Appointed CEO of the Reds this week, we've caught up with Dane Murphy to talk about his arrival and what it means for the future.
Having been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of Barnsley Football Club, it’s been a manic couple of days for 33-year-old Dane Murphy.
The Connecticut-born former professional footballer told us upon arrival that he’d been warmly received by all at Oakwell and that he couldn’t wait to get straight down to business.
“I’m both delighted and proud to be here,” he told barnsleyfc.co.uk
“The staff and people at the club have been great in welcoming me to Oakwell, very forthcoming and that’s helping me with the transition. It’s clear that there are good people working for Barnsley already and I’m looking forward to teaming up now and continuing that good work.
“I have good experience in the business side of football, particularly recruitment and that’s where my focus will be as of right now. The work that’s already been done in this current window has been excellent and we’ve a couple more pieces that we might look to get done before it closes.
“Roster management and bringing in talent to push teams forward, that’s what I love to do and the guys already here feel similarly, we have to keep moving forward and evolving.
“That is something I have to continue here, obviously. That is part of the reason that the board felt comfortable in bringing me here.”
Previously with Major League Soccer outfit DC United, Murphy told us that it was a long process in making the move across the pond, citing the board of directors at Oakwell casting their net far and wide in trying to recruit the best possible individual for an important role at the club.
As he explained: “It all started a few months ago when I got a call from the board. Once Gauthier (Ganaye) had moved on, our Chairman, Paul Conway filled in admirably but yeah, I got the call and any American who gets the opportunity to work in English football is going to jump at it.
“I see it as an exciting challenge.
“Did I expect to get to this executive level at such an historic club, so soon? No, I didn’t. But I’ve put in the work and that’s been noticed and here I am, and I’m determined to make a success of this next step in my career.”
In making that step, more than 5,000 miles from home, Murphy is aware of the challenges ahead.
But having already spent a number of years in Europe during his playing days he’s fully prepared for what’s in store and isn’t going to be alone in Barnsley.
“My immediate family are all in the States,” Dane explained. “But I’ve brought my fiancée over with me, Melissa. It’s a big leap and if I was coming over myself things would be a little bit heavier on the shoulders, but having Melissa with me is great, helping me with the load.
“The club’s been great about everything. From the first moment they’ve been so helpful in making it easier as I settle in.
“In my short time within the Barnsley community it is quite clear that nothing is given, and everything is earned. And I have the same values of hard work as the Barnsley supporters so I see good things for us moving forward.”
Although the Reds are making the step up, back into the Sky Bet Championship this season, Murphy is clear that the club has bigger goals, but that it will take a lot of effort and aren’t expecting overnight success.
“We want to keep on improving the roster, it’s about success as a team and constantly improving, year-on-year. We believe we’ve built an exciting squad of players this summer and in Daniel (Stendel) we have an enthusiastic and talented coach.
“We want to push for the Premier League, but we know that the immediate priority has to be retaining our Championship spot.
“It’s about recruiting players who fit our philosophy, that Daniel can develop and players that can be a success for us as a football club. We feel we’ve a good strategy in place to meet our immediate demands and then to push forward and hopefully challenge for promotion in the near future.”
