Kerry not unstoppable, stresses Kennedy

BRIAN Kennedy believes a number of counties are capable of halting Kerry’s march to a second successive All-Ireland title in 2026.

The Kingdom stormed to Sam Maguire Cup triumph this year, disposing of four Ulster teams as they charged through the knock-out phase.

Jack O’Connor’s rampant men were unstoppable, easing past Cavan, Armagh, Tyrone and Donegal with an average winning margin of ten points.

“Kerry showed last year that they can give any team their fill of it on any given day, but I don’t think there’s a big massive gap between any county in the top five or six,” said Tyrone captain Kennedy.

“Kerry hit form at the right time last year when they got to Croke Park, with their kicking game and their forwards hitting form, they were definitely hard to stop.

“But there could be a lot of teams chasing them down this year and hopefully the gap will close.”

Of the four northern counties crushed by Kerry, it was the Red Hands who ran them closest, losing their semi-final clash by six points, and Kennedy feels they should have pushed them harder.

“On reflection, Kerry played very well, but I just don’t think that we were at the level that we could have got to, and that’s totally down to ourselves.

“Hopefully we’ll learn from that and if we get to that stage again this year, we’ll prove ourselves better.”

Tyrone’s relegation to Division Two was a bitter pill to swallow, but reflections on the 2025 season paint a much brighter picture, according to the former All-Star midfielder.

“It wasn’t a bad year, there were some good performances, but there was the odd poor performance whenever it mattered most.

“Getting relegated was probably the toughest to take, after showing well enough in the league.

“We just couldn’t get over the line in a few games, and then ultimately, in the semi-final of the All-Ireland, we didn’t do ourselves any favours or show up to the level that we knew we could perform to.

“So it’s back to the drawing board this year, but with a lot of good points to work on, and build on those showings from last year.”

Uncertainty surrounds the futures of veteran campaigners Mattie Donnelly and Peter Harte, now both 35, but Kennedy feels they still have plenty to offer.

“Those men have given plenty to Tyrone and the door is always there for them.

“They’re still training away, you know what they’re like themselves, and it’s totally up to them men to make the decision.

“You know how much they love the county, it would be great to have them around the place.”

The Red Hand skipper welcomed the GAA’s decision to restore pre-season competitions to the fixtures calendar, which for Tyrone has set up a Friday night lights Dr McKenna Cup opener against Armagh on January 2.

“Talking to a few of the lads, they’re all in favour of it. This time last year, when it wasn’t there, you were going and playing friendlies anyway.

“So it’s good to get out and get good Ulster competition, there’s some quality teams there and you’re not going to get any better games, and you’ll get a good crowd, a bit of atmosphere, and it’s good preparation for the league.”

Manager Malachy O’Rourke will use the competition to assess a number of new recruits, including graduates from two All-Ireland winning U20 teams, some of whom made their senior debuts in a charity friendly against Fermanagh earlier this month.

“Everybody is adapting well, there’s plenty of lads putting their hands up.

“It probably wasn’t the best night for football, but it was good and entertaining. Fermanagh showed well too, it was a good game played in good spirit.”

Tyrone launch their 2026 Bank of Ireland Dr McKenna Cup campaign with a stand-alone fixture which is certain to attract a huge crowd to the Athletic Grounds on Friday June 2 for the clash with Armagh.

Their second group game will be played at Plunkett Park, Pomeroy on Sunday January 11.

Meanwhile, the county’s U20 team will begin the defence of their Ulster and All-Ireland titles in late March, when the provincial championship gets under way in a round robin format.

Legendary Tyrone attacker Stephen O’Neill has joined Paul Devlin’s U20 management team ahead of another push for major honours in 2026.

The Red Hands are going for a third successive All-Ireland title, and former Footballer of the Year O’Neill is a valuable addition to the coaching set-up.

The Clann na nGael clubman has established an impressive reputation as a coach since the end of his inter-county playing days, spending spells with the Tyrone, Antrim and Cavan senior squads.

The Tyrone U20s’ defence of the Ulster and All-Ireland titles is due to begin in the third week of March, when the provincial championship will get under way with a round robin phase, leading into the knock-out rounds.

Stephen O’Neill was one of the game’s greatest attackers and part of a golden generation of footballers who brought unprecedented success to Tyrone during the noughties.

He was an All-Ireland winner at minor and U21 level, before embarking on a glorious senior career which saw hm terrorise defences the length and breadth of Ireland with his sublime skills and awesome finishing ability.

He helped Tyrone to three All-Ireland titles in the noughties, winning three All-Star awards, and was voted Footballer of the Year in 2005. He also won five Ulster SFC titles and two National Football League crowns.

And at 45 years of age, he continues to showcase his talents on the field of play, winning four successive All-Ireland Masters titles with Tyrone, the most recent just a couple of months ago.

O’Neill, who has been part of the Cavan senior backroom team for the past two seasons, replaces Diarmaid McNulty, who has stepped down due to family and club commitments with Gortin.

Stats and analysis specialist Leo Green of Killyclogher has also stepped away, and is replaced by Shane Coyle from the Greencastle club.

Existing coaches Cathal McCarron and Connor O’Donnell, both from the Omagh club, are to continue in their roles.

Manager Devlin has ensured a steady stream of quality recruits to the county senior squad over the past eight years, with another batch from the 2025 group having been called up in recent weeks by Malachy O’Rourke.

Under-age football has been thriving in Tyrone in recent seasons, and the county currently holds both Minor and U20 titles.