Six reasons why Tyrone can be All-Ireland contenders in 2025 under new manager Malachy O’Rourke

The worst kept secret in Gaelic football became public knowledge on Tuesday evening as Malachy O’Rourke was unveiled as the new Tyrone senior football manager.

The Glen boss and Derrylin native, who has been residing in Ballygawley for over 30 years, has been handed a three-year term and has been tasked with reviving the fortunes of the Red Hands after three successive lacklustre Championship campaigns.

When Feargal Logan and Brian Dooher succeeded Mickey Harte at the end of the 2020 season, Tyrone won their fourth All-Ireland crown in 2021.

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However, they have struggled to replicate that form in the last three campaigns and lost out to Roscommon in the preliminary quarter-final earlier this season in what proved to be Logan and Dooher’s final game in charge.

O’Rourke will remain as manager of the All-Ireland club champions until their campaign is completed, but there’s already renewed confidence in Tyrone about their future prospects after they snagged the most wanted manager in Ireland.

Here’s six reasons why Tyrone can be contenders for the Sam Maguire next year under their new manager. . .

Veterans likely to give it one more year

At the end of every inter-county, the future of any player in the ‘30 club’ comes under intense speculation.

Goalkeeper Niall Morgan has already indicated his willingness to continue while Mattie Donnelly and Peter Harte are others who will ponder their Tyrone futures in the coming weeks.

With Trillick and Errigal Ciaran winning the last two Tyrone club Championships, both are likely to defer any decision until after the club season finishes.

However, the appointment of O’Rourke ought to convince both to prolong their county career for one more season at least.

U20 All-Ireland winners coming through to the senior ranks

A score of Tyrone’s U20 All-Ireland winners from 2022 have already made their senior Championship debuts for Tyrone including Ruairi Canavan, Niall Devlin, Seanie O’Donnell, and Ciaran Daly.

Following this year’s U20 success, Michael Rafferty, Ronan Cassidy, Shea O’Hare and Eoin McElholm were drafted into the senior squad for the All-Ireland series with O’Hare and McElholm both featuring in Tyrone’s season-ending defeat to Roscommon.

If Loughmacrory clubman McElholm doesn’t land an AFL contract with Fremantle, he looks certain to be a star for the Tyrone seniors for years to come and is one of a host of exciting young prospects coming through.

Tyrone's Eoin McElholm
Tyrone's Eoin McElholm -Credit:©INPHO/Leah Scholes

2021 All-Ireland winning panellists could return

With each passing week at the start of the 2022 season, Tyrone seemed to lose another player from their 2021 All-Ireland winning squad.

By the time the Championship started, seven players had departed from the set-up, namely Lee Brennan, Tiernan McCann, Mark Bradley, Ronan O’Neill, Hugh Pat McGeary, Michael Cassidy and Paul Donaghy.

At the end of the year, Rory Brennan had joined his sibling in stepping away from the county squad while Conor McKenna resumed his AFL career with Brisbane.

The Eglish native has one more year to run on his current deal, but a few others could be tempted back with the Brennan brothers still starring for county champions Trillick while Donaghy remains one of the most talented attackers in Tyrone.

Year one bounce under new management

Malachy O’Rourke will bring his trusted lieutenants Ryan Porter and Leo McBride to work alongside him with two more names to be added to the new Tyrone management team in the coming weeks.

Expectations will be high in Tyrone and O’Rourke alluded to this in his first press conference earlier this week.

Mickey Harte led Tyrone to their maiden success in his first year in 2003. When he stepped down at the end of the 2020 season, he was succeeded by Feargal Logan and Brian Dooher, who won the Sam Maguire in their first season in charge.

It would be quite an achievement if O’Rourke can repeat that feat in his first year in charge, but there will be an expectation among Tyrone fans that their team will, at the very least, be competitive at the business end of the season.

Chasing pack looks extremely clustered

There’s no doubt that Tyrone slipped back and lost ground with the leading teams in Ireland in 2024, not least Ulster rivals Armagh, Donegal and Derry.

However, Malachy O’Rourke inherits a team in Division One and there doesn’t appear to be that much between any of the top eight or even top 12 teams.

Dublin and Kerry were meant to be the so-called big-two in 2024, but neither team reached the All-Ireland final - instead the decider was contested by Armagh and Galway.

Yet, it wouldn’t take a massive upturn in fortunes for the Red Hands to be competitive again. They defeated Armagh in the League and Championship last season and they also brought eventual Ulster champions Donegal to extra-time in this year’s provincial semi-final.

Armagh’s All-Ireland success ought to stoke the fires

Armagh's Aidan Forker lifts the Sam Maguire
Armagh's Aidan Forker lifts the Sam Maguire -Credit:©INPHO/James Crombie

Kieran McGeeney lifted the Sam Maguire as Armagh captain in September 2002. One year later, it was Tyrone captain Peter Canavan climbing the steps of the Hogan Stand. Could history repeat itself?

Armagh’s success this year, like Tyrone’s in 2021, should give hope to every team in the Sam Maguire Cup.

The last five All-Irelands have been won by four counties and there’s no reason why Mayo, Galway, Donegal or Derry won’t make the breakthrough in 2025.

However, Kieran McGeeney's side are the current top dogs. No team should want to knock them off their perch more than the Red Hands.

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