Murphy made his Connacht senior team debut on 22 February 2013, starting at inside centre against Welsh side Cardiff Blues in the 2012–13 Pro12, and played the full 80 minutes as Connacht came out winners by a score of 22–26. Before making his debut, Murphy had featured for the provinces's second tier developmental side, the Connacht Eagles, in the semi-professional British and Irish Cup. Murphy went on to make another six appearances for the senior side in the league campaign, all of these coming as starts.