Tommy: its day
others were new to it. But then I ran out and noticed it was Francie Bellew that was waiting to mark me! Ah, he wasn’t dirty off the ball or anything like that, but when you got the ball you knew you were being tackled,” chuckles the sales rep for JP Corry.
Twelve years on, the Dr McKenna Cup still has enormous resonance with Tyrone and Mick- ey Harte. There are reasons for that, some sentimental and some cut-throat.
For example, it was the one Cup that the late Cormac McAnallen lifted in his brief spell as Tyrone captain, so Harte wanted to see it take up permanent residence in the county. It has led to their present run of six consecutive titles, which they will seek to stretch to seven with a semi-final against Fermanagh in Brewster Park tomorrow.
As for the brutal reasons, the McKenna Cup represents a rare chance to shine. Prior to Christmas, Tyrone hosted Carlow in Garvaghey for a challenge match, the one single time Harte has relented on his policy.
“Challenge matches, he never was a fan of them and I never played one challenge match in my time with Tyrone, not one. I don’t think Brian and the boys did either so he was unique in that respect,” McGuigan explained.
“When I came onto the squad, when Mickey was talking to you one to one, he said, ‘we do this here, we get through the group, you have a semi-final and then you have a final. And I need to see you boys playing’.
“So it was felt that there was nothing better than competitive games. He said there were more games as you went along and that only put you in the window and you could make the squad for the league.
“He would have always preached that, get through the group, get more games to perform and it left it that you were able to make the league squad which was your ultimate aim.”
You didn’t want to be left on the January scrapheap. For years Harte would carry an extended panel over the winter and when the axe fell, nobody was safe. Your name would be thrown in with a load of others in newspaper reports at a time when GAA news
(above) can be thin on the ground.
“It meant you worked for your jersey,” McGuigan stated.
“When you are there, Mickey is putting big emphasis on it. He is building it up and you are buying into it. You have it in your head, ‘right, we need to win this’.
“But that comes from Mickey. Mickey hates losing, he doesn’t like getting beat in anything, he wants to win everything he plays. And that’s great, it’s a great thing to have and it’s why he is successful, building that winning habit throughout the year.”
Nowadays, he is out of the county bubble. He is still playing away for Ardboe, in a sweeper role now that his pace is on the wane. The distance between then and now has changed his perception of January football.
“Come the league I will be out supporting Tyrone, but the McKenna Cup?” he quizzes. “They should start the league sooner anyway. Free up more time for the clubs to play their games in the summer. But the powers-that-be don’t feel that way.
“When I was a player, I thought it was a big deal. I definitely did, it was great, putting on the jersey was a great honour and then you did give it serious importance.
“But to be honest now, I wouldn’t go near it. I wouldn’t look at it, I think it is a waste of time. I honestly do. It wouldn’t interest me at all. There are two Ardboe lads now on it and I still wouldn’t care. I barely check the results in the McKenna Cup.
“The league, now you will watch it. And Championship. But McKenna Cup, you see it for what it is — a warm-up.”
There won’t be anything like that 19,631 crowd in Brewster Park tomorrow. But that won’t bother Tyrone, their manager, and the hungry Young Turks trying to make their way in county football under a most demanding manager in January. BANK OF IRELAND DR McKENNA CUP
SEMI-FINAL FERMANAGH v TYRONE (Sunday, Brewster
Park, 2.00pm)
THE Erne men have enjoyed a useful work-out so far, but like many other years, find themselves in a McKenna Cup semi-final against Tyrone.
It’s unlikely they will progress and it will be strange to see Ryan McMenamin acting as runner for his adopted county as he comes up against his native Tyrone for the first time.
The Red Hands don’t normally lose these games.
Tyrone
BANK OF IRELAND DR McKENNA
CUP SECTION B ARMAGH v DERRY (Sunday, Athletic Grounds,
2.00pm)
A game re-fixed from last Sunday, the odd thing is that neither side are safely into the semi-finals, with defeat for Derry possibly ending their involvement and Armagh grabbing the top spot.
Derry manager Damien McErlain is unlikely to field a team of established names, so it leaves the onus on Armagh to give their home support something to shout about.
We go for a narrow Derry victory.
(above)
VERDICT:
Derry
BANK OF IRELAND DR McKENNA CUP SECTION B DOWN v UUJ (Sunday, Burren, 2.00pm) CONGRATULATIONS and fair play must be extended to Down for choosing to host this game at the Burren. Spreading county games throughout the county when possible is always a good boon to the club hosting and a novelty for all concerned.
Unless Jordanstown win this game by around
20 points and Monaghan and Donegal draw — which would place the students in the semi-finals
— then this is a dead rubber game. CONOR McGURK CUP FINAL
ANTRIM v DOWN (Saturday, The Dub, 7.00pm) AFTER a busy early stage of the month, with Antrim in action in the Walsh Cup in Leinster and also competing in the Conor McGurk Cup, the Saffrons’ intentions will soon be revealed.
The addition of Liam Sheedy was a high-profile one, and they have a number of youngsters that the management are keen to give game-time to.
Antrim
VERDICT:
CREGGAN UNDER-21 CLUB FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP GHAOITH DOBHAIR v O’DONOVAN ROSSA (Saturday, Creggan, 12.30pm) NOW this is one to get your teeth into.
When Donegal reached the All-Ireland minor final in 2014 the team were backboned by Gaoth Dobhair men and quite a few of them are still around, including two men who have tasted inter-county action in Cian Mulligan and Michael Carroll, but Ciaran Gillespie is injured for this.
Their manager is the renowned student of football, the famous Tom Beag Gillespie, who has been with this group and ushered them through their development.
Antrim champs Rossa are managed by Kieran Grego and have county hurler Deaglan Murphy among their ranks, but their preparations have not gone smoothly.
Hampered by the unavailability of minors during their St Paul’s run, Grego has stated he feels they may struggle with winter football.
Gaoth Dobhair
(below)
VERDICT:
CREGGAN UNDER-21 CLUB FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP CARRYDUFF v ENNISKILLEN GAELS (Saturday, Creggan, 2.15pm) THE Fermanagh Championship was only completed last week, but a sizeable amount of Enniskillen Gaels players will also have been in action for the club minors over the winter, when they captured the St Paul’s minor tournament after a gap of 30 years.
Under a management team of Niall Jones and the irrepressible Rory Rafferty, Enniskillen Gaels will rely on the likes of Callum Jones and minor captain Eoin Beacom.
Meanwhile, Carryduff are facing into a bit of an injury crisis with full-forward Ronan Beatty definitely out.
Enniskillen Gaels
VERDICT: