Carlton midfielder and former No.1 draft pick Marc Murphy will end his AFL career after becoming the sixth Blues player to reach 300 games.
The 34-year-old has been in and out of the Carlton side this year but will get to the triple-century games mark before hanging the boots up.
The former No.1 draft pick has been a loyal servant during a tough period for the Blues, captaining the club between 2013 and 2018.
Murphy informed teammates on Tuesday morning of his decision to retire after playing Port Adelaide.
“It has been an up-and-down 16 years,” Murphy said.
“I would have loved to have won a premiership and had some success at this football club and hang my hat on a flag, but unfortunately it’s not part of my story.
“I know there’s a lot of (future) premiership players downstairs at this footy club and I’ll be watching as a supporter and lapping it up pretty soon hopefully.”
Murphy, who was drafted in 2005, has been a member of the Blues’ leadership group for 12 of his 16 seasons.
He was named in the All-Australian team in 2011, the same season he won the first of his two Carlton best-and-fairest awards.
Murphy will John Nicholls, Bruce Doull, Craig Bradley, Stephen Silvagni and Kade Simpson in Carlton’s 300 club.
He played in just six finals, but Murphy says the elimination final victories over Essendon (2011) and Richmond (2013) stand out as career highlights.
“Just all the excitement and energy with family coming into the rooms and to be able to hang out with blokes after working so hard to achieve a finals win, those are the memories I’ll cherish,” he said.
Murphy said he would look at working outside of football next year but would not rule out returning to a role at an AFL club.
“I still have a real passion for the game but I’m also very keen to challenge myself in another area so we’ll see what happens in the next six-to-12 months,” Murphy said.
David Teague, who played with Murphy at the Blues in 2006 before becoming senior coach in 2019, praised his dedication to Carlton when he could have chased success and more money elsewhere.
“Marc has been a great player for our football club for a very long time, he is truly one of the modern-day greats in navy blue,” Teague said.
“He captained this football club through an incredibly difficult period, making this 300-game milestone even more special and only adds to the esteem in which he is held at our football club.”
Carlton co-captain Patrick Cripps, who took the reins from Murphy in 2018, also paid tribute to his predecessor.
“Murph was someone I’d admired growing up with how he played the game but what stood out when I got to the club is how good of a bloke he is,” Cripps said.
© AAP
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