Latest news with #EamonDunphy
The Irish Sun
03-08-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Inside Eamon Dunphy's family life and career with wife Jane, kids, grandkids and most explosive comments on RTE TV
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. 7 Eamon Dunphy has turned 80 Credit: Cody Glenn / SPORTSFILE 7 He was part of RTE's iconic punditry team alongside Johnny Giles, Bill O'Herlihy and Liam Brady, not pictured Credit: Matt Browne/Sportsfile 7 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. 7 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. 7 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. 7 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."
Extra.ie
03-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Extra.ie
Inside the personal life of Eamon Dunphy on milestone birthday
Broadcasting legend Eamon Dunphy is celebrating a milestone birthday this weekend as he enjoys his retirement from punditry on RTÉ. The former journalist and author stepped back from his punditry duties on the public service broadcaster in 2018 but is still regularly expressing his opinions on all things sport. Earlier this year, the sports star took to the stage for Three Wise Men alongside fellow legends Liam Brady and Johnny Giles. Broadcasting legend Eamon Dunphy is celebrating a milestone birthday this weekend as he enjoys his retirement from punditry on RTÉ. Pic: Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE Eamon is well known for his strong opinions which can be both hilarious and controversial at times, but what do we know about the Dubliner's personal life? take a look… Eamon has been married twice — first marrying Sandra Tinsley when he was 21 years old in 1966. The Dublin native had a Catholic upbringing, and has often recalled going to Mass with his mother every morning from the age of seven years old. As Sandra was a Protestant, Eamon's faith was impacted after he was told by a priest in London to marry an Irish girl instead of Sandra, who he he had said was 'not a proper person.' The couple lived in London and had two children, Tim and Colette, with both now having kids of their own, making Eamon a grandfather. Following the demise of his first marriage, Eamon returned to Ireland and spent two years in Castletownshend in Cork. Eamon Dunphy with his daughter Colette and wife Jane in 2009. Pic: VIPIreland In 1992, Eamon met RTÉ commissioning editor Jane Gogan in the Horseshoe Bar, Dublin. The pair had a lengthy relationship before tying the knot at the Unitarian Church on St Stephen's Green on September 2009. Following his departure from RTÉ, Eamon went on to have his own podcast, The Stand with Eamon Dunphy, which Jane produced. In 1992, Eamon met RTÉ commissioning editor Jane Gogan in the Horseshoe Bar, Dublin. The pair had a lengthy relationship before tying the knot at the Unitarian Church on St Stephen's Green on September 2009. Pic: Cathal Burke / The podcast is currently on a break, with the last episode uploaded dating back to December 2024. The couple live in Ranelagh and also have a holiday home in France. Eamon shares two children, Tim and Colette, with his first wife Sandra. In 2009, Colette married her now-husband Jeff Kane, with the couple going on to have two sons. Their eldest son, Braiden, was born with a condition called hypoplastic left-heart system. It is understood, Tim also has children with Eamon previously opening up on one of his grandchildren emigrating to Australia. Speaking to the Sunday Independent last year, Eamon detailed how his grandson had 'broke' the news to his parents, getting emotional as he admitting 'it's hard.'
