during the war and he returned to Valley Parade in 1946/47, top scoring for the Division Three North side with 15 goals and captaining the side. It was this ability to find the back of the net that encouraged Hull City to part with £1,500 for his services in December 1947.

Murphy joined Scunthorpe United in August 1948, a Midland League side at the time. A year later he joined a Midland League rivals Scarborough – in 1949/50 he struck 32 goals for the East Coast side and added a further twenty goals the following season. He ended his career at Goole Town in 1952.

On retirement from playing football Murphy became a licensed victualler and was landlord at pubs in Hull and South Leeds. He settled in Morley in later life, where he died in December 1983.

Details

Nationality: Wales
Date/Place of Birth: 22 July 1915, Wattsville
Hull City First Game: 20 December 1947, Lincoln City H (Division Three North), 32 years, 151 days old
Hull City Final Game: 26 March 1948, New Brighton A (Division Three North), 32 years, 248 days old

Clubs

Cwmfelinfach Colts, Bradford City (1934-1947), Hull City (1947-1948), Scunthorpe United (1948-1949), Scarborough (1949-1951), Goole Town (1951-1952)

Hull City Record

Career: 16 apps, 10 goals

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