Tyrone 'by no means the finished article' insists Canavan

It's Kerry next up for the Red Hand in the final four.

Tue, 01 Jul, 2025 - 07:33

Francis Mooney

Tyrone are still a work in progress, with a number of problems to iron out if they are to reach a first All-Ireland final since 2021, according to attacker Darragh Canavan.

And with a semi-final test against resurgent foes Kerry on the way, the Red Hands will need to step up to a higher level following their victory over a faltering Dublin side.

“We know ourselves we’re by no means the finished article. It’s about trying to get that consistency, playing two, three, four good games in a row, instead of one or two good games and a terrible game,” said Canavan.

“We’re working on, it, and hopefully we’ll get the work done and we’ll be ready for it.

The Errigal Ciaran star felt the Red Hands benefitted from topping their group in the round robin series, which enabled them to gain an extra weeks rest by skipping the preliminary quarter-final round.

“To be fair to Dublin, I think the extra week probably helped us.

“We have been in their position before, and playing week on week is very tough, and it probably told in the last five or ten minutes, and our bench made a massive impact, they were brilliant when they came on, so we’re very, very happy.”

The Dubs came strongly at the Ulster men in the second half, but superb defending and raw courage helped them hold out, before breaking to finish strongly.

“We got ourselves ready for it, we knew that they would have some sort of purple patch, but if we stuck around long enough, and if our bench could make some sort of an impact, and they did.” And he feels a big-game victory at Croke Park will give a massive boost of confidence to the entire squad.

“We probably haven’t had a great record in Croke Park this past three or four years, since the All-Ireland anyway.

“We haven’t been here too many times, to be fair.

“We need to get that consistency and get ready for a big performance the next day out.”

Canavan believes Tyrone can find ways to prosper under the new rules, with a set of talented attackers and a strong bench.

“It is a completely different game now compared to the last few years.

“It probably suits us a wee bit more, but we have a lot to work on.” Two weeks of intense reflection and preparation will be spent at Garvaghey, but for now, nothing beats being there.

“It’s a great feeling, it was a tough game, so just to get over the line is very satisfying,” he said.

“We probably didn’t help ourselves at times, with bits and pieces of decision-making and mistakes, but we dug in and we did enough, and now we’re looking forward to the next game.”