McGeary glad that Tyrone delivered the goods

BY KEVIN KELLY

AT the end of the day it was a case of job done for Tyrone as they comfortably saw off the challenge of Cavan at Brewster Park yesterday (Sunday) afternoon.

That win coupled with Donegal’s late victory over Mayo means that the Red Hands topped their group. Wing half back Kieran McGeary, who was immense throughout contributing two points, was delighted with the way that they went about their business.

“There is always a worry that you don’t turn up and play the football that you can on any given day but thankfully we delivered there today,” said Kieran.

“Things maybe didn’t go as we planned on the opening minutes and it was disappointing to see Michael (McKernan) go off injured. On many occasions occasions he has lifted us by the scruff of the neck but his injury maybe got us going as well. He was a loss but Petey (Harte) was some man to have to bring on. Just like everybody outside the starting 15 they are all ready to go when called upon in big games.”

Tyrone controlled things after that and in truth they were worth their winning margin. They always looked to be in control of things and were ruthless when it came to scoring with several players popping up with points as well as Kieran such as fellow defenders Niall Devlin and Rory Brennan.

“Thirty-one points will win you most games that you play in and we are happy with that total,” acknowledged Kieran.

“We may have missed a few goal chances but that is something that we will look at and work on again.”

There were so many different permutations in this group on the final day and in fact with a few minutes to go in the other game Mayo looked like they could too the group but defeat at the hands of Donegal now means that they are eliminated based on their head to head result against Cavan. Kieran said all they were worried about was getting the right result in Enniskillen.

“All you can do is focus on the job that you have to do,” he said.

“You haven’t time on the pitch to wonder how other games are going. You worry about yourself and ensure you get that right result and all other things will fall into place.

“You heard the noise and a rumour going about the Stand but you didn’t know if it was a draw or Donegal or Mayo had one. That’s the beauty of this new format. Anything can happen on any given day and I suppose it’s even more exciting for supporters.

“It was crucial to top the group and get an extra week to help the players who have just came back from injury.”

On that note Kieran was delighted to see Conor Meyler return to action, the Omagh man having been a nominee for player of the year in 2021 when Kieran won it.

“That was a big plus to see Conor get game time again,” he said.

“He has worked so hard to get back to this level and seeing action today will be a major boost for his confidence. He got a great reception from our supporters when coming on and his availability will only help us going forward.”