James Murphy (soccer, born 1997)

American soccer player

James Murphy

Personal information
Full name|  James Vincent Murphy
Date of birth|  (1997-09-17) September 17, 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth|  Scotch Plains, New Jersey, United States
Height|  5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Position(s)|  Midfielder
Team information

Current team

|  Indy Eleven
Youth career
2005–2016|  Players Development Academy
Senior career*
Years|  Team|  Apps|  (Gls)
2016–2018|  Sheffield Wednesday|  0|  (0)
2018|  Los Angeles FC|  0|  (0)
2018|  → Las Vegas Lights (loan)|  7|  (0)
2019–2020|  Arbroath|  17|  (0)
2020–2021|  Rio Grande Valley FC|  36|  (0)
2022–2023|  Monterey Bay|  57|  (1)
2024|  Detroit City|  32|  (0)
2025–|  Indy Eleven|  0|  (0)
International career
2015|  United States U20|  5|  (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of January 29, 2025

James Murphy (born September 17, 1997) is an American soccer player who plays as a midfielder for USL Championship club Indy Eleven.

Murphy grew up in Scotch Plains, New Jersey and attended Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, where he was named as the 2013–14 Gatorade New Jersey Boys Soccer Player of the Year.[1]

## Club career

[edit]

### United States

[edit]

Murphy came through the ranks at the Players Development Academy in his home state of New Jersey. He played for the United States under-20 team during the 2015 Stevan Vilotic Tournament and 2015 Four Nations Tournament. Also in 2015, Murphy went on trial with the Philadelphia Union of MLS but ended up not signing with the club.[2]

### Sheffield Wednesday

[edit]

Murphy signed a professional contract for Sheffield Wednesday in June 2016.[3]

In August 2016 he made his first team debut for the club, coming on as a substitute as Wednesday lost to Cambridge United in the first round of the Football League Cup.[4]

### Los Angeles FC

[edit]

Murphy joined MLS side Los Angeles FC on March 2, 2018, ahead of their inaugural season.[5] On May 22, 2018, he made his LAFC debut in a friendly against Borussia Dortmund.

### Las Vegas Lights FC

[edit]

Murphy joined USL side Las Vegas Lights FC on June 22, 2018, on a short-term loan. He had his first assist in his debut with the club on June 24, 2018, against Swope Park Rangers.

### Arbroath

[edit]

After a trial spell, Murphy signed with Scottish Championship club Arbroath in July 2019.[6]

### Rio Grande Valley FC

[edit]

In July 2020, returned to the United States, joining USL Championship side Rio Grande Valley FC.[7]

### Monterey Bay FC

[edit]

Murphy signed with USL Championship expansion side Monterey Bay FC on February 8, 2022.[8] Murphy was included in the starting 11 for Monterey Bay's inaugural match, a 4–2 loss to Phoenix Rising FC.[9] Murphy's contract option was declined following the 2023 USL Championship season.[10]

### Detroit City FC

[edit]

Murphy signed a two-year contract with Detroit City on January 25, 2024.[11] Detroit declined his contract option following their 2024 season.[12]

### Indy Eleven

[edit]

Murphy joined Indy Eleven on January 29, 2025.[13]

## Personal life

[edit]

Murphy has an older sister, Casey, and two younger brothers, John and Owen. Both brothers also play soccer, with John Murphy being a player for Forward Madison FC, and Owen being of the Montclair University soccer team.

## Career statistics

[edit]

As of June 17, 2022
Club  | Season  | League  | Cup  | League Cup  | Other  | Total

|
|
|
|
|
|

Division  | App  | Goals  | App  | Goals  | App  | Goals  | App  | Goals  | App  | Goals
Sheffield Wednesday | 2016–17[14] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0
2017–18[15] | Championship  | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
Total  | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0
Los Angeles FC | 2018[16] | Major League Soccer | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
Las Vegas Lights FC (loan)  | 2018[16] | USL Championship | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0
Arbroath | 2019–20[17] | Scottish Championship | 17 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2[a] | 0 | 22 | 0
Rio Grande Valley | 2020 | USL Championship | 11 | 0 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 5
2021 | USL Championship | 25 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 50
Total  | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 57
Monterey Bay FC | 2022 | USL Championship | 14 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1
Career total  | 74 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 81 | 112

1. ^ Appearance in the Scottish Challenge Cup

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Bernstein, Jason. "James Murphy of Scotch Plains is named Gatorade New Jersey Boys Soccer Player of the Year", The Star-Ledger, February 13, 2014. Accessed August 10, 2016. "On the soccer field Scotch Plains' James Murphy has the ability to anticipate just about anything that comes his ways. Despite an already lengthy list awards, he did not expect to be named the 2013–14 Gatorade New Jersey Boys Soccer Player of the Year."
2. ^ "2015 Stevan Vilotic Tournament". www.ussoccer.com.
3. ^ "U.S. U-20 midfielder James Murphy joins Sheffield Wednesday". www.sbisoccer.com. July 14, 2016.
4. ^ "Report: Cambridge United 2–1 Sheffield Wednesday". www.bbc.co.uk. August 9, 2016.
5. ^ "LAFC Announces Inaugural Roster Prior To Start Of MLS Season | Los Angeles Football Club". www.lafc.com. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
6. ^ "James Murphy". Arbroath FC. Retrieved July 28, 2019.
7. ^ "RGV Fc Sign Three Players Prior to Usl Championship Kickoff". July 9, 2020.
8. ^ Vargo, Steven (February 8, 2022). "MONTEREY BAY F.C. SIGNS FORMER RIO GRANDE VALLEY FC MIDFIELDER JAMES MURPHY". montereybayfc.com. Retrieved February 8, 2022.
9. ^ "PHOENIX RISING VS. MONTEREY BAY 4 - 2". soccerway.com. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
10. ^ "Monterey Bay Football Club Announces 2024 Roster Decisions". Monterey Bay Football Club | USL Championship. Retrieved January 19, 2024.
11. ^ "2024 USL CHAMPIONSHIP ROSTER UPDATES". DetCityFC.com. Detroit City. Retrieved January 25, 2024.
12. ^ "2025 USL Championship Roster Updates".
13. ^ "Indy Eleven Signs Midfielder James Murphy". IndyEleven.com. Indy Eleven. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
14. ^ "Games played by James Murphy in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
15. ^ "Games played by James Murphy in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
16. ^ a b James Murphy at Soccerway. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
17. ^ "Games played by James Murphy in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved July 31, 2019.

## External links

[edit]

* James Murphy at Soccerbase
* James Murphy at Soccerway

* v
* t
* e

Indy Eleven - current squad

* 2 O'Brien
* 3 Stanley
* 6 Lindley
* 8 Blake
* 10 Williams
* 14 Quinn
* 18 Collier
* 30 Ofeimu
* 32 Soumaoro
* 33 White
* 37 Neidlinger
* 41 Musa
* 99 Foster
* Amoh
* Brynéus
* Charles-Cook
* Hogan
* Kizza
* Rendón
* Siaha

* Head coach: McAuley
* Assistant coach: Rogers
* Assistant coach: Presser
* Goalkeeper coach: Swift

*[Apps]: League appearances
*[Gls]: League goals
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template