Latest news with #BenMurphy
CTV News
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Cavendish Beach Music Festival: Part 1
Atlantic Watch CTV's Katie Kelly talks to Whitecap Entertainment CEO Ben Murphy about the star-studded lineup at Cavendish Beach Music Festival.
RTÉ News
26-06-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Ben Murphy: Stuart Lancaster can bring Connacht to next level
Ben Murphy believes Stuart Lancaster can take Connacht to the next level when he takes over as head coach next season. The former England and Racing 92 head coach was confirmed as Connacht's new boss on a two-year deal earlier this month, replacing Pete Wilkins who stepped down in May following a period of sick leave. Murphy briefly crossed paths with his new coach at Leinster when he was in the academy and Lancaster was part of the senior coaching staff. And the scrum-half says news of his appointment has generated a lot of "excitement" in the province's squad, as they look to get back on track following a 13th place finish in the URC last season. "I didn't feel we were too far away from being very good. And I think Stu has the ability to take us to that next step," Murphy said. "He's been left a good foundation by the staff that were there last year but were ready to take that next step obviously next year. "Any dealings I had with him, I've always had massive respect for him and I think you can see the development in the likes of a lot of the [British and Irish] Lions who've gone in, who've worked with him in Leinster. "How he's brought them up from 19, 20-year olds to now hopefully Lions internationals in a few weeks. "He is very good, not just on the pitch, but off the pitch in building leadership skills and driving a team so I'm looking forward to hopefully picking his brain a bit on that." Murphy left Leinster last summer to join Connacht, and while the 24-year-old's signing had gone under the radar at the time, he was a revelation at the province in his debut season, scoring nine tries in 16 games. That form saw him called into the Ireland squad a training panellist for the 2025 Guinness Six Nations, and he's now likely to make his Ireland debut in the coming weeks as part of the tour of Georgia and Portugal. Although very few would have had him on the Ireland radar 12 months ago, the Bray native insists he had been quietly targeting this summer, having expected so many Irish players to be away with Andy Farrell's Lions squad. "From the outside looking in it probably would have been far-fetched but I kind of felt that with the movements this year, Lions year and all that, that there was going to be an opportunity for a young scrum-half to come into the squad and I just wanted to put my best foot forward to be the one to be in that position. "Thankfully I got an opportunity earlier with Connacht. I've managed to push forward and get into the squad so delighted." Murphy (below) is one of 12 uncapped players in the squad of 32, coached by Paul O'Connell, and while he's still very much a new face in this group, he's grateful for getting the chance to dip his toe into the Ireland squad back in January. "Yeah it definitely feels a little bit more comfortable because you've had them experiences. "Whether I was a training panellist or whether I'm in the normal squad you go out to train in the same way, try and earn your opportunity to play, that hasn't really changed. I suppose in that aspect its been similar but I think those experiences have helped me. "There's not a whole lot of experience in the group but the lads who've been in for the last couple of years, obviously Craig [Casey] as captain has been great, he's been great to myself and Doaky [Nathan Doak] as well. "I've worked with both 10s before, they're very good at setting up the team and getting their messages across. And then there's obviously lads like [Ryan] Baird, Stuart McCloskey, who've been around for a little bit longer again. "I think there's a really good mix of that experience and then I feel that with so many new caps or potential new caps that brings a bit of enthusiasm as well which I think all together is a good mix."
BBC News
26-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Murphy on Ireland, Lancaster at Connacht and family success
This summer, another door will open for Ben Murphy. A year ago, he was packing his bags and heading west after agreeing to join Connacht from has proved a fruitful step. While he admits the province's 2024-25 season was "up and down", his progress was smooth. He played 16 times and scored nine tries. Earlier this year, he was a training panellist on Ireland's Six Nations squad. But now, with the country's frontline stars on British and Irish Lions duty, the 24-year-old scrum-half is keen to impress while swapping the green of Connacht for the similarly shaded Test jersey. "From the outside looking in, it [receiving an Ireland call-up] probably would have been far-fetched," he admits. "But I kind of felt that with the movements this year, Lions year and all that, that there was going to be an opportunity for a young scrum-half to come into the squad and I just wanted to put my best foot forward to be the one to be in that position. "Thankfully I got an opportunity earlier with Connacht. I've managed to push forward and get into the squad so [I'm] delighted." After Ireland's summer's Tests against Georgia and Portugal, Murphy will return to the winds of change in Galway, with former England boss and Leinster senior coach Stuart Lancaster having recently taken the reins. Murphy previously crossed paths with Lancaster while he was coming through the Leinster academy. "I didn't feel we were too far away from being very good [last season]," added Murphy, who flourished in the latter stages of Pete Wilkins' tenure. "And I think Stu has the ability to take us to that next step. He's been left a good foundation by the staff that were there last year but were ready to take that next step obviously next year."With Ben on the cusp of a Test debut and his younger brother Jack establishing himself in the Ulster first-team under dad/head coach Richie, it has been a whirlwind couple of years for the Murphy clan. "Yeah its been busy for my mum anyway," he smiled."She's been up and down the road a lot from Belfast to Galway to wherever. It has been hugely exciting obviously. Ulster have had their ups and downs as well as us. "We've kind of been on a similar journey I feel. And Jack the same. Young half-back, learning his trade but he's starting to come into his own now. Massively exciting times for everyone."