The Irish Sun
03-08-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
‘Mortified' Eamon Dunphy admits viral RTE punditry moment was ‘sackable offence' that was ‘horrendous thing to say'
'DESPERATE' 'Mortified' Eamon Dunphy admits viral RTE punditry moment was 'sackable offence' that was 'horrendous thing to say' EAMON DUNPHY admitted his infamous rant about Rod Liddle should have been a "sacking offence". The outspoken Dubliner unforgettably referred to the journalist as "the guy who ran away and left his wife for a young one" on live RTE TV. Advertisement 2 Eamon Dunphy infamously referred to Rod Liddle as 'the guy who ran away and left his wife for a young one' 2 He admitted it should have been a sacking offence Credit: Cody Glenn / SPORTSFILE It came amid a debate with host Bill O'Herlihy following Roy Keane's acrimonious Manchester United exit in 2005, with Dunphy leaping to the Corkman's defence. The late great O'Herlihy referred to an article written by Liddle about Keane, which prompted the Dunphy outburst. Seventeen years later, the former pundit considers it among his biggest career regrets, calling it "horrendous". Speaking to The Irish Mirror on his 80th birthday, he said: 'It was a horrendous thing to say (live on air). That was insane. Advertisement 'I apologised to Rod on Liveline. He accepted my apology. 'I was mortified at myself." Dunphy revealed he met Liddle years later, with the journalist responding to the jibe with aplomb. He added: 'I spoke to him in the not too distant past. He said 'by the way that young one I ran off with, I married her and we are still together'. Advertisement 'That was a sacking offence but I wasn't sacked.' Since leaving RTE in 2018, Dunphy has maintained his role as an opinionated analyst of the beautiful game through his Mirror columns. Irish comedian Gary Cooke blows fans away with musical impression of Eamon Dunphy In recent times, Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson has been on the receiving end of his tirades. However, he seemed to have changed his tune after Ireland drew 1-1 with Senegal at the start of June. Advertisement They had taken the lead through Kasey McAteer before Ismaila Sarr's late equaliser. It could have been more, with Hallgrimsson suggesting VAR would have disallowed the equaliser had it been in place due to a Senegalese player being in Caoimhin Kelleher's eye-line from an offside position. Eamon Dunphy has been a vocal critic of Hallgrimsson, claiming he was "out of his depth" back in March after the Nations League relegation play-off win over Bulgaria. But after the draw, he praised the Icelander for making Ireland hard to beat against a side ranked 19th in the world. Advertisement Writing for the Irish Mirror, he said: "Let's give praise where it is due: Ireland were hard to play against last night. "They were easy on the eye, too, and easy to like, producing a display that reminded you of everything we like to pride ourselves on as a football nation."
Irish Daily Mirror
02-08-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
'I wouldn't write for The f*****g Irish Times' - Eamon Dunphy at 80
Eamon Dunphy is asked about a picture on his sitting-room wall. It's of his younger self, taken when he was in his athletic prime, aged between 30 and 32. Later, when we move to his kitchen and are chatting over cups of tea, he interestingly moves the conversation away from that period in his life, even though the photo depicts a smiling face of a man who has just scored a goal. Rather than talk about that, he steers the chat to something else, to three moments in his life when he stood at career crossroads. The first was in 1965. He had just turned 20, and his time with Manchester United was coming to an end. Birmingham City, then a top-tier club in the English football pyramid, were willing to pay £8,000 for him. Dunphy, instead, was sold to Third Division York City for half that amount, no explanation given by the United manager, Matt Busby. 'I'd hazard a guess that Busby had a payday from York,' Dunphy says now. 'I found out real quick after my move there that Birmingham wanted me. I was stiffed.' It wasn't the last time. A few years later he was at Millwall, living in a semi-detached house in south London, earning £30-a-week. Tottenham Hotspur called. They were the top club in London at the time, prepared to quadruple Dunphy's wages. But the Millwall board blocked the move. Read more: Eamon Dunphy column: We now have a team good enough to qualify for World Cup Read more: Eamon Dunphy column: Our League's future is bright, Ian Harte can f*** off! 'Had that transfer happened, my life would have changed,' he says. 'Millwall owned the house I lived in which was a terrible situation because it meant if you lost form, you could lose your job and also your fucking home. As a footballer, you lived with this permanent kind of fear.' There's a reason why he tells this and other stories, like when, in 1978, he realised he had to give journalism and punditry a try because the alternative was seeing his children go hungry. "Look at me now," he smiles, "still at it." It's Thursday morning. Jane, his wife, has gone to town. He kissed her on the cheek before she left, hugging her gently. It wasn't a gesture done for show, more a story of genuine affection. 