Matt Murray
Encyclopedia
Matthew William "Matt" Murray (born 2 May 1981) is an English
former football goalkeeper who spent his entire career at Wolverhampton Wanderers
. His career was plagued by injuries which eventually forced him to retire aged 29.
, Murray progressed through Wolves academy system to sign professional forms in 1998. The five year contract he was given, aged 17, is the longest in the club's history for an academy graduate.
However, his career failed to find its stride immediately as he was largely out of contention through injury. He suffered a cruciate
knee injury just twenty minutes into a loan spell at non-league
Kingstonian
in October 2000 where he made his first professional appearance.
He was promoted into Wolves
' first team on 31 August 2002 against Wimbledon
, deputising for the injured Michael Oakes
, and then keeping his place through that season. The season ended with him producing a man-of-the-match performance in the Play-off final in May 2003, where he produced a number of vital saves to help the club win promotion to the Premier League, the pick being a second-half penalty save from Michael Brown.
He followed this up by debuting for England Under-21s
, against Slovakia U21
, the first of five under-21 caps. However, a back problem then a foot fracture wrecked his second season. In the three years that followed the success of 2002–03, he only played seven games for Wolves due to a variety of injuries.
The goalkeeper next played in January 2005 but soon suffered another break to his foot, ruling him out for a further year. By March 2006 he was fit enough to be sent on loan to Tranmere Rovers
, but was called back to Wolves within a month because of possible injuries to other goalkeepers.
He started his first game for Wolves in almost sixteen months on the final day of the season at Norwich City
, and managed to retain his place at the beginning of the 2006–07 season, where he was largely accredited with Wolves' impressive start to the season, due to a catalogue of good performances allowing for five of their first seven games to end 1–0.
His performances were given further recognition as he won the PFA Championship Player of the Month award in December 2006, and, as the campaign ended, he was named in the Championship Team of the Year at the 2006–07 PFA Awards dinner and also voted the PFA Fans' Player of the Year for the division. He was also voted Wolves' Player of the Season as they reached the play-offs. The season ended on a sour note though as he broke his shoulder on the eve of his club's vital play-off game against local rivals .
After spending the summer recuperating from his shoulder injury, he suffered another setback from a cruciate (left) knee injury in pre-season training. He underwent two operations for this, and missed the whole of the 2007–08 campaign while undergoing rehabilitation with the aim of returning for the new season. However, inflammation in his knee then delayed his comeback further still. By the time he recovered, fellow academy graduate Wayne Hennessey
had established himself as first choice.
In November 2008, he joined League One
Hereford United
on loan, but only played two full games before injury again struck suffering a ruptured patella tendon in his right knee during a match against .
In November 2009 Murray started his first game back for Wolves playing in a reserve game, but he felt discomfort in his knee and was substituted after just 23 minutes. This was to prove his last appearance in a Wolves shirt.
He announced his playing retirement on 26 August 2010 aged 29. In total he made 87 appearances for Wolves.
On 26 September 2010, at half-time in a match between Wolves and Aston Villa, he gave a speech to the crowd, announcing his retirement and thanking the fans. He has since continued working for Wolves in an "Ambassador" role while making occasional appearances on Sky Sports as a pundit.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former football goalkeeper who spent his entire career at Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
. His career was plagued by injuries which eventually forced him to retire aged 29.
Career
Born in SolihullSolihull
Solihull is a town in the West Midlands of England with a population of 94,753. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles southeast of Birmingham city centre...
, Murray progressed through Wolves academy system to sign professional forms in 1998. The five year contract he was given, aged 17, is the longest in the club's history for an academy graduate.
However, his career failed to find its stride immediately as he was largely out of contention through injury. He suffered a cruciate
Cruciate ligament
Cruciate ligaments are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee...
knee injury just twenty minutes into a loan spell at non-league
Non-league football
Non-League football is football in England played at a level below that of the Premier League and The Football League. The term non-League was commonly used well before 1992 when the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League; all clubs who were not a part of The Football...
Kingstonian
Kingstonian F.C.
Kingstonian Football Club are an English, semi-professional football club that are playing in the Isthmian League Premier Division for the 2011–12 season. The club has played at Kingsmeadow in Kingston upon Thames since 1989, after leaving their traditional Richmond Road ground...
in October 2000 where he made his first professional appearance.