Irish Times
26-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Connacht's Ben Murphy out to cap year of stunning personal progress with Ireland debut
Ben Murphy will have an opportunity later in the summer to reflect on an eventful last 12 months and all he accomplished, including his move from Leinster to Connacht , getting selected as a training panellist with the Ireland squad ahead of the Six Nations and now being chosen for the summer tour to Georgia and Portugal. The 24-year-old scrumhalf played 16 matches for Connacht, starting 14 and scoring 11 tries. He also missed six weeks of the season following surgery on a fractured finger. It's an impressive tale of the tape. While Munster scrumhalf Craig Casey will captain the Ireland squad for the upcoming two Tests in Tbilisi and Lisbon, Murphy should get some game time. Others may have doubted the speed of his progression, but the Bray native took a pragmatic view based on a numbers game. He explained: 'From the outside looking in, it probably would have been far-fetched, but I felt that with the movements – Lions year and all that – there was going to be an opportunity for a young scrumhalf to come into the [Ireland] squad [for the summer tour]. 'I just wanted to put my best foot forward to be the one in that position. Thankfully, I got an opportunity earlier with Connacht. I've managed to push forward and get into the squad, so I'm delighted.' READ MORE While his time as a training panellist in January demystified the inner workings of Ireland camp, it hasn't changed his mindset now that he is a bona fide member. That early taster helped, but the onus is still on taking to the training pitch and making a positive impression. Will the Lions tour save Australian rugby? Listen | 48:40 He wants to contribute to the environment in the same way he managed for his province, which was recognised with in Connacht's end-of-season honours list. 'Individually, I was fairly happy with how much I played and how much I contributed to the group, but obviously what it comes down to mainly is the team performances and ultimately, we were too inconsistent. 'There was a lot of frustration around the end of the year, particularly around the Racing game (in the Challenge Cup) and the end of the URC where we felt like we still had a chance and unfortunately, we just didn't take it. It was great learning for me as a young halfback.' Ulster's Jack Murphy and his brother Ben Murphy, of Connacht, with their mother Stephanie after a United Rugby Championship match between the provinces last December. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho Murphy will enjoy reuniting with a familiar face next season, with Stuart Lancaster taking over as head coach of Connacht. Their relationship that dates back to a two-year spell when the young scrumhalf was in the Leinster academy. 'Yeah [it's a feeling of] excitement. I didn't feel we were too far away from being very good. And I think Stu has the ability to take us to that next step. He's been left a good foundation by the staff that were there last year. 'Any dealings I had with him, I've always had massive respect. You can see the development in the likes of a lot of the Lions players who've worked with him in Leinster, how he's brought them up from 19/20-year-olds to now, hopefully Lions internationals in a few weeks. 'He is very good, not just on the pitch but off the pitch in building leadership skills and driving a team. I'm looking forward to hopefully picking his brain a bit on that.' Murphy is one of six Connacht players in the squad, something that's had a practical positivity ahead of the summer tour. 'I think it's definitely made it easier, because we were able to train in a group and build that excitement and work on things in Galway that can transfer over to here. We're a tight-knit group as it is. It's been an enjoyable but tough few weeks training together.' [ Paul O'Connell minding the house but Andy Farrell kept abreast of Ireland progress on summer tour Opens in new window ] [ Gordon D'Arcy: Lions made lots of errors against Argentina - now is the time to eradicate those mistakes Opens in new window ] There will be time down the road to catch up with younger brother Jack and father Richie. Jack has exceeded expectations in claiming the 10 jersey at Ulster while still in the academy. Richie is head coach in Belfast. Perhaps it's his mother, Stephanie, who merits the summer break most, having taken to the motorways most weekends in support of her two sons and husband. 'Yeah, it's been busy for my mum anyway. She's been up and down the road a lot from Belfast to Galway. It has been hugely exciting obviously. Ulster have had their ups and downs as well as us. We've kind of been on a similar journey I feel. And Jack is the same; a young halfback learning his trade, but he's starting to come into his own now. It's massively exciting for everyone.' The focus for Ben Murphy is to maximise any opportunity that comes his way in Tbilisi and Lisbon in the early weeks of July. An Ireland debut would cap the season nicely.
