Tyrone GT news

Thomas Clarke wrote:

Gaa_lover wrote:Out of interest how many of the above Tyrone starting 15 have won an Ulster U21 title?

We've only won 1 since 2003, and that was in 2006.  On that basis, I'd be pretty sure that none of them do.  I wouldn't be certain, but Colm Cavanagh might be the only member of that squad who does.

U21 failures is a concern in Tyrone.  The feeling (hope) is that it was down to poor management, squandering AI winning minor teams from 2001, 2004, 2008 & 2010.  We would hope that the players have the talent, and that it would now be seen in a better set-up.   It could, of course, be that we produce a lot of skilful and tidy minors who lack the physical strength to become top senior players.  The next 18 months will tell us a lot.

It certainly will. Hartes Tyrone teams in the past was full of U21 winners will be interesting how some of these promising minors do at senior level.

Gaa_lover wrote:

Thomas Clarke wrote: The next 18 months will tell us a lot.

It certainly will. Hartes Tyrone teams in the past was full of U21 winners will be interesting how some of these promising minors do at senior level.

I wouldn't compare the two. I don't think that anyone in Tyrone expects the new generation to match the 2003-2008 side. That team won 3 AI, and had the talent to add another 1 or 2, and that was in a very competitive era with strong Armagh and Kerry teams, and a good Dublin side that won 5 successive Leinsters.

It's always harder for a new county to come from nowhere and dominate for a long period than it is for a county who already have that tradition. For example, Kerry have won AI with very average teams, and won multiple AI with teams no better than good. Man Utd winning the league last year with a rubbish team is another example - you develop that winning habit. Upcoming counties virtually never breakthrough with average sides.

I'd be surprised if Tyrone have as good a side again in my lifetime. We may ultimately have more successful sides in terms of trophies, but I doubt we'll get so much talent together at the one time again.

Thomas Clarke wrote:

Gaa_lover wrote:

Thomas Clarke wrote: The next 18 months will tell us a lot.

It certainly will. Hartes Tyrone teams in the past was full of U21 winners will be interesting how some of these promising minors do at senior level.

I wouldn't compare the two.  I don't think that anyone in Tyrone expects the new generation to match the 2003-2008 side.  That team won 3 AI, and had the talent to add another 1 or 2, and that was in a very competitive era with strong Armagh and Kerry teams, and a good Dublin side that won 5 successive Leinsters.  

It's always harder for a new county to come from nowhere and dominate for a long period than it is for a county who already have that tradition.  For example, Kerry have won AI with very average teams, and won multiple AI with teams no better than good.  Man Utd winning the league last year with a rubbish team is another example - you develop that winning habit.  Upcoming counties virtually never breakthrough with average sides.  

I'd be surprised if Tyrone have as good a side again in my lifetime.  We may ultimately have more successful sides in terms of trophies, but I doubt we'll get so much talent together at the one time again.  

Not comparing just interested to see how these promising minors do..

In fairness Man United got 89 points last season more than any team will this year you don't do that with a rubbish team. They had a great manager leading them likewise with Tyrone. Once Harte retires you better hope they don't replace him with a rubbish manager like David Moyes.

Thomas Clarke wrote:There weren't too many young lads on the Dublin panel worth talking about this time last year either.  We'll see how ours push on...

Maybe not in tyrone but in the capital we knew what they were capable of,tell us which of tyrone new players might make a mark this year

I braved the wind and rain on Saturday night, and made my way to Celtic Park. I was well rewarded, as the game between Derry & Tyrone was excellent for the time of year. It was fast, competitive and with plenty of very good football.

Derry started like an express train and totally dominated the first 15 minutes. Tyrone couldn't cope with their speed or movement, and only a brilliant Conan Grugan goal kept us in the game at 0-6 to 1-0. Colm Cavanagh's introduction turned the midfield tide, and Tyrone dominated the remainder of the half, going into the break leading by 1-6 to 0-7.

Now playing into a stiff breeze, Tyrone started the second half well, and an opportunistic McCurry goal gave us a 7 point lead with 25 minutes left. However, Derry took over after that, and had drawn level with c.10 minutes left. You'd have been sure the Oakleafs would have pushed on to victory from there but, in fairness to Tyrone, we stopped the rot and there were no more scores for either side.

