Brian Barry-Murphy (born 27 July 1978) is an Irish professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of club Cardiff City.
A defensive midfielder, Barry-Murphy began his career at his hometown club Cork City. In 1999, he moved to English club Preston North End, but began to establish himself in league football with loan spells at Southend United and Hartlepool United. He would go on to play for Sheffield Wednesday, and Bury before signing for local rivals Rochdale in 2010. Barry-Murphy also played for the Republic of Ireland twice at under-21 level.
Early life Barry-Murphy was born in Cork. His father, Jimmy, was a Gaelic footballer and hurler, and manager, who is widely considered to be one of the most iconic players in the history of Gaelic games.
Club career Brian Barry-Murphy has previously played for Cork City, Preston North End and Sheffield Wednesday as well as representing the Republic of Ireland at Under 21 level. He also had loan spells at Southend United and Hartlepool United. It was at Southend in which he scored his first goal in English football in a game against Leyton Orient. He scored the 1,000th goal for Bury in Tier 4 of the English Football League in a 2–2 draw with Wrexham. This made them the first club to score 1,000 goals in all four tiers of the league.
On 16 June 2010 Barry-Murphy agreed terms with Rochdale and signed a four-year contract in July. He scored his first and only goal for Rochdale in a 3–1 defeat at MK Dons on 5 November 2011. Barry-Murphy was club's first team coach, as well as retaining his registration as the club's senior outfield player.
Coaching career Rochdale Barry-Murphy was appointed Rochdale's caretaker manager in March 2019 following the sacking of Keith Hill. In April 2019 he was appointed permanent manager on a two-year contract. On 30 June 2021, Barry-Murphy resigned from his position as manager.
Manchester City Academy On 24 July 2021, Barry-Murphy was announced as the manager of the Manchester City Elite Development Squad (EDS).
On 8 July 2024, Barry-Murphy left the club after having a highly successful three-year spell in charge of City's EDS and Academy.
Leicester City In December 2024, Barry-Murphy joined Premier League side Leicester City in the role of first-team coach, supporting the newly appointed Ruud van Nistelrooy.
Cardiff City On 16 June 2025, Barry-Murphy was appointed head coach of League One side Cardiff City on a three-year deal. Sixteen points from an unbeaten first six matches saw him named EFL League One Manager of the Month for August 2025. He won the award for a second time for December, after five wins from six matches saw Cardiff finish the calendar year top of the table. On 18 April 2026, Barry-Murphy won promotion to the EFL Championship after Cardiff defeated Reading to confirm automatic promotion.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/live/c62lg2rpzjrt
Career statistics
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueFA CupEFL CupOtherTotal DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsPreston North End1999–2000Second Division10001010302000–01First Division1401030—1802001–02First Division401000—502002–03First Division200000—20Total210204010280Southend United (loan)2001–02Third Division8100000081Hartlepool United (loan)2002–03Third Division7020000090Sheffield Wednesday2002–03First Division1700000—1702003–04Second Division410201060500Total580201060670Bury2004–05League Two4562010104962005–06League Two4030010004132006–07League Two1401010101702007–08League Two3114010303912008–09League Two4221010404822009–10League Two461101030511Total21813906012024513Rochdale2010–11League One3201020103602011–12League One2211010202612012–13League Two80000010902013–14League Two30000000302014–15League One00000000002015–16League One10000010202016–17League One00000010102017–18League One0000000000Total661203060771Career total3781517014025043415
Managerial statistics
+ Managerial record by team and tenureTeamFromToRecordRochdale4 March 201930 June 2021For start date and record: For end date: Cardiff City16 June 2025PresentFor start date: For record:Total
Honours Individual EFL League One Manager of the Month: August 2025, December 2025 Manager
Cardiff City EFL League One runner-up: 2025-26
Personal life Barry-Murphy is married to broadcaster Sarah-Jane Crawford and they share 3 children together.
References
External links
Profile at the Cardiff City F.C. website