'She's strong, she's fun, we're very close, we're very happy, I'm very lucky,' Dunphy says. Then he laughs. 'For God's sake, she's been able to manage me!' RTE's head of drama Jane Gogan with husband Eamon Dunphy Tomorrow Jane will cook lunch for her husband's 80th birthday. His children and grandchildren will come to visit and this elderly man who has spent 60 years in the public eye will celebrate the occasion in the privacy of his own home. The following day he returns to work, for his 23rd season as The Star's football analyst. He will be eighty years and one day old yet still hungry for work. 'My father was 65 when he was forced to retire,' Dunphy says. 'It hurt him. It was his identity. He loved work. He lived a further ten years but they weren't happy ones. I'll always remember that because I'm like that, in that work is part of my identity, too. I love it. It has never been a drag. It intrigues me; it occupies me. Mentally, it's good for me. 'What's the alternative? That I sit here all day and stare at the four walls? No. Not for me. I like The Star. I like The Star's readers. Put it this way, I wouldn't write for the fucking Irish Times.' He laughs at his insult. That's a constant theme in your conversations with Dunphy. His public persona is of him spitting anger at sporting injustices, at the player who doesn't track back, the manager who makes maddening decisions, the anchorman who challenges his opinion. Yet privately he's different, well able to laugh at himself, aware of his own flaws as well as his mortality. 'Well none of us are getting out of this gig alive,' he says. While he harbours a permanent sadness about the family and friends who have gone before him, there isn't a hankering for past glory days or a grim realisation he has had more yesterdays than he will have tomorrows. Instead he says: 'I'm very content. I've been blessed. I feel grateful for everything God has given me. I pray every night. I don't ram my religion down people's throats. But I do my best to be a good person. 'When I was younger, I was a bit of a lad, a rogue. I liked a jar. I used to do a bit (he sniffs at his fist). It has been a colourful time.' Eamon Dunphy pictured at his home ahead of his 80th birthday (Image: Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin) What differs Dunphy to so many other former players and athletes is that he contentedly lives in the present rather than mourns an inability to retrieve his past. And there are two reasons for this. The first is that his playing days were never that great, spent meandering around England's lower leagues, playing for modest wages and immodest managers. Then there is the quiet pride in what he achieved as a journalist, best-selling author and pundit, namely a wealth and a respect which never came his way on the playing field. At 80, he is still in demand, and is about to write his sixth book. 'I'm full of energy,' he says, looking forward rather than reflecting on the 40 years he had as soccer pundit on RTE, broadcast host or newspaper columnist. He says: 'When we were on RTE, myself, John (Giles), Liam (Brady) with Bill (O'Herilly), we were on for an hour before the game and half an hour after it because there was a demand for us to get that amount of screentime. "We showed respect to the viewers because they wanted to know what was going on. 'The passion you see from me, that comes from my father, Paddy. He loved sport, hurling especially but he was a soccer fan, too. He bought the papers every day; he listened to the radio and waited for the moments when the analysts came on. Because he wanted an insight, enlightenment and a bit of craic. 'So having spent so long, like decades, as an outsider, by the time I got to be on the inside, there was no way I was going to turn my back on the people like my da. 'I wasn't going to be a spoofer. I was going to do my best to make the game understandable and to tell the truth.' He laughs when you ask if he ever hyped things up to stay relevant. 'Ha! We hyped things down. 'I said it as it was but the others would have said a lot more when they were sitting around off air with a drink. 'Not everyone agreed with me but I was well able to speak up for myself.' One such time was when Graeme Souness, football's hard man, eyeballed him in the RTE studio. 'Who have you ever managed?' Souness asked. Straight away Dunphy replied: 'I've managed to stay alive for 63 years baby!' The subsequent 17 years have been busy if a little less contentious. These days he is a creature of habit, waking early, exercising mid-morning after his daily stroll to buy the Racing Post. He likes an afternoon siesta and a late supper, takes twice yearly health checks and 'cannot wait' for the new football season. But that must wait because this man of 79 years and 364 days is in a rush. He has cakes to buy for the guests who arrive tomorrow, slapping you playfully on the shoulder as you step out of his hallway. Still alive, baby! Still going strong. Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts.