For Derry, Emmet McKeever had a very good game at FF, while Enda Lynn and Mark Lynch caused lots of problems too. Sean Leo McGoldrick was the best of the defenders, while Chrissie McKaigue did a good job on Matty Donnelly. Patsy Bradley and Fergal Doherty are both powerful men at midfield, but Derry had no subs to replace them with in the last 10 minutes.

Darren McCurry and Niall Morgan were the pick of the Tyrone players. Morgan kicked 3/3 from distance, and made 2 great reflex saves (the second of these was stunning). McCurry was involved in everything good that the Tyrone forward line did, his balance on a wet pitch being superior to everyone else on the field. Tyrone's defence recovered from an early roasting, but Peter Harte struggled throughout at CHB. PJ Lavery and Niall McKenna offered little and less respectively in the half forward line, while Shea McGuigan will have been shocked at the step up from McKenna Cup to league football.

Joe McQuillan's application of the new rules was inconsistent. He gave one black card but ignored a couple of others, and seemed to forget the advantage rule in the second half, after applying it liberally in the first.

Overall, both sides will feel that they left the game behind them, but both could very easily have lost too. A draw was a fair result.

champers wrote:

Thomas Clarke wrote:There weren't too many young lads on the Dublin panel worth talking about this time last year either.  We'll see how ours push on...

Maybe not in tyrone but in the capital we knew what they were capable of,tell us which of tyrone new players might make a mark this year

Improvement is the big thing for Tyrone, not only among brand new players, but even some of those who were there last year. Ciaran McGinley, Ryan McKenna, Darren McCurry, Niall Morgan and Conor McAliskey all played last summer, but it was the first full year on the panel for all of them, so I'd like to think that they will all be better this year. Ronan McNabb is another - a good footballer but has struggled for a long time with injuries, while Kyle Coney is in the same bracket. All these lads will be 24yrs or under this season, as are Peter Harte and Mattie Donnelly.

Darren McCurry needs to build strength and become more direct in taking on his man, but he's very well balanced and accurate off either side. McAliskey is a bit bigger, stronger and full of confidence. He's also pretty accurate, but Mickey doesn't seem to trust him as much.

Other names would be Conan Grugan in midfield, and Shea McGuigan and Ronan O'Neill in attack. Grugan is a big lad with good feet and mobility. He's light as he is young (21) but I think he'll feature a lot this year, at least as a substitute. 2015 could be his year to really impress, but he looks to be our best midfield prospect in years.

Shea McGuigan is the fourth of Frank's sons to play for the county under Mickey Harte, and in style would be more like Brian than Tommy/Frank Jnr. He'll take time to get stronger and adjust to the speed of the game, but he has skill and vision and a little burst of pace too. He could be our CHF by the end of the year.

Ronan O'Neill has been touted as our most talented minor in the last decade. A cruciate injury in 2012 stalled his progress (he's now 22), so hopefully he gets an injury free run this year. He is small but strong accurate, skilful and has great vision. His problem so far has been the lack of electric pace and, perhaps, too much expectation. He'll get plenty of chances though, and will improve for games.

Tyrone team to play Mayo:

1 – Niall Morgan
2 – Aidan McCrory
3 – Conor Clarke
4 – Barry Tierney
5 – Ciaran McGinley
6 – Peter Harte
7 – Tiarnan McCann
8 – Colm Cavanagh
9 – Conan Grugan
10 – Emmett McKenna
11 – Shea McGuigan
12 – Peter Hughes
13 – Darren McCurry
14 – Mattie Donnelly
15 – Ronan O’Neill

16 – Michael O’Neill
17 – Dermot Carlin
18 – Sean Cavanagh
19 – Kyle Coney
20 – Mark Donnelly
21 – Connor McAlliskey
22 – Danny McBride
23 – Ryan McKenna
24 – Ronan McNabb
25 – Ronan McNamee
26 – Patrick McNiece

Five changes from the Derry game, with T.McCann, C.Cavanagh, E.McKenna, P.Hughes and R.O'Neill replacing R.McNabb, D.McBride, N.McKenna, PJ Lavery and P.McNeice.

Tiernan McCann gets a chance to redeem himself after a poor outing in the McKenna Cup semi, while I'd worry that our half forward line are all new additions to the panel this year. The subs bench looks very strong, with Sean Cavanagh, Kyle Coney and Mark Donnelly featuring for the first time this season.

It will be interesting to see if Mickey plays McCurry, Donnelly and O'Neill all inside. Of the 3, only Donnelly is suited to playing deeper, but he is being trialled at FF for the foreseeable future.

