This was published 7 years ago
Bob Murphy tips injured Western Bulldog Jordan Roughead to play in AFL grand final
By Andrew Tate
Get free Western Bulldogs news alerts sent to your mobile phone. Click here
Sidelined Western Bulldogs captain Bob Murphy says ruckman Jordan Roughead should recover from his eye bleed to play in the grand final against the Sydney Swans.
Roughead had a football kicked into his face in the preliminary final and has suffered vision problems this week, but Murphy said it seemed likely the big man would line up on Saturday.
"I'm not in those conversations but my gut feeling is that he plays," Murphy said on Fox Footy's 360. "I'm told the boys are tracking well ... I'd love to give you a bit of an analysis but they made me do laps on the outer wing."
Murphy acknowledged that in the absence of Roughead in the preliminary final against Greater Western Sydney, Tom Boyd had made a big contribution when asked to step into the ruck.
Jordan Roughead was forced out of the game after being hit by a ball at close range.Credit: Getty Images
"He was huge. I was actually watching and I got really worried in the third quarter, the wave of orange run and we were just able to hang on, led by Tommy, he was all heart," he said.
Murphy said after the emotion of the preliminary final, the Bulldogs were now fully focused on the task ahead.
"You've got to be authentic and you've got to be honest about your emotions and we all were that night," he said. "And that's how I felt and that's what a lot of us felt.
"You do snap back into business pretty quick because the prize at the end of this week is obvious to everyone. But it was huge, it is sort of beyond football in some ways."
The tears flow as Easton Wood and Bob Murphy of the Bulldogs celebrate after the preliminary final win.Credit: AFL Media/Getty Images
Murphy said his own tears after the match were the subject of some mirth at the Brownlow Medal count on Monday.
"I was there and I was coming out of the toilets and I bumped into Ross Lyon and he said 'how you going?' and I said, 'I'm good, I've stopped crying' and he said, 'Yeah good, I was going to teach you to just harden up'."