Kieran Shannon: What happens when two finalists go back to war?

Brian Sheehan, Kerry, tussles with Ryan McMenamin, Tyrone in Omagh in February 2009. Pic: Oliver McVeigh / SPORTSFILE

With him being around as long as he has at this point, there are certain things Jack O’Connor has come to experience and appreciate as much as anyone, like just how spiky and relevant a league encounter between the previous year’s All-Ireland finalists can be.

Twenty years ago to help with the process of writing his book Keys to The Kingdom, O’Connor kept a diary. The last entry before a game in Omagh was by his own admission “full of vim and vigour”.