Those close to Todd Murphy recall his junior days

One of Todd Murphy’s earliest senior teammates has recalled how he went from bowling “slow medium sh*t” to terrorising India on debut.

Todd Murphy is no longer just the toast of Echuca-Moama, but Australia.

The Australian test debutant is quickly approaching cult hero status after a little over 24 hours as an international cricketer.

Australia’s version of Kiwi legend Daniel Vettori has the Indians in a spin in Nagpur claiming the first four wickets of the host’s innings.

KL Rahul, Ravi Ashwin, Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli — superstar names of Indian cricket and names that will always stand alongside Murphy’s record.

But seeing him thrive at the top level is no surprise to those who have watched him from the very moment he picked up the ball.

According to Moama president Kirk Teasdale, who watched Murphy go from his first under-14s game to A-Grade debut, the bespectacled off-spinner has come a long way from bowling “slow medium shit like the rest of us old blokes”.

Todd Murphy with family after he was presented with his baggy green.

“He was a class above the under-16 level when he debuted and looked at home straight away,” Teasdale said.

“Todd never bowls a bad ball. When he was first playing A-Grade he probably wasn’t bowling as much as he would have liked because he was bowling the same slow medium shit as the old blokes.

“His first five-for in A-Grade was actually bowling that stuff as a 14-year-old.

“Then one day in the nets just before Christmas, he started bowling offies and was turning the ball. Within two to three months, he was our frontline spinner.

“He was in the side as more of a batsman, batting in the middle order. He made his first century at 16.”

For all of his exploits, from baby Moama Magpie to baggy green number 465, Teasdale knows Murphy will always be a country kid at heart.

“Every time he’s back, even before playing for Australia, he’d be the first person to come and speak to you,” he said.

“He comes from a fantastic local family. Everyone at the club was glued around the TV last night. We were probably lucky the Aussies batted first otherwise I don’t think we would have trained.”