I’m conscious that I haven’t posted anything of substance since before the start of the national league campaign six weeks ago. Having made the journey to Roscommon at the end of January, I hoped despite a horrific performance in the McKenna Cup final defeat to Derry, that we were ready to put the hangover of 2022 behind us. Tyrone started poorly, albeit facing a tough breeze, I was still confident we would turn it around in the second half with the wind at our backs. We started well, racing into a three-point lead, spurred a goal chance and then suddenly ran out of steam, shipping three goals in the process. After a tasty carvery in the Abbey Hotel and a few pints up the town in JJ Harlow’s, I was resigned to the prospect of facing another potentially sticky campaign.
It felt all too familiar. Roscommon was considered the easiest of the seven fixtures and we had dropped two points on day one. Tyrone were looking like slow starters again in 2023. Roscommon have proven since then that they were good value for the win, picking up three wins from three in the opening weeks of the league. Next up for Tyrone was a facile win over a Donegal side who look a shell of their former selves since losing captain Michael Murphy to retirement. No one took too much encouragement from this victory and that pessimism was well-founded with another two emphatic defeats in Connacht, to Galway in Tuam and Mayo in Castlebar, respectively. The Galway game was very poor. The Mayo game was even worse if we disregard the opening twenty minutes where we looked to be motoring well. Tyrone’s travelling support has been criticised and I must confess I wasn’t able to make either trip due to work commitments. There was some relief from not having to face the elements, but I still did not feel not too comfortable watching our full back-line torn asunder live, two weeks in a row on TG4.
Our support base at Healy Park has been relatively modest in recent times. I doubt I am alone in casting envious glances over at how Armagh’s supporters have turned the Athletic Grounds into a cauldron. Perhaps switching the odd match over to a venue in the east of the county could reinvigorate supporters or win back a few who rarely make the trip west anymore. The policy of switching games around the county seems to work better for Monaghan however than Donegal who very often can’t buy a win in Letterkenny or Ballyshannon.
Approaching Kerry’s visit to Omagh on Sunday, all the talk was of relegation. Optimism was certainly in short supply. Our record has been very strong against Kerry at home in the past and the sight of the green and gold jersey brought the best out of Tyrone once again. We weathered the storm early on with Seán O’Shea raising a green flag within minutes. But something looked different. Tyrone were fighting for this one. Chasing down ball. Attacking well. Tackling even better. It was the Tyrone of old. Mattie Donnelly has been phased into the year slowly, mostly appearing off the bench. He started here and was sensational, well deserving of the Man of the Match award. Joe Oguz had his best performance in a Tyrone shirt to date and Pádraig Hampsey had his best game in 18 months. David Clifford could only kick one score off him and converted just two frees. Our discipline was exceptional. It’s up to the lads now to prove this performance is the norm and not a flash in the pan like the false dawn of our win in Killarney last year.
Feargal Logan and Brian Dooher have a mammoth task going forward. First step is staying in the division which is in our hands if we beat Monaghan and Armagh. Expectations are generally high in Tyrone and they won’t be forgiven another year like 2022 in an extended championship with round robins after the provincial championships. The concern is not for a short championship – it’s for a prolonged one with jaded teams going through the motions. At times this year it has felt like year three of three. We have been weak defensively, conceding nine goals in five games. It’s crucial we reintegrate Ronan McNamee as soon as possible.
25 players have been used in the league thus far. Sadly Emmet McNabb walked away, likely due to a lack of gametime. Six players who featured in the McKenna Cup haven’t seen a minute of league action: Peter Óg McCartan, Liam Nugent, Dalaigh Jones, Benny Gallen, Rory Donnelly and Conor Cush. Management must keep the panel happier and hungrier. Subs must know chances will come their way when key players are out of form.
Worryingly Cathal McShane has struggled to regain the form he was showing in the early rounds of the McKenna Cup. We didn’t see him against Kerry but he is too good to be out of this team for long. Darren McCurry remains our most potent scoring threat but the continued development of Darragh Canavan is the most exciting thing I’ve seen this season to date. He is getting better and better. The introduction of his brother Ruairí from the bench in the last three games has also served to whet the appetite further. We are all hoping Sunday proves to be a turning point but time will tell. It was very encouraging and I’m sure a lot of us are feeling less dread ahead of the trip to Clones on Sunday week.
Tír Eoghain Abú!
Unofficial Tyrone 