THERE is room left for sentiment in football.
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I don’t know if it stretches as far as bringing a heart-and-soul player recovering from a knee reconstruction back early for his club’s first grand final in 55 years.
But I wish it did, for Bob Murphy encapsulates everything that makes our great game joyful.
Murphy’s magnetism is part of the Western Bulldogs’ charm.
The skinny half-back isn’t your stereotypical footballer.
He speaks like a fan, albeit it more articulately than most, in an era when most of his contemporaries reel off clichés in an increasingly sterile environment.
The AFL is a business and many players treat it as such, forgetting at times the reason they are there – for the love of the game, for the pride of the jumper, for the fans who invest in their fortunes.
Murphy’s passion and pride for his beloved ‘Scray is evident. He’s not afraid to let us know what the red, white and blue means to him.
It’s that openness and rawness which endears him to supporters – both his own and those from rival clubs, like myself.
The football world took a collective breath when he clutched his knee in the dying minutes of the Bulldogs’ narrow round three loss to reigning premier Hawthorn.
Scans confirmed the captain had done his anterior cruciate ligament, throwing not only his season but his career in doubt.
The Bulldogs carried on without their leader and he eventually decided to play on in 2017. No one, apart from those in the inner sanctum and dyed-in-the-wool Bulldog fans, would have thought Murphy might be forced to watch them play on grand final day from the sidelines.
But here we are, having followed the Luke Beveridge-inspired Pups’ rise from seventh to book a spot in the decider, for the first time since 1961.
They’ve done it the hard way too. The Dogs knocked off West Coast on the road in an elimination final surprise before ending Hawthorn’s quest for a fourth straight flag a week later.
Then they hit the road again and celebrated their first preliminary final win in seven attempts, with a pulsating six-point victory over Greater Western Sydney.
Murphy has been there every step off the way, shedding tears of joy. He will be there on Saturday too as one of the competition’s most success-starved clubs – one premiership since their inception into the VFL 91 years ago paints the picture – strives to write a fairytale ending to what has become a Hollywood-esqe story.
Easton Wood will hold the premiership cup if the Bulldogs can account for Sydney.
But Murphy will be at the MCG, having played a key role in the Bulldogs’ journey that can’t and won’t be undersold.