Life of Brian

Looking forward to seeing how Brian McGuigan and Brian Dooher perform on Sunday week against Down for Tyrone.
It has to be good news for Tyrone that they're back because these men would give any team something special even if they are not firing on all cylinders.
Dooher is a great leader for Tyrone on the field and his work rate has been phenomenal. If he genuinely is going well there is no doubt with his commitment to fitness that he can get much better if the Ulster champions get a run.
McGuigan is sheer class and it was interesting that Sean Cavanagh said that he also matches this with tremendous fitness and that he is one of the men driving Tyrone in training.
McGuigan was the best centre three quarters in the country before the string of injuries which almost put him out of the game after a horrific eye injury followed a leg break.
The Ardboe man had brains, vision, pace and heart and his passing and shooting are a joy to watch.
It's hard to say where Tyrone are at the moment but there's no doubt that if the two Brians can put on any sort of a show against Down that people may quickly have to reassess their challenge.

Cavanagh is over optimistic

Sean Cavanagh is a great footballer and seemingly an eternal optimist.
The big midfielder has almost at times lifted his side almost single handedly in recent seasons as the Tyrone dressing room took on the look of an episode of Casualty.
Cavanagh was an integral part of the Tyrone side of 2005 which in my opinion is one of the best teams of the last 20 years.
They were a better side than the current Kerry team and only Galway '98 to 2001 and Down of '91 to '94 vintage have matched them for sheer flair.
They had a wonderful forward line of Canavan, O'Neill and Mulligan with the two Brians Dooher and McGuigan pulling the strings at half forward with Cavanagh bursting through at full pelt from midfield or left half forward.
Their flair and creativity was overlooked by some in their breakthrough season of 2003 because they matched their ability with relentless work rate and tackling which unfortunately Pat Spillane branded as Puke Football when they handed the Kingdom a lesson in an All-Ireland semi final.
However, the 'puke football' simply amounted to sheer hunger to get the ball back as soon as the opposition had possession, something you would teach any child to do.
But in 2005 even the begrudgers acknowledged their greatness when they beat Dublin, Armagh and Kerry on the way to Sam and they don't come any tougher than that.
However, Cavanagh thinks that at last they may be on the way back, Dooher and McGuigan are flying in training he says and he hasn't given up hope that Stephen O'Neill may also put his injury problems behind him and return to the side.
I think that Cavanagh is being a little bit over optimistic. I believe that the injuries to McGuigan and Dooher must have taken their toll and although I would much rather see these two excellent players back in action until they are tested in the white heat of championship the jury remains out.
As for O'Neill it's true that he now has a number of club games behind him with no further occurrences of the hamstring injuries which cost him his inter-county career but it's a huge step up to the fitness demanded for the championship.
I think Cavanagh's optimism is wishful thinking and I am still of the opinion that unless some of the young players who have come on to the panel since 2005 start to deliver the goods then Tyrone won't again reach those heights.

Ulster race opens up

This year's Ulster championship became a little more unpredictable after the weekend results.
Derry are most people's favourites and given their convincing win over Donegal today to qualify for the National Football League final against Kerry they have enhanced their reputation, scoring a big psychological victory over their first round opponents in Ulster in the process.
Derry have looked strong this season and have improved since their defence was taken to the cleaners by Galway.
They are still heavily dependent on Paddy Bradley however, and although others have stepped up to the plate on occasion I think that Kerry will show yet again that the Glenullin man's colleagues are not quite up to it against the best defenders.
They might still be good enough to go all the way in Ulster however.
Donegal will be licking their wounds after today's defeat hwever and will now be totally focussed on facing the Oak Leaf men in the championship.
Their big problem is up front as well and they have lacked the fire power to trouble the top sides.
Their football is usually too predictable but as they proved two years ago against Tyrone they are capable of causing an upset on the day.
Armagh and Tyrone have run into a little bit of form of late.
Tyrone have welcomed back Brian McGuigan and they still have some very fine footballers in the shape of Sean Cavanagh, Ryan McMenamin and an attack oriented half back line but their forwards no longer strike fear into the heart of the opposition.
They should be too good for Down at Omagh in their opening game in Ulster and if they get a run they could be hard to beat.
Armagh will take a lot out of their game with Dublin and if their key players stay injury free no one will enjoy a day out against them.
The only other serious contender in the province are Monaghan.
If they can win their last league game against Westmeath then they will have another crack at the Dubs in the Division's decider.
Monaghan are going to hold their own against anyone in the province but don't have it on their bench if they need to change their game plan.
They are fast, fit and strong and Finley and Freeman are excellent forwards. They will be a real handful and are one of the genuine contenders in the province.
As for Down, Antrim, Cavan and Fermanagh, better luck next year!

Good luck to McGuigan and Beano

Delighted to see Brian McGuigan make his first start in two years in the Tyrone jersey this weekend.
The Ardboe man has had a torrid time in the last two seasons with a double leg break and then a horrific eye injury.
His fightback has been a hard road and I suppose we all wonder will he ever be able to reproduce the form he displayed as Tyrone won two All Irelands with him pulling the strings from centre half forward.
His value to his county was shown particularly in 2005 when his return from Oz coincided with a return to form for a Tyrone side, which never recovered in 2004 from the untimely death of its captain Cormac McAnallen.
McGuigan was inspirational as the Red Hands defeated Armagh, Kerry and Dublin en route to All-Ireland glory.
Another man on the comeback trail is Laois’ Beano Casey who played some great football under Mick O’Dwyer before falling to a horrific leg injury two seasons ago.
He struggled last season to recapture his form but Laois are going down and they could be doing with a player like McDonald come the championship.
If either of these two great forwards and McGuigan really is one of the stars of the game ever think they need a bit of inspiration they could do worse than think about Brian Mullins who fought back from a car crash where it was feared he may never way again.
Not only did he walk again but he was the driving force behind the Dublin team which won the 1983 All Ireland.