Inside Eamon Dunphy's family life and career with wife Jane, kids, grandkids and most explosive comments on RTE TV

The Irish Sun

6 days ago

Cristiano Ronaldo was on the receiving end of one of his most notorious barbs
FAR FROM DUN Inside Eamon Dunphy's family life and career with wife Jane, kids, grandkids and most explosive comments on RTE TV
EAMON DUNPHY has reached his latest life landmark after turning 80.
The former RTE pundit has lived a life of notoriety and is one of Ireland's most cherished sporting personalities.
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Eamon Dunphy has turned 80
Credit: Cody Glenn / SPORTSFILE
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He was part of RTE's iconic punditry team alongside Johnny Giles, Bill O'Herlihy and Liam Brady, not pictured
Credit: Matt Browne/Sportsfile
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From left, Ronnie Whelan, Liam Brady, John Giles, presenter Bill O'Herlihy, Eamon Dunphy, Graeme Souness, Ray Houghton, and Kenny Cunningham
Credit: David Maher / SPORTSFILE
He had a credible playing career including stints with Manchester United, Millwall, and Ireland.
But it was his presence on our TV screens that was the most iconic as he formed one part of the 'Three Amigos' alongside Johnny Giles and Liam Brady.
The trio were ably orchestrated by the late, great Bill O'Herlihy, with the group serving as mainstays on RTE TV during coverage of World Cups, Champions Leagues, and more.
Here, SunSport takes a look at the life behind Eamon Dunphy.
Where is Eamon Dunphy from?
Eamon Dunphy is a proud Dubliner, having been born there on August 3, 1945.
His early football education was within Dublin, as he played youth football with Stella Maris before moving to Manchester United in 1960 when he was just 15.
Dunphy opened up on his experience at Old Trafford during an episode of 'The Bookshop with Ryan Tubridy'.
And he revealed that despite the tenure being short-lived, he was able to strike a bond with Man Utd all-time great George Best.
He said: "I was at Manchester United for five years but I never ever got to play in the first team because George Best was playing, and Denis Law.
"George was a very close friend of mine and a bright guy.
Irish comedian Gary Cooke blows fans away with musical impression of Eamon Dunphy
"He was very quiet. George could sit on the coach for hours and say nothing but if you went to a disco with him, the girls were crazy.
"He loved girls and he loved - it killed him in the end - the fame and the adoration.
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The Republic of Ireland U23 team, back row, from left, Tommy Carroll, Paddy Mulligan, Al Finucane, Pat Dunne, David Pugh and Ray Treacy, front row, from left, Joe McGrath, Eamon Dunphy, Frank McEwan, Pat Morrissey, Frank McEwan and Eamonn Rogers
Credit: Connolly Collection / Sportsfile
"He was kind of the fifth Beatle, they dubbed him in the papers. He was very good looking.
"He had a kind of quiet way about him, a bit of mystery. We were good pals. We used to go dancing together."
After a brief stint with York City, it was with Millwall that he made his name on the pitch with over 270 appearances.
Dunphy went on to play for Charlton Athletic and Reading before ending his career with Shamrock Rovers, retiring with the League of Ireland club in 1978.
In addition to this, he won 23 caps with the Republic of Ireland, the last of which coming in 1971.
Is he married?
He is currently married to former RTE commissioning editor Jane Grugan, who he met in 1992 and married in 2009.
She is his second wife, having first tied the knot with Sandra when he was 21.
Having been brought up a Catholic, he was actively discouraged from marrying Protestant Sandra by a priest who described her as "not a proper person".
Dunphy followed through with the wedding and had two children from that first marriage - named Colette and Tim - while he is also a grandfather.
When his first marriage ended, he returned to Ireland and spent two years in Castletownshend in Cork.
When did he start with RTE?
Dunphy began his career with RTE working on the 1978 World Cup.
He was part of RTE's football coverage for the past four decades covering almost every Irish national team game across a number of European Championships and World Cups.
He left the broadcaster in 2018, typically causing shock and awe when the broadcaster did not expect him to issue his retirement statement.
