Matt Murphy, Detective Sergeant from County Wexford Passed away at his home in Dublin recently. Matt Murphy (45), a native of Waddingtown, Cleariestown, suffered a heart attack last July. He was due to see a specialist on Friday, in advance of planned heart surgery. Sadly, he passed away at his home on Wednesday, leaving behind his devastated family; his loving wife Nuala and his two sons Luke (16) and Neil (14). A son of the late Matt and Peggy Murphy, he was born and raised in Waddingtown. His brother P.J sadly passed away last year also aged 45, while he is survived by his brother willie and his sister Anne, who both live locally. Matt attended Rathangan N.S and Bridgetown V.C. His talent as an athlete was evident from an early age and he competed in cross country races with Kilmore and Bree Athletics Clubs. However, it was at football that he really excelled. Matt represented his local club, St. Anne's, with distinction throughout his youth and into his early 20s. A speedy wing back, he went on to represent his county at under 21 level and later made some appearances for the Wexford senior football team. He always retained an interest in the GAA and particularly the fortunes of the Model County. He was a regular at Croke Park and was there to witness Wexford's recent All-Ireland Camogie Final win. After leaving school, Matt worked with local farmer Ned Codd and spent some time as an apprentice butcher at Fortune's in Wexford town and at Wallace's of Wellingtonbridge. However, he later enrolled at the Garda College in Templemore. Matt had two great loves in his life. First were his own family and second were his Garda family. Both were mixed of course as his beloved wife Nuala is an Inspector in Dublin. He was first stationed in Ballymun and his brother Willie said that he loved working there. When he was promoted he spent six months in Newcastle West in Limerick, then was transferred back to Dublin and spent a short time in Howth. However, before long, Matt was back in his beloved Ballymun Garda Station, where he spent the majority of his 24 years in the force. Matt possessed a great knowledge of the law and was a great friend and confidant to many of his colleagues, at all levels. He was hugely respected and admired by his colleagues, while, as evidenced at his funeral, he was also very much respected by those operating on the wrong side of the law in his area. A colleague told the Wexford People that Matt was 'a Detective Sergeant of the highest quality'. "He was a very competent individual. He was always very friendly and pleasant as well as very honest and straight. Matt was a man of the highest integrity," he said, adding that he will be sadly missed by all those who knew him. Matt was a proud family man, who loved his wife and two sons dearly. They lived in Glasnevin, not far from Nuala's home place and no matter how much he had on his plate, he was never too busy for his family. His Requiem Mass was celebrated in Our Lady of Victories Church in Ballymun on Saturday. The huge number of Gardai in attendance included Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy and Deputy Commissioner Fachtna Murphy, who will succeed Mr.Conroy in that role next November. There was also a large number of other senior Gardai in attendance, too many to mention, while local clergy who travelled up to Dublin included Fr. David Murphy, Fr. Jimmy Ryan, Fr. Tom Dalton, Fr. Fintan Morris and Fr. Paddy Stafford. Following his Requiem Mass, the funeral cortege set out for Cleariestown, led by an escort from the Garda Traffic Corps, with 6 outriders. They were joined by members of the Wexford/Wicklow Traffic Corps at Ferrycarrig. Matt was laid to rest in Cleariestown, where Fr.David Murphy, a former classmate of his, officiated. Guards of Honour were formed by St. Anne's GAA Club and his colleagues in An Garda Siochana. He was given an impressive send off by his Garda colleagues at what was a state funeral in every respect other than his beloved wife and his two sons were the chief mourners. Matt will be sadly missed by his wife Nuala, sons Luke and Neil, brother Willie, sister Anne, his many relatives, friends and colleagues in An Garda Siochana. Courtesy of the Wexford People. September 2007 Tweet

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