Classy finish from Ronan O'Neill in todays Sigerson game

Good news for Tyrone, with both McMahons due to return in the near future. Justin may even play some part in Wednesday's McKenna Cup final.

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Bit of a selection headache for Tyrone in tonight's McKenna Cup final. Mattie Donnelly, Ronan O'Neill, Connor McAliskey and Barry Tierney are all unavailable due to the Sigerson semi-finals being on this weekend, while Darren McCurry is sick. Tierney is a corner back, but the other 4 have basically been our inside forward line so far this season, so I'm a bit concerned as to where scores will come from.

Mickey may use the game to start reintegrating some of his returning players, with the likes of Sean Cavanagh, Mark Donnelly, Kyle Coney, Justin McMahon and Dermot Carlin all awaiting their first start of 2014.

Tyrone 8/15 Cavan 15/8 with Powers. Hmmmm...

Boxtyeater wrote:Tyrone 8/15 Cavan 15/8 with Powers. Hmmmm...

Even better, Boxty, you'll be able to watch the game live too, and see how your punt on Cavan is going!

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Tyrone team to play Cavan tonight:

1. Niall Morgan
2. PJ Quinn
3. Danny McBride
4. Ryan McKenna
5. Ronan McNabb
6. Dermot Carlin
7. Tiernan McCann
8. Niall McKenna
9. Sean Cavanagh
10. PJ Lavery
11. Colm Cavanagh
12. Plunkett Kane
13. Paddy McNeice
14. Mark Donnelly
15. Kyle Coney

Quinn, Carlin, Sean Cavanagh, Mark Donnelly and Coney all making their first starts of the year.

Match streaming live on [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Thomas Clarke wrote:
Even better, Boxty, you'll be able to watch the game live too, and see how your punt on Cavan is going!

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Armagh TV has crashed. Obviously not used to catering for counties who actually have supporters.

Armagh TV is working again, if you count the multiple freezes, patchy images and random jump forwards as working.

Anyway, making the best of it, the sides are level at half time (Tyrone 1.5, Cavan 0.8 ).  Cavan had a seemingly stiff enough breeze more or less at their backs (may be blowing a bit towards the bottom corner) and led for most of the half.  Tyrone's goal came in the dying seconds of the half, when Coney & McNeice sucked the Cavan defence into the corner, before working the ball along the end line and across goal for Plunkett Kane to tap in.

Keating and to a lesser extent Dunne have both kicked some nice points for Cavan, while most of Tyrone's points came from Niall Morgan frees.

Full-time: Tyrone 1-15 Cavan 0-11.

The breeze and the sending off of Killian Brady after 48 minutes (yellow+black card) saw off a game Cavan side. The Breffni men battled well, but despite bringing on Givney and McKiernan they struggled to win enough possession against the breeze.

Tyrone created several goal chances, but a couple of these were blasted over the bar by Paddy McNeice. Most other Tyrone points came from Kyle Coney. The big Ardboe man was wild/greedy with a few efforts, but also scored a couple of lovely points, and it was good to see him back in the side.

I thought that Cavan looked very tired at the end of the game, and the physical difference in a division 1 side as opposed to a division 3 side was fairly evident throughout. Cian Mackey was their best player and caused Tyrone a lot of problems with his direct running, but even he faded out of the game in the last 15 minutes.

Overall, a good game for both sides. It was a better test of their progress than anything Cavan have so far received in division 3, while for Tyrone it gave us the chance to give another run out to a lot of lads who haven't played much this year (Tyrone's 15 included only 2 outfield players who started the last league game).

And well done to Armagh tv. The picture was poor and it froze regularly, but it was better than having to wait for Jonsmith's report!

I was baby-sitting so hence hadn't an opportunity to savour Armagh TV's offering. From Clarkey's report, coverage was reminiscent of GAAFan's incursions here - sporadic at best.
The gulf between the top 8 and the rest appears to have decided the outcome (as it will continue to do).
The return of Coney will be a big boost if he maintains his efforts. Colm Cavanagh may have found his niche on the 40, although the judge is probably still out on that.

Speaking of judges, it's possible that Jonsmith may be currently tied up in the IBRC hearings   

All matterless really, neither will win a Connacht final.

