It’s turning his way: Todd Murphy’s move to spin paying dividends
Todd Murphy bowled “very medium pace” until former Victorian leggie Craig Howard told him to concentrate on off-spin three years ago. Now the St Kilda player is a chance to win a rookie contract with the Victorian squad. Here’s how it all turned.
Local Sport
Don't miss out on the headlines from Local Sport . Followed categories will be added to My News.
It all turned on a net session.
Before it Todd Murphy bowled medium pace.
By the end of it he’d decided to take the advice of Craig Howard and bowl off-spin.
Three years on, Murphy, 19, has risen so quickly with his spin that he’s on the verge of being named as a rookie in the Victorian Sheffield Shield squad.
He’s regarded as one of the most promising slow bowlers in the country. His captain at St Kilda, Adam Crosthwaite, calls him a “very exciting talent’’.
Murphy thinks that net session with former Victorian leggie Howard was his lucky break.
At the time Howard was captaining Bendigo club Sandhurst, whom Murphy had joined from Moama ahead of the 2017-18 season.
“Yeah, so until I was 16, 17, I bowled medium pace — very medium pace,’’ Murphy said.
“I always enjoyed bowling off-spin in the nets at training but never really took it too seriously. When I made the move from Moama to Sandhurst, I did a session with Craig before the season started. I bowled some off-spin and he thought there was a bit there to work with. He said, ‘Let’s get rid of your medium pace and stick with spin’.
“From there I kept working at it, gradually picked it up. Yeah, it’s the best thing I’ve ever done, that’s for sure. Definitely a good move for my cricket.’’
Howard has for some time been Cricket Australia’s spin coach; in converting the teenager from medium pacer to slowie, he didn’t get it wrong (‘un).
Murphy said his mediums had been “half-effective’’ in junior cricket, but were never going to take him anywhere. He was regarded as more of a batsman then.
His one season with Sandhurst was memorable not only for a change of bowling, but playing in a senior premiership.
Then it was on to Premier Cricket and to St Kilda. He always wanted to be a Saint because his father, Jamie, had played almost 100 matches for the club, including a premiership.
“That was always the ambition, to play where dad played,’’ Murphy said.
“They’ve really welcomed me. I’m loving my time there.’’
He was unsure of his place in the squad but the Saints selected him in the First XI in his first season, 2018-19. He stayed there, taking 21 wickets, 33 when the Victorian Super Slam is counted.
Just as he had Howard to guide him at Sandhurst (and subsequently in under-age representative cricket), he’s had former Test man Michael Beer to mentor him at the Saints and in the state pathways.
Murphy said it was a significant step-up to Premier ranks but his grounding in country cricket served him well.
“Playing at the age of 14 or 15 years in A grade cricket back home, you sort of get used to the competitiveness of playing against men. You don’t get that when you’re just playing junior cricket,’’ he said.
“I’ve always been comfortable enough to back myself in against older guys.’’
Last season Murphy nabbed 28 wickets at 19.5, including a haul of 6-12 against 9.5 overs against lowly Kingston Hawthorn. He was also called up to play two matches for the Victorian Second XI. But the highlight of his season was joining Saints teammate Patrick Rowe in representing Australia at the Under 19 World Cup in South Africa.
In the match against England Murphy took a star turn with the bat, hitting 16 not out from 10 balls and with Connor Sully putting on 47 for the ninth wicket to lift the Australians to a last-ball victory.
Crosthwaite has a good regard for Murphy’s batting and believes he can be an all-rounder.
“Well, growing up I was always a top-order batsman going through the under-age stuff and in local senior cricket,’’ he said. “I always hoped I’d be a batsman. It might have been pushed aside a bit. I’ve got to make sure I contribute.’’
But for now it’s his offies that are putting him on contention for the Victorian squad.
Premier batsmen have seen that Murphy – who is studying sports science at Deakin University – can give it a rip.
“Yeah, I think that’s the biggest thing for a spinner, you need to be able to turn the ball,’’ he said.
“The message I got from Craig is to try to spin it hard but also get as much overspin as I can, to help with the bounce and that sort of thing. I look at Nathan Lyon, as every off-spinner would, and you try to replicate that as best you can with the hard over-spun ball.
“You obviously play around with your variations but try to keep it as simple as you can and get into the contest and work batsmen out.’’
Thanks to some advice from Craig Howard, things are turning out for the Moama talent.
ADAM CROSTHWAITE ON TODD MURPHY
“You don’t want to go putting too much pressure on him, but he’s great, this kid, just his control, the way he thinks about the game, his understanding of what he can do … he’s years ahead of most 18, 19-year-old spinners in terms of the thinking side of it. I’ve been lucky enough to play with Nathan Lyon, Steve O’Keefe, Jon Holland and Chris Green, and Todd thinks on the level those blokes do, which is pretty exciting.
“He gets good flight, drift in the air, he can spin it, he’s big enough and strong enough to really rip the ball. He’s a great kid, works really hard. There’s a lot to like about him. He’s a very exciting talent.’’
MORE CRICKET: