Liam Murphy reaches 500-run milestone for fourth time in career
Brunswick captain-coach Liam Murphy secured a critical six points with a match-winning century against Kew and brought up a significant milestone in his distinguished career at the same time.
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A matchwinning century delivered a special milestone for Brunswick star Liam Murphy on Saturday.
Murphy’s unbeaten 114 not only ensured the Wicks secured a critical VSDCA victory over Kew, it also brought up 500 runs for the season.
The captain-coach’s second ton of the season led his team to a four-wicket win and kept it in the hunt for a finals berth.
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It’s the fourth time in Murphy’s distinguished career he has reached the 500-run barrier and first at Brunswick.
“It’s nice to be able to make a contribution and to be out there for a long time,” he said.
“Getting more than 500 runs in this competition is a nice thing to be able to do and makes cricket more enjoyable when you’re out in the middle rather than in the sheds reading the paper.”
Murphy’s finest season came in 2014-15 when he amassed 729 runs for Balwyn, while he also scored 514 runs with the Tigers in 2016-17 and 550 with Premier Cricket outfit Prahran in 2011-12.
Murphy said achieving the milestone in the powerful North-South group added extra significance.
“To be honest, it’s really hard to compare seasons,” he said.
“I must admit, I really enjoy playing in the North-South competition, a lot of guys I used to play against and/or with.
“It’s been really enjoyable to play against those South teams, play in really good facilities, which give you an opportunity to make some good scores.”
After 10 games Murphy sits fourth on the North-South group run-scoring charts with an average of 83.33.
Chased down 6-221 with eight balls to spare, Brunswick leap-frogged Kew on the ladder and is now locked in a three-way tie for fifth but is outside the top six on run-rate.
“The competition is so even, you’ve got to make sure you’re continuing to win or you’ll be out of the race,” Murphy said.
“It was a tricky chase … we got ourselves to a point where we needed 10 or 12 an over, so to be able to drag it back was a great outcome.
“It’s nice to hit a couple in the middle and make a meaningful contribution in a contest as tight as what it was.”
Brunswick face Ivanhoe and St Bernard’s in the final two rounds of the home-and-away season.