Matthew Murray Signs Professional Contract

Cork City FC are delighted to announce that academy player Matthew Murray has signed his first professional contract with the club.

The 16 year-old attacker has signed a three-year professional contract with City and he told CorkCityFC.ie that it was a dream come true: “I’m absolutely thrilled to sign my first professional contract with the club. I’ve really enjoyed my time at Cork City, working with Liam Kearney and the coaching staff here.”

“I would also like to thank my family, as well as my schoolboy coaches at Ringmahon Rangers and Corinthians for what they have done to help me progress in my career.” 

“I hope that this is only the start of my journey in professional football, and I know that I have a lot of hard work ahead of me, so it is up to me now to continue working hard and make the most of this opportunity.” 

City’s Head of Academy, Liam Kearney, welcomed the news as further evidence of the progress being made by the club’s academy set-up, commenting: “It’s absolutely great to see these young boys progressing. Matthew has had a really good year, both at academy level and with the international team as well, so he has gained a lot of experience as well. We see him as a player with a lot of potential and we are happy to be in position where we can put him on a long-term professional contract.”

“Our focus within the academy is to progress players forward and get them to the point where they are close to the first team, but also making sure they develop to a point where they are getting international call-ups as well. We had a number of players who came through the academy and made first team appearances this season, which was very pleasing to see. We have had four academy players sign pro contracts this season, and that is a key focus for us in the academy. It is important that we are in a position to be able to do this so that, when clubs do come calling, we are in a stronger position to make the academy sustainable in the long-term.”