Irish Examiner
26-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Ben Murphy's 'far-fetched' Ireland ambition realised after big year at Connacht
Go back to the end of the 2024/25 season and Ben Murphy was stuck in a long queue of scrum-halves angling for game time at Leinster where Jamison Gibson-Park and Luke McGrath were the elder statesmen proving so hard to dislodge. Now the 24-year old is coming off the back of a first season at Connacht where he played more minutes than any of their nines and he is poised for a summer mini-tour to Georgia and Portugal having already spent time in Ireland camp during the Six Nations. 'From the outside looking in, it probably would have been far-fetched, but I kind of felt that with the movements this year, Lions year and all that, that there was going to be an opportunity for a young scrum-half to come into the squad. 'I just wanted to put my best foot forward to be the one to be in that position,' said the son of Ulster head coach Richie Murphy. 'Thankfully I got an opportunity earlier with Connacht. I've managed to push forward and get into the squad so delighted.' That involvement during the spring has served as something of a settler for the man out of Bray. That and the fact that he was one of half-a-dozen Connacht players named originally in Paul O'Connell's squad for this two-game tour of duty. Finlay Bealham and Cian Prendergast already had caps to their name. Murphy, Darragh Murray, Shayne Bolton and Hugh Gavin have all yet to play at the Test level for their country, and the management's plan is that all will do so this next few weeks. Bealham, of course, has since been called up for, and played for, Andy Farrell's British and Irish Lions. The Canberra-born tighthead joined his Connacht teammates Bundee Aki and Mack Hansen in putting on the red jersey against Argentina in Dublin last Friday. That's a huge moment in time for the province. Murphy passes to Sam Prendergast during Ireland rugby squad training. Picture: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile The entire country of Wales has just two men in the entire Lions squad. Only Leinster, Glasgow and Northampton have more and among the feted clubs with less are Munster (1), Bath (2), Leicester (1) and Harlequins (1). 'They've worked very hard to get into that position,' said Murphy of the trio. 'I thought all of them put their best foot forward. Bundee obviously scored and I thought Finlay did well. Mack had a good impact of the bench as well. It was a proud day for everyone watching and hopefully they kick on and see if they can get involved in the Tests.' All of which is hard to square with the disappointment that Connacht endured as a collective last season. A 13th-place finish, five rungs and nine points off the ladder spot they needed to make the playoffs, spoke for the difficulties suffered on and off the pitch. Murphy talks about frustrations around the collective, and the failure to grasp chances in the Challenge Cup knockout game against Racing 92 and down the stretch of the URC when they still could have done something but succumbed to familiar failings and inconsistencies. The future promises more. Much more. The project delivering the new Dexcom Stadium and the province's state-of-the-art training centre is taking shape and the announcement some weeks ago that Stuart Lancaster is to be the new boss has sent a jolt of excitement through the club and the region. Murphy didn't feel Connacht were a million miles away, in some respects, last season and he has already had the chance to grab a quick chat with Lancaster about some of the areas the new boss intends to focus on ahead of the new campaign. The pair already had a history. Lancaster was still at Leinster during Murphy's two years in the academy in Dublin and the scrum-half points to the plethora of Leinster players currently touring in Australia as proof of the Englishman's body of work. 'Any dealings I had with him, I've always had massive respect for him and I think you can see the development in the likes of a lot of the Lions who've gone in who've worked with him in Leinster. 'How he's brought them up from 19/20-year olds to now hopefully Lions internationals in a few weeks. He is very good, not just on the pitch but off the pitch, in building leadership skills and driving a team so I'm looking forward to hopefully picking his brain a bit on that.' Read More Fazball the way forward for Lions team intent on playing exciting rugby
