Time for Tyrone enigma to deliver on potential

RTÉ News​

24-04-2025

We continue towards the provincial finals at breakneck speed.
Myself and Colm Cooper enjoyed our foray into the heart of Munster hurling country for the Clare-Cork game in Ennis. We got to sample the drama from the terrace before making our way to the RTÉ gantry for the second televised game. The locals made a point of sympathising with us for having to analyse football right after the Clare comeback.
Naturally, the banter was flowing between the Gooch and the away supporters over the previous evening's close shave in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. If he heard "you were lucky last night, boy!!", he heard it a thousand times.
It was probably a sobering weekend overall for the Cork support. After frittering away a glorious opportunity to take down Kerry on Saturday, they were being handed Liam MacCarthy by half-time last Sunday, only to be reeled in over the course of a breathless second half.
If I could pinpoint one error the Cork hurlers made last Sunday... only kidding. You won't have to endure any hurling analysis from me. We'll leave that to Dalo and Donal Óg, although they probably had a job composing themselves to go back on the air after full-time.
It was a rousing effort from John Cleary's side the night before which has re-invigorated the Munster championship. But coming away from it, their main emotion will surely be regret.
Cork had most of the momentum in extra-time and dominated possession but their accuracy let them down in the endgame.
They had been making hay on the two-pointers earlier on - Brian O'Driscoll becoming a real specialist in that area - but started blazing wides when the game was there for them, not to mention Colm O'Callaghan's gilt-edged goal chance which he dragged wide of the far post.
Cleary said afterwards that their fighting spirit had been questioned and they brought an aggression and ferocity in contact that we haven't seen much in the game, of late. Conditions made handling difficult and there was no shortage of turnovers. Paudie Clifford's sending off - a yellow all day long - contributed to Kerry losing control of the game in the fourth quarter.
Jack O'Connor is a broken record reminding the media that Cork-Kerry games have been more competitive than most people imagine and he took the opportunity to do so again after the match.
It's true that last year's game in Killarney was only three points in the finish but it never felt like a shock was in the offing and Kerry were always in control of that game. Last Saturday evening was an entirely different story.
It flagged up a few issues for Kerry, particularly on the defensive end. They gave up a huge number of two-point scoring opportunities and you'd wonder whether their sitting too deep in defence. (In Carrick, Leitrim were happy to give up two-point scoring opportunities to Mayo, correctly guessing that they wouldn't take them - but more on that next week...)
Still, Kerry got out of dodge thanks to some brilliance from Joe O'Connor and a gorgeous hand-pass from Gavin White. As Gooch reminded his friends from Cork on Sunday afternoon.
D-Day for Tyrone
Armagh-Tyrone in the Ulster championship is as close as provincial football gets to the furnace of the Munster hurling championship.
It feels like a huge game, especially from Tyrone's perspective. It feels like it's time for them to deliver on their potential after three years of false starts. And they have a big opportunity against an Armagh side who are afflicted with an injury crisis.
Tyrone have been the enigma of the championship since their 2021 All-Ireland win - bursting with quality on paper but consistently unreliable in summer-time.
Malachy O'Rourke arrived in with a remit to start changing this narrative. I tussled with Malachy's Monaghan teams plenty down the years. They were always hard to break down and brought savage aggression to the contest. The Monaghan lads were always free with the verbals too - reminding you what you'd done, or rather, what you hadn't done (that was probably just the players, in fairness, and not Malachy).
When Conor McManus was in his pomp, they would have looked to work the ball to him constantly. With Tyrone, he has a greater array of attacking talent at his disposal.
Darragh Canavan is obviously the main man and the focal point, a player with the potential to belong on the same plane as David Clifford and Con O'Callaghan, provided Tyrone feed him with quick ball.
Their league form was patchy in places, although they finished in fine fettle only to be somehow relegated on seven points. (You'd assume they'll be back in Division 1 by 2027). They were reasonably sharp the last day but there's a limited amount you can read into that given that Cavan were so poor on the day.
The biggest plus for Tyrone is that Kieran McGeary looks to have recovered his 2021 form after three pretty underwhelming seasons.
There's plenty of incentive for Armagh too, who are still hankering after their Ulster title since 2008. They've endured so much heartache in their quest for Anglo Celt. But then landing the big one last July surely eased the pain somewhat.
Again, their league form was mixed - decent at home, dreadful on the road - but we won't hold that against them in the circumstances. More relevant is their sizable injury list, with Aaron McKay, Oisín Conaty, Paddy Burns, Conor Turbitt, Ben Crealey and Niall Grimley all missing the Armagh.
Ciaran Mackin picked up an injury in Corrigan Park. And then of course, Rian O'Neill is sitting out the year altogether. Kieran McGeeney has a deep squad but that is being tested to the max.
I've been burned before for doing it but I'm going to tip Tyrone to get over the line and deliver a statement victory.
All on the line in Tullamore
The seagulls will have Croke Park all to themselves on Leinster semi-final day, for a change. Dublin-Meath is the more glamour tie on paper but Kildare-Louth in Tullamore is the more significant.
A straight shootout for the last Sam Maguire slot, with Brian Flanagan's side having the chance to nab their opponents' place in the top tier. Pundits have been lambasting Kildare for years - none more than myself, I suppose - and they would have felt vindicated at half-time against Westmeath in Newbridge.
But they showed resolve to dig out a win, albeit with the help of a lucky goal. Nonetheless, it was a very psychologically important win for Kildare after a sloppy finish to the league.
Louth did well to cling on in Division 2 in the absence of Sam Mulroy and Ciaran Lennon. Ger Brennan has been unlucky with injuries in 2025 but they've shown plenty of know-how to survive in recent years.
As in Clones, it feels more or less like a coin toss. If pushed, I'll side with Louth as the more sure-footed and consistent option. A third Leinster final in a row would be a fair achievement to the note in an age of complete Dublin dominance.
As for the Dubs, the scoreline was less ugly for Wicklow in Aughrim than many anticipated. Over the years, they've had a habit of following a slack performance with a ruthless one.
Meath ignored all the off-field distraction surrounding the coaching ticket to reel in Offaly in impressive fashion.
Victory is probably a bridge too far, though I wouldn't foresee a hammering reminiscent of the Jim Gavin era. A single-digit margin, something in the 5-to-8 point range.