Footy club makes incredible gesture to star who was forced to retire aged 24 due to concussion
- Collingwood has made an incredible gesture to Nathan Murphy
- The defender was forced to retire at the age of 24
- He has received a ‘remarkable financial gesture’ from the Pies
Nathan Murphy has received a ‘remarkable financial gesture’ after the Collingwood star was forced to retire due to a series of concussions.
The 24-year-old defender announced his early retirement after being advised to do so by a panel of medical experts.
Murphy suffered his tenth concussion during the Magpies’ grand final over Brisbane, his last game in professional football. During a seven-year career he played 57 games.
Despite Murphy’s immediate future in jeopardy, Collingwood quietly extended his contract until 2025 last year, and following his decision this week they have decided to pay out the remainder of his deal.
“That retirement was accompanied by a remarkable financial gesture from the Pies, which I believe will total $1 million,” News Corp’s Jon Ralph said on Fox Footy’s Midweek Tackle.
Nathan Murphy has received a ‘remarkable financial gesture’ from Collingwood
The 24-year-old was forced to retire from football due to a series of concussions
News Corp reports that Murphy could receive as much as $1 million from the club
‘This year’s contract and next year’s. So while he was contemplating retirement over the summer, they gave him another one-year contract.
“Most people would say, ‘What were they thinking?’ They did it because they didn’t want him to feel forced to try to secure his financial future.
‘They actually didn’t want him to say, ‘Okay, I don’t have enough money, if I keep playing, maybe I can buy a house, a building or a business.’ They did that knowing that one concussion would likely end his career.”
Ralph gave his opinion along the way, believing that Collingwood did this in an attempt to convince Murphy to prioritize his health.
“My opinion is that they basically did that to get him to retire by saying, ‘Take the money even though we might have to pay for it out of pocket next year,'” he said.
“It turns out he was medically retired by the AFL on Saturday, which he had not been (previously). The AFL had cleared him medically (last) December, so there was significant risk to all that.
“He was still dealing with migraines and anxiety.”