Boxtyeater wrote:I was baby-sitting so hence hadn't an opportunity to savour Armagh TV's offering. From Clarkey's report, coverage was reminiscent of GAAFan's incursions here - sporadic at best.
The gulf between the top 8 and the rest appears to have decided the outcome (as it will continue to do).
The return of Coney will be a big boost if he maintains his efforts. Colm Cavanagh may have found his niche on the 40, although the judge is probably still out on that.

Speaking of judges, it's possible that Jonsmith may be currently tied up in the IBRC hearings   

All matterless really, neither will win a Connacht final.

Indeed Boxty, tonight's production bore all the hallmarks of GAAFan's handiwork, minus the Christmas lights.

Although he wore 11, Colm actually played in midfield, and it was Sean who pushed up to CHF. Colm didn't reappear for the second half due to an injury.

Coney has ability and size. He doesn't always punch his weight, the ball doesn't always stick, and he sometimes takes the wrong option. However, when his confidence is up, he can fire the ball over from anywhere inside 50m. I'd definitely be persevering with him, as the lad needs lots and lots of football.

Here's an alternative (much stronger) Tyrone side to the one that started tonight. Some on this list may not be too familiar, but if the Championship was tomorrow you'd find 10-11 of the below starting.

With players coming back, the next 5 league games will see a real battle for places. Certainly, some lads will be found wanting, but overall I think that we are shaping up to have more options than we did last year:

1. Mickey O'Neill
2. Aidan McCrory
3. Conor Clarke
4. Barry Tierney
5. Ciaran McGinley
6. Peter Harte
7. Conor Gormley
8. Conan Grugan
9. Aidan Cassidy
10. Mattie Donnelly
11. Shay McGuigan
12. Joe McMahon
13. Darren McCurry
14. Connor McAliskey
15. Ronan O'Neill

Others: Justin McMahon, Martin Penrose, Stevie O'Neill

Tyrone played three sides (Meath,Monaghan,Roscommon) out of div 3 in the championship last summer at least tonight the win was more convincing and it was done without a number of championship starters. I'm starting to warm to Tyrone and with so few outstanding teams about Mickey Harte must fancy his chances this summer.

Was at the game last night and it was an entertaining game but for all the wrong reasons. The quality on offer was average at best. Cavan had a game plan to stop Tyrone's running game and for large parts of the first half it worked, they were content to let us build from the back but as soon as we entered the final third a wall of blue appeared which we simply couldn't penetrate, they tackled ferociously and turned over an awful lot of ball with tenacious often very well timed tackles. Our forwards were living of scraps and we were depending on Morgan for some long range frees though our first point was an excellent effort from Coney. Cavan were winning too much clean ball and breaking ball with it for my liking, I haven't seen as many uncontested catches from kick outs in quite some time and most were going in Cavans favour. Their forwards on the other hand were linking up nicely and kicked some top notch scores, Mackey was in the middle of everything going on and Carlin had his hands full as did McBride at fullback. Fortunately PJ Quinn was having a stormer in the corner.

We were looking at a half time score of 8 - 4 in favour of the Breffni men when suddenly we found ourselves (undeservedly in my book) level, Mark Donnelly had a great goal chance which somehow didn't go in and then we got a point from a foul on Tiernan McCann which should have been a black card. From the next attack we got a goal, some good build up play and a great save from the keeper but McNiece was on hand to tap in the rebound. All in all a first half to forget and we could consider ourselves lucky to be level, to make matters worse Colm Cavanagh picked up a bad looking knee/ankle injury and wasn't fit to play any part in the second half.

Grugan appeared in the second half and whether it was a deliberate tactic or not he got possession from the throw in and pinged a lovely left footed pass about 30 yards which caught Cavan completely unaware and while it didn't result in a score this time it set the tone for our approach to the second half, we moved the ball inside quicker and more effectively and were asking all sorts of questions of Cavan many of which they didn't have answers for. It was quite noticeable that Cavans energy levels had dropped significantly, though Mackey was still full of running bad still causing problems they just couldn't finish the attacks of with scores. Once Cavan went to 14 men things got much easier from a Tyrone point of view we were launching attack after attack but we didn't always choose the right option in the scoring zone.

Cavan definitely are a work in progress and there is no doubt progress has bee made by Hyland and his team, their tackling in particular was very effective and the number of turnovers was huge especially in the first half, fitness levels aren't there just yet but something tells me they will cause bother in the USFC and beyond for someone.

Tyrone had good performances from Quinn, Coney, Lavery and I thought Grugan had a decent second half, his ability to kick deadly accurate ball is an asset on its own as is his awareness of what's going on around him. Our reliance on Morgan for frees also needs looked at, he had a bit of an off night and we need a plan B.

