Tyrone's Meyler going under the knife again 

Tyrone Player Conor Meyler, BPerfect Brand Ambassador Annalivia Hynds and Armagh Player Aimee Mackin. Pic: Brian McEvoy

Injury-plagued Tyrone forward Conor Meyler is set for more knee surgery in the coming weeks and has acknowledged he will need a knee replacement at some stage.

But the 29-year-old has promised to continue giving it everything to play for Tyrone, revealing he was at the gym around 500 times in the last 365 days, and that he wants to play on 'until I'm 35' at least.

Meyler said he has been inspired in this regard by Paul Conroy, currently second favourite for the Footballer of the Year award, who played for Galway in last weekend's All-Ireland final.

Both Meyler and Conroy suffered serious leg breaks in 2018 but while Conroy is currently going strong, Meyler, an All-Ireland winner in 2021, didn't feature this season following knee surgery last October.

He was told by medics in February to write off 2024 because 'You're done' but battled back to the brink of featuring in the Championship before injuring his Achilles.

Speaking at the announcement that BPerfect Cosmetics is the official Diversity and Inclusivity Partner of the Gaelic Players Association, Meyler said it's unlikely he will play club football for Omagh in the coming months but is targeting a pre-season return with Tyrone.

Speaking about the toll it has taken on him, Meyler said his tunnel vision has impacted all areas of his life and he even questioned at one stage 'Am I crazy?' as he exhausted every possibility to play in the Championship.

"In the long-term I know I'm going to need a knee replacement, some day," said Meyler. "It's a case of how far can I push that down the road. But mentally and physically, I really want to keep going. I want to play until I'm 35. 

"I was looking at Paul Conroy at the weekend and was thinking what he has done is incredible.

"I have more admiration for fellas who have had longevity like that and don't come away with anything at the end of it, than fellas who pick up a couple of All-Stars and an All-Ireland and retire early.

"I'm looking at Conroy going, 'You've had so many heartaches and setbacks and you've had big injuries but every year you keep coming back'. But there is a mental toll that it takes on you. 

"And I've seen the impact it has had on my personal life this year, on family, on friends, relationships, all sorts of things went out the window because your sole focus is on getting back and everything else takes a back seat and that's so hard."

Meyler believes Tyrone can get back to the top despite winning just six of their 15 Championship games since the 2021 All-Ireland success.

"The county board, the whole management and backroom team, I think just everybody, and players especially, everybody needs to take a long look at themselves and say, ‘Where are we at here?’ 

"Just have a proper review because the stats there, the win percentage over the last couple of years, it’s just not good enough."