Make or break for Tyrone

by Francis Mooney

TYRONE’S make or break trip to Croke Park sees them take on Dublin in this weekend’s All-Ireland Senior Football Championship quarter-final, their first straight knock-out tie of the series.

They face a massive challenge against the Dubs, who go into the eliminator buoyed by their preliminary quarter-final win over Cork last weekend.

Malachy O’Rourke takes a well prepared squad to Dublin for a season-defining clash, having had the luxury of two weeks of preparation, thanks to a table-topping round robin finish which enabled them to skip the preliminary quarter-finals.

They will have an edge in terms of recovery and freshness over their opponents, who are taking on their third fixture in as many weeks.

But the Red Hands know that they will have to hit top form at GAA Headquarters if they are to get over this hurdle and reach the last four for the first time since the All-Ireland winning year of 2021.

Tyrone are sweating on the fitness of wing back Michael McKernan, who suffered a shoulder injury in the early stages of the convincing win over Cavan, but O’Rourke is confident that anyone who comes in can do a solid job for the team.

Nothing less than a complete performance will be needed to secure the result that will give a massive lift to the Red Hand faithful.

Defensive resilience led by Padraig Hampsey, Rory Brennan and Niall Devlin can lay the foundation, but the balance could well be tipped by the outcome of the scramble for possession around the middle third.

Brian Kennedy and Conn Kilpatrick will look to come out on top in the aerial battle in this sector, while Kieran McGeary, Seanie O’Donnell and Ciaran Daly can mop up breaking ball to keep their side on the attack.

And quality ball to the front men will give Darragh Canavan and Darren McCurry the best possible opportunities to work their magic and rack up the scores.

Manager Malachy O’Rourke has his players thoroughly prepared for the onset of straight knock-out football as the All-Ireland Championship enters a critical phase.

“They're all knock-out now, but we feel that if we get our best performance, we can match anybody,” he said.

“But it's easy saying that, we'll just concentrate now on trying to put in a really good performance that'll give us a chance to get through to a semi-final.

“That's all we can do. That's all under our control and that's what we'll be going after.”

The Red Hand boss is hoping to see the benefits of a two-week lead-in to the game, having managed to avoid the preliminary quarter-finals by virtue of finishing top of their round robin group, while their opponents are taking on their third tie in as many weekends.

“It gives us a chance to get the bodies recovered and then get down and do really hard work because we know we have an awful lot to work on.

“Some things are good but there are other areas where it's not going to be good enough going forward so we have plenty of work to do as well.”

But the signs are strong that the Red Hands are beginning to find form and consistency following a mixed season which saw them take some time to get going following the appointment of a new manager.

“I suppose it's been an up and down season. We've mixed the good with the bad. The first day to get the two points in Donegal was a massive two points for us. The next day we were disappointed against Mayo,” said O’Rourke.

“It left us that we knew we had to come in and perform (against Cavan) and get the points if we wanted to be top of the group.

“That's what we did so we've no complaints. As I keep on saying, we know we've loads of work to do which isn't a bad place to be either, but we're very realistic as to where we are.”

And if the forward division can maintain the high scoring rate that saw them eclipse Cavan by 0-31 to 0-18, he will be happy.

“The boys missed very few chances I think at half-time. Our scoring efficiency was really, really high and so that was very pleasing.”

The steadying influence of the experienced Mattie Donnelly and Peter Harte is a key element of the Tyrone approach, and the pair are set to play important roles this weekend.

“There's no doubt, it's just everything they bring, not just on the pitch but just around the set-up as well.

“They don’t just have such great experience, but they're complete team players. They just do whatever's best for the team at all stages. They're a great influence to have around but they're still performing at a really high level on the field as well.

“It's great to have them and it's a nice mix there with the more experienced fellas and the younger lads.”

Tyrone could be without defender Michael McKernan due to a shoulder injury picked up in the early stages of the clash with Cavan at Brewster Park.

“It's a hard one to take so early in the game and he had started really brightly.

“He's been playing really well all year, he's been one of our most consistent performers and he's started the game really well as well.”

On a more positive note, the return of Conor Meyler after two injury-ravaged years was a massive boost for the Red Hands.

“People wouldn't realise the work Conor's put in behind the scenes, a lot of it hasn't even been on the pitch.

“He's gone through pure torment over the last couple of years but he didn't give in. He wanted to get back, get that jersey on and play for Tyrone again.

“We could see in the last number of weeks he was getting closer and closer and I was delighted to get him in.

“I thought he did well for the last 15 minutes so I'm delighted for him, and it's just a pure testament to his resilience.”

One rule change will have to be dealt with by Tyrone. The controversial kick-out mark rule has been changed following a vote taken by Central Council.

The Football Review Committee's (FRC) proposal to remove the 50-metre penalty for a player impeding a kickout mark and amend it to a free from where the offence takes place was passed by 38 votes to one. The change was implemented immediately, and was in operation for last weekend's All-Ireland SFC preliminary quarter-finals and Tailteann Cup semi-finals.