Irish Times
31-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Ciarán Murphy: Kerry have pointed us to Gaelic football's bright future
All-Ireland football final morning, and as I sit in my car, I think 'isn't it lovely not to have your own county involved, waking up with a knot in your stomach, up to high doh trying to arrange a last-minute ticket collection'. And then the feeling comes, a half-second after that. No, that's absolutely wrong. I'd kill to be from Donegal or Kerry right now ... or more accurately, I'd kill for Galway to be involved again this year. I was a non-combatant last Sunday, so I didn't have any of those intense emotions churning away. But the All-Ireland final purports to be a celebration of the sport that everyone can take part in. This is reflected in the ticketing system, which is obviously a key point of discussion before every hurling and football final. Where do all the tickets go? There will always be a few that end up in the hands of the spivs and bluffers of the nation, to channel my inner Eamon Dunphy. But every club in Ireland gets a couple, so they have a chance to have a presence at the Big Show. Nothing established Paul Mescal's GAA bona fides quite like the moment during the All-Ireland hurling final when he admitted on the BBC to feeling guilty at taking two tickets in a corporate box for his dad and himself, swiping them from fans much more deserving than he. I don't think that two bucks from Puckaun were going to get into the corporate box if Paul had said he couldn't make it, but even this generosity of spirit didn't insulate him from some social media brickbats. I always find that sort of reaction intensely amusing. In any case, I may not have been nervous on Sunday morning, but I was excited. This was an All-Ireland final with a lot on the line. There were Kerry and Donegal's very specific motivations, obviously, but more generally there was a feeling that we needed to see something to round off the summer in a style that befitted that which had preceded it. Was the entire sport on trial? That would be both a rampant overstatement of the facts, and also a vague feeling those of us who care about the sport had bubbling along under the surface. In the same way that the desire for change was based on far more than just a terrible All-Ireland last year, the enthusiasm and outright joy at how the early stages of the championship had gone would not have dissipated after a poor final this year. Kerry fans can claim vindication after the All-Ireland final. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho But it would nevertheless be useful to give everyone a cracker before the intercounty action ends. That was my main emotion as I walked into the ground, silently bemoaning the colour clash that led to the vague sense that we were walking into a sporting event with only one team playing. I took my seat in the upper Hogan, and with five minutes to go before throw-in, the seat beside me was still unused. This would hardly last much longer ... and it duly didn't. Striding up the steps, towards my seat with a sense of inevitability, was a former Galway All-Ireland winner. Having sourced my ticket a long way from Galway, I was a little bowled over by the coincidence. Pádraic Boyce was a breakout, scene-stealing star of A Year 'Til Sunday, Pat Comer's groundbreaking documentary following Galway's All-Ireland final win in 1998. I remembered him more as the funniest player and the biggest talker on the Galway under-21 teams that my dad was a selector with in the early 1990s. Within seconds we were talking about the All-Ireland final Galway had lost to Tyrone in 1992, trying to remember if Peter Canavan had gone bald before he'd even reached 21. Pádraic's father is a Donegal man, and he had grown up in Gweedore, so he was by no means a neutral. The woman on the other side of me was from Offaly, teaching in Limerick, and about to get married to a man from Castleisland in Kerry. She was wearing a Kerry jersey, which to Pádraic and I seemed a little like she was trying too hard to impress the in-laws. But she may have felt like throwing her lot in with Kerry would be easier and more productive in the long run. You could hardly blame her. That the game wasn't a classic had nothing to do with Kerry. Instead of a battle of wills, we got a clinic in how to play Gaelic football 2.0. They were quite simply exceptional, and David Clifford was otherworldly. The entire day was one of those occasions in Croker where it was a pleasure to be there, a reminder of what's important, and a vindication of what makes it a day for everyone, not just the hardcore support from both counties. Support is a fluid concept – something you're born into before being taken away from, or something you marry into. We don't need to gatekeep these things. The sandbox games continue. The passage of play before half-time as Kerry held on to the ball waiting for the hooter may have had Jim Gavin shifting uneasily in his seat, but the answer to that is a style issue, not a rule issue. The tinkering may not be done just yet, but all of a sudden the sport's future is something to look forward to.