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RTE's team for the 2018 World Cup
Credit: Matt Browne/Sportsfile
The then-72-year-old left RTE to focus on his podcast The Stand which he had been running since November 2016.
After nine years of the pod, Dunphy announced in January 2025 that it was taking a break "for the foreseeable future".
By the time he left RTE after the 2018 World Cup, Eamon had already collected a catalogue of iconic, explosive moments...
GOING 90
The earliest example we are providing of an explosive Eamon Dunphy moment was one that caused such a stir that it went viral before the age of social media.
At the 1990 World Cup, the Republic of Ireland drew 0-0 with Egypt, prompting a deflated Dunphy to say he was "embarrassed".
Speaking in the RTE studio afterwards, he said: "I felt embarrassed for soccer, embarrassed for the country, embarrassed for all the good players.
"I feel embarrassed and ashamed of that performance and we should be. Everyone in the country has been let down and most people won't understand.
"The Egyptians were terrible, they are terrible. We should be ashamed of how we went about the game."
He rounded out his condemnation by referring to great players of previous eras, including Johnny Giles who was sat beside him, before tossing his pen onto the desk with a grimace.
'HE'S A COD'
While many modern football fans refer to Cristiano Ronaldo as the GOAT, some on the Emerald Isle may opt for 'cod'.
That blistering putdown was made famous by Eamon Dunphy, who went scorched earth on Ronaldo in 2008.
After Manchester United had drawn 0-0 with Barcelona in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final, the Irishman was having none of CR7.
So when tasked with analysing the then-23-year-old, he held absolutely nothing back.
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Alex Ferguson and Cristiano Ronaldo
Credit: Getty
He fumed: "Ronaldo's performance tonight was a disgrace to football.
"Liam [Brady] doesn't want me to say this, because I'll get myself into trouble - it was a disgrace.
"It was a disgrace of petulance, temperament, throwing himself on the ground at least half a dozen times looking for fouls that he didn't get, claiming two penalties that he didn't get, waving his arms at other players on his own team.
"It was a disgrace to professional football.
"You asked before if this was about two great young players, [Lionel] Messi and Ronaldo.
"If it was, Messi proved himself after only 45 minutes football in the last six weeks, to be a real pro and a real player."
Dunphy then uttered the iconic line: "This fella Ronaldo is a cod."
SCARY TERRY
This was not the only scathing remark uttered by Dunphy in 2008, however.
That same year, Steve Staunton's exit as Ireland manager sparked a debate as to who should be his successor.
While Giovanni Trapattoni eventually got the nod, ex-England gaffer Terry Venables was also in contention.
Eamon accused the ex-England manager of being a shady character and said on RTE: 'Would you buy a used car from Terry Venables?'
Venable did not let remark go, telling The Irish Sun in 2008: 'My argument is not with the FAI - it's with Dunphy.
'He sits there on the ridiculous programme (on RTE) between two of the greatest players we've seen - Johnny Giles and Graeme Souness - and then you have a player like him.
'From what did he earn this grand position? I can't believe the people of Ireland take to him and listen to what he says.
'I don't normally respond to things like this but this guy is ridiculous.
'If it wasn't so serious it would be laughable. It's easy to have a go at me but it's crap.'
MAKING A ROD FOR HIS OWN BACK
Perhaps his single most iconic moment occurred in 2005.
With Roy Keane having acrimoniously left Manchester United, Dunphy and Bill O'Herlihy engaged in a heated debate.
Dunphy got more and more vociferous before O'Herlihy mentioned an article written by journalist Rod Liddle.
At this point, Dunphy issued the immortal line: 'He's the guy who ran off and left his wife for a young one!'
It is a remark that has lived with the Dubliner ever since, with Dunphy admitting it should have been a "sacking offence".
Speaking to The Irish Mirror on his 80th birthday, he said: 'It was a horrendous thing to say (live on air). That was insane.
'I apologised to Rod on Liveline. He accepted my apology.
'I was mortified at myself."