By Barry O’Donnell

THERE was no real weeping and gnashing of teeth from Tyrone manager Malachy O’Rourke when he reflected on Monday morning’s All-Ireland quarter-final draw, which pitched his side against the reigning champions and raging hot favourites for the 2026 title, Kerry.

After Kerry’s emphatic win over Armagh last weekend, they were the team nobody wanted to face. But O’Rourke believes any side with ambitions of lifting Sam Maguire will likely have to beat the Kingdom at some stage.

“If you want to be successful any year in the All-Ireland competition you are usually going to have to play Kerry anyway somewhere along the line. We have to be able to go down there and beat Kerry and move on. If we are not able to do that we are not going to be successful this year, it is as simple as that.

“We know it’s a massive ask but it’s a great opportunity in many ways as well. We played them in last year’s semi-final and they beat us fairly comfortably at the end up so this is a chance to see if we have made up much ground on them.

“We are testing ourselves against the best team in the country and we will see if we can go and match them throughout the game. We have to be really competitive and hopefully get the right result, that is the intention.”

The counties have built a fierce Championship rivalry over the past two decades, though Kerry came out on top in last year’s semi-final.

“Kerry have proven themselves over this last number of years to be a top class team. Yes we can look back to last year and some of the things that worked well against them and areas where they exploited us. So it will be more recent history that we must concentrate on rather than matches in the past.

“I suppose there is that perception right now that Kerry are above everyone else. Maybe that is how it will turn out in a few weeks time. With their record over previous years being All-Ireland champions and the players they have, they have earned the right to be at the top of the tree and be looked upon as raging hot favourites.

“It’s obviously a very tough draw but that’s the hand we have been dealt and we have to get on with it.”

After successive one-point championship wins over Roscommon and Mayo, O’Rourke says Tyrone must improve again.

“From our own perspective we are coming in off two really good performances against Division One teams in Roscommon and Mayo. We have been really happy with how the boys have worked and the character, composure and leadership they showed, but we know that is not going to be enough against Kerry. We have to go to another level with our team play and individual performances.”

He also believes emerging players such as Joey Clarke, Ronan Cassidy and Eoin McElholm will benefit from the challenge.

“They are only young fellas so the more exposure they get to that level the better they will become. Now they are facing their ultimate test at the highest level. But it’s a challenge to embrace. You have to be at your ultimate best if you want to be competitive.

“We have that blend of youth and experience but no matter who it is they know they are coming up against top quality players so the performance levels have to go up accordingly.”