He was promoted into Wolves
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
' first team on 31 August 2002 against Wimbledon
Wimbledon F.C.
Wimbledon Football Club was an English professional association football club from Wimbledon, south-west London. Founded in 1889 as Wimbledon Old Central Football Club, the club spent most of its history in amateur and semi-professional non-League football before being elected to the Football...
, deputising for the injured Michael Oakes
Michael Oakes
Michael Christian Oakes is an English former professional football goalkeeper who is currently working with Wrexham as a goalkeeping coach and Assistant Manager Under Andy Morrell. He is the son of former Manchester City footballer Alan Oakes.- Aston Villa :Oakes began his career in Aston Villa's...
, and then keeping his place through that season. The season ended with him producing a man-of-the-match performance in the Play-off final in May 2003, where he produced a number of vital saves to help the club win promotion to the Premier League, the pick being a second-half penalty save from Michael Brown.
He followed this up by debuting for England Under-21s
England national under-21 football team
England's national Under-21 football team, also known as England Under-21s or England U21, is considered to be the feeder team for the England national football team....
, against Slovakia U21
Slovakia national under-21 football team
The Slovakia national under-21 football team, controlled by the Slovak Football Association, is Slovakia's national under 21 football team and is considered to be a feeder team for the Slovakia national football team.-European Under-21 Championship record:...
, the first of five under-21 caps. However, a back problem then a foot fracture wrecked his second season. In the three years that followed the success of 2002–03, he only played seven games for Wolves due to a variety of injuries.
The goalkeeper next played in January 2005 but soon suffered another break to his foot, ruling him out for a further year. By March 2006 he was fit enough to be sent on loan to Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers F.C.
Tranmere Rovers Football Club are an English team based in Birkenhead, Wirral. The club currently compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system...
, but was called back to Wolves within a month because of possible injuries to other goalkeepers.
He started his first game for Wolves in almost sixteen months on the final day of the season at Norwich City
Norwich City F.C.
Norwich City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. As of the 2011–12 season, Norwich City are again playing in the Premier League after a six-year absence, having finished as runner up in the Championship in 2010–11 and winning automatic promotion.The...
, and managed to retain his place at the beginning of the 2006–07 season, where he was largely accredited with Wolves' impressive start to the season, due to a catalogue of good performances allowing for five of their first seven games to end 1–0.
His performances were given further recognition as he won the PFA Championship Player of the Month award in December 2006, and, as the campaign ended, he was named in the Championship Team of the Year at the 2006–07 PFA Awards dinner and also voted the PFA Fans' Player of the Year for the division. He was also voted Wolves' Player of the Season as they reached the play-offs. The season ended on a sour note though as he broke his shoulder on the eve of his club's vital play-off game against local rivals .
After spending the summer recuperating from his shoulder injury, he suffered another setback from a cruciate (left) knee injury in pre-season training. He underwent two operations for this, and missed the whole of the 2007–08 campaign while undergoing rehabilitation with the aim of returning for the new season. However, inflammation in his knee then delayed his comeback further still. By the time he recovered, fellow academy graduate Wayne Hennessey
Wayne Hennessey
Wayne Robert Hennessey is a Welsh international footballer who plays for Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers as a goalkeeper.-Early career:...
had established himself as first choice.
In November 2008, he joined League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
Hereford United
Hereford United F.C.
Hereford United Football Club is an English professional football club based in the city of Hereford. Founded in 1924, they are competing in Football League Two in the 2011–12 season. Hereford have played at Edgar Street for their entire history and are nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites',...
on loan, but only played two full games before injury again struck suffering a ruptured patella tendon in his right knee during a match against .
In November 2009 Murray started his first game back for Wolves playing in a reserve game, but he felt discomfort in his knee and was substituted after just 23 minutes. This was to prove his last appearance in a Wolves shirt.
He announced his playing retirement on 26 August 2010 aged 29. In total he made 87 appearances for Wolves.
On 26 September 2010, at half-time in a match between Wolves and Aston Villa, he gave a speech to the crowd, announcing his retirement and thanking the fans. He has since continued working for Wolves in an "Ambassador" role while making occasional appearances on Sky Sports as a pundit.