Good stuff, Boc. Yeah, I also heard that Cavan were extremely defensive, as they were in a lot of games last summer. It would be a worry I'd have about Hyland. I know that he is trying to make them tough to beat and hope that Dunne/Keating can nick games for him, but I think he'll soon have to start letting his side play a bit more.

As for Tyrone, I'm not sure I'd agree with you on Lavery, but I totally agree on Grugan. He is developing quickly. Still only 21, and not only will he be our midfielder of the future, but he could also play a big role this year (wing forward?). Good to see PJ Quinn back playing well again, and your own clubman had a good game at No.7. At the minute, I'd say that Tiernan is in pole position to stake a claim for that jersey.

I wasn't at the game myself, but from what I saw and have been told it seems that the wind was very strong. With that in mind, I wouldn't worry too much about Tyrone's first half performance. I'd also cut them some slack for rustiness, with so many new players drafted in, and so many lads making their first start of the year.

Let's hope the injury to Colm Cavanagh isn't serious.

Thomas Clarke wrote:Here's an alternative (much stronger) Tyrone side to the one that started tonight.  Some on this list may not be too familiar, but if the Championship was tomorrow you'd find 10-11 of the below starting.  

With players coming back, the next 5 league games will see a real battle for places.  Certainly, some lads will be found wanting, but overall I think that we are shaping up to have more options than we did last year:

1.  Mickey O'Neill
2.  Aidan McCrory
3.  Conor Clarke
4.  Barry Tierney
5.  Ciaran McGinley
6.  Peter Harte
7.  Conor Gormley
8.  Conan Grugan
9.  Aidan Cassidy
10. Mattie Donnelly
11. Shay McGuigan
12. Joe McMahon
13. Darren McCurry
14. Connor McAliskey
15. Ronan O'Neill

Others:  Justin McMahon, Martin Penrose, Stevie O'Neill

how in gods name is gormley near the starting 15 ,he has being finished for years,can't see to many team being worried about that 15

champers wrote:

Thomas Clarke wrote:Here's an alternative (much stronger) Tyrone side to the one that started tonight.  Some on this list may not be too familiar, but if the Championship was tomorrow you'd find 10-11 of the below starting.  

With players coming back, the next 5 league games will see a real battle for places.  Certainly, some lads will be found wanting, but overall I think that we are shaping up to have more options than we did last year:

1.  Mickey O'Neill
2.  Aidan McCrory
3.  Conor Clarke
4.  Barry Tierney
5.  Ciaran McGinley
6.  Peter Harte
7.  Conor Gormley
8.  Conan Grugan
9.  Aidan Cassidy
10. Mattie Donnelly
11. Shay McGuigan
12. Joe McMahon
13. Darren McCurry
14. Connor McAliskey
15. Ronan O'Neill

Others:  Justin McMahon, Martin Penrose, Stevie O'Neill

how in gods name is gormley near the starting 15 ,he has being finished for years,can't see to many team being worried about that 15

Read again...

Thomas Clarke wrote:

champers wrote:

Thomas Clarke wrote:Here's an alternative (much stronger) Tyrone side to the one that started tonight.  Some on this list may not be too familiar, but if the Championship was tomorrow you'd find 10-11 of the below starting.  

With players coming back, the next 5 league games will see a real battle for places.  Certainly, some lads will be found wanting, but overall I think that we are shaping up to have more options than we did last year:

1.  Mickey O'Neill
2.  Aidan McCrory
3.  Conor Clarke
4.  Barry Tierney
5.  Ciaran McGinley
6.  Peter Harte
7.  Conor Gormley
8.  Conan Grugan
9.  Aidan Cassidy
10. Mattie Donnelly
11. Shay McGuigan
12. Joe McMahon
13. Darren McCurry
14. Connor McAliskey
15. Ronan O'Neill

Others:  Justin McMahon, Martin Penrose, Stevie O'Neill

how in gods name is gormley near the starting 15 ,he has being finished for years,can't see to many team being worried about that 15

Read again...

you have gormley in the possible starting 15 ? ok to me he is finished.saying that if we got tyrone v dublin i would love him to start.i just don't see a blend of expereince and youth with the tyrone panel a lot of the senior players have lost there pace,tyrone strenght at the moment you have a good 1-3- 11- and possibly a strong full forward line after that your weakness is all over the pitch