Teak tough Tyrone ready for Kerry reunion
It’s a dozen years now since the current Kerry manager was a member of the Kingdom side that was bullied into submission by an ultra intensive Tyrone side defending in the sort of numbers rarely witnessed before at Croke Park.
Tyrone famously won that semi-final tie by seven points and ushered in a new era of Red Hands dominance in the football Championship.
Twice more in the subsequent years they would frustrate Kerry in huge Championship games at Croke Park, the 2005 and 2008 finals. Around a decade on, the majority of the names have changed — save for evergreen duo Sean Cavanagh and Joe McMahon — but Mickey Harte remains in charge and the battle plan is eerily similar.
Against Monaghan on Saturday, Tyrone did what they typically do under Harte, snarling and bullying their way to victory.
By full-time, Monaghan hadn’t quite ‘tapped out’, UFC style, and sought to be released from Tyrone’s boa constrictor like hold. But they were painfully frustrated all the same and a little confused at how they came to Croke Park armed with form and momentum from their Ulster title success only to deliver a performance lacking verve or energy for so long.
The truth is Tyrone simply didn’t allow them to dream that a first All-Ireland quarter-final win under O’Rourke’s progressive three-season reign was a possibility.
Tyrone’s defensive structure kicked into operation and, for the fifth game in a row, worked a charm. There was never a whiff of a goal chance and the 3/1 odds beforehand on the game going without a green flag being raised were snapped up by canny punters.
Tyrone, of course, didn’t score a goal themselves though that will be of less concern to them than how well they defended. Under Harte, it’s all about constricting the opposition first before subsequently injecting them with a lethal venom of scores.
Conor McManus is Monaghan’s trump card but was a limited force, breaking through that red and white barrier for just two points from play. At times, Tyrone had 14 men inside their own 45 metre line. Not pretty for sure but damn effective.
Their yin to the yang of Kerry’s carefree attack which is racking up goals for fun right now is an oil and water situation that fascinates the mind ahead of Sunday week’s meeting.
Conventional wisdom is that blanket defending will only get a team so far but when it comes to All-Ireland finals and semi-finals, marquee attacking talent is required to get the job done, the sort contained by Kerry and Dublin. It remains to be seen if Tyrone have the potency to compliment their regimental defensive system.
They counter attacked expertly against Monaghan, breaking forward in numbers and utilising Darren McCurry and Connor McAliskey as the sharpened point of their attack.
Between them, the pair hit 11 points. Commenting on McCurry, who was similarly excellent in the qualifier win over Sligo, Oisin McConville stated last week McCurry and McAliskey lacked consistency of performance. Saturday suggested they may just have found it.
Tyrone led 0-7 to 0-5 after a dour first-half of feeling out between two Ulster heavyweights renowned for rearguard offensives.
Things opened up on the restart and that appeared to suit Tyrone fine. They leaked a few scores as Monaghan came into the game, inspired by players like Owen Duffy, who kicked two points after coming on as one of three half-time subs. But just like the defensive battle in the first-half, they impressively won the offensive head to head too when the game reached its climax.
Sean Cavanagh came roaring into the contest with a point and a brilliant catch that led to a free which McCurry converted. With 10 minutes to go, Tyrone were six clear and with no goals in sight for Monaghan, it was apparent that this game was only headed in one direction, a Tyrone victory just like at this stage in 2013.
For Monaghan, the sense of underachievement must be strong. They have won two Ulster titles under O’Rourke but failed to transfer that momentum to Croke Park.
All of their frustrations came flooding out late on. Two Monaghan players were red carded, Darren Hughes and Paul Finlay and full-back Ronan McNamee walked for Tyrone.
Marty Duffy will have a lengthy match report to write up this morning with three reds, two blacks and 13 yellow cards to account for.
It was unseemly at times but when the dust settled, how many suspensions did Tyrone pick up? Not a single one.
They march on towards a summit with the Kingdom with form, history and momentum all on their side, still snarling and making up their own rules.
D McCurry (0-6, three frees, one 45); C McAliskey (0-5, four frees); M Donnelly (0-2); Joe Mc Mahon, P Harte, S Cavanagh, R McNabb, R McNamee (0-1 each).
C McManus (0-7, five frees); O Duffy (0-2); D Hughes, D Mone, F Kelly, D Clerkin, P Finlay (one free) (0-1 each).
N Morgan; R McNamee, C McCarron, R McNabb; T McCann, Joe McMahon, A McCrory; C Cavanagh, M Donnelly; M Bradley, P Harte, C Meyler; D McCurry, S Cavanagh, C McAliskey.
Justin McMahon for Joe McMahon (8), C McCann for Meyler (23, black card), P McNulty for McCann (46), R O’Neill for McAliskey (58), R Donnelly for Bradley (68), B Tierney for T McCann (77).
R Beggan; C Walshe, V Corey, R Wylie; K O’Connell, N McAdam, D Mone; O Lennon, F Kelly; R McAnespie, S Gollogly, K Duffy (C McGuinness 61); D Hughes, K Hughes, C McManus.
D Wylie for Corey (h/t), D Clerkin for Lennon (h/t), O Duffy for McAnespie (h/t), D Malone for McAdam (49), P Finlay for Gollogly (52).
M Duffy (Sligo).
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