Tyrone County Football and Hurling

[stillsenior]

Ronan O'Neill gone

Is Grugan away as well or has he been injured?

Injured

[GaaFanatic123]

Does the mark stay for the championship?? Suits Tyrone if it does...

Nope wont be in until next season.
Will suit most teams with a target man and is good for the game imo.

To name a few:

Galway - Comer
Donegal - Murphy
Mayo - O'Shea
Kerry - Walsh
Fermanagh - Quigley
Monaghan - McManus

[toby47]

RONAN O'Neill has quit the Tyrone panel in frustration after failing to feature in any of the Red Hands' Division One games this year.

The sublimely talented Omagh St Enda's clubman was an ever-present throughout Tyrone's successful Dr McKenna Cup campaign this year but he was unable to nail down a place in Mickey Harte's National League squads and has walked away with a heavy heart. At 26, hopes to return to the inter-county scene at some stage in the future but will concentrate on the club game for the rest of this season.

"Towards the middle of the League I wasn't getting a look-in and I thought to myself: 'Should I maybe step away from this?'" he explained.

"Ultimately it was an extremely hard decision to make because Tyrone has been the best part of my life for eight years. I sat down and chatted to my father and he said to see how the League went and to keep pushing at training.

"But I wasn't getting into the matchday squads and people were asking why I wasn't and I just thought 'You know, maybe it's time to take a step back here' so I saw out the League and met Mickey on Sunday night and explained my decision.


"I had to think what was right for me. I was sitting about being part of the squad but not making much of an impact and I wasn't really happy doing what I was doing.

"Mickey listened to my reasons and he was supportive.

"He said that I wouldn't be the first person to step away and then come back again the following year. He gave me some things to work on and I'll use this club season to do so and reassess where I am for next year."

O'Neill first came to prominence as a schoolboy with Omagh CBS, spearheading their runs to the MacRory Cup finals in 2009 and 2010 and he was the star forward when the Tyrone minors won the All-Ireland in 2010, scoring 1-4 in the semi-final and two points in the decider against Cork.




He announced himself on the senior scene with a first-touch debut goal in the McKenna Cup two years later and, by 2013, aged 19, he was captain of the Tyrone U21 side and an established member of the senior panel.

He suffered a serious setback when he ruptured his cruciate while training for the Ulster SFC quarter-final against Donegal but returned to the fold the following year and, after top-scoring for Ulster University in the Sigerson Cup final, hit the target in every game of Tyrone's Division One campaign.

Since then O'Neill has won two Ulster Championships with Tyrone, lighting up Clones in the 2017 decider with an audacious chip into the Down net that showcased his natural, uncommon flair and fans will remember his 'Dab' celebration after a goal against Cavan in the 2016 Division 2 final. However, as the era of the footballing athlete took hold and with Tyrone regularly playing just one inside forward, O'Neill found his opportunities becoming limited.

His last Championship start was as a lone frontman against Mayo in the 2016 All-Ireland quarter-final but he did feature regularly as a substitute in last year's run to the All-Ireland final.

"I'm only 26, so I wouldn't like to think my county career is over yet," he said.

"Not getting game-time is the most frustrating thing.

"You do all the hard training and you want to be rewarded. It's the manager's worst nightmare picking 15 boys and then putting five in, they can't keep everybody happy especially at Tyrone with the panel being so competitive.

"But it left me frustrated and I was probably a bit snappy about the house with my parents and brothers and my girlfriend. I love playing for Tyrone and I love my county and I wish all the boys all the best – I sent them a message and I really do think the team will go on to win the All-Ireland and that's what made the decision even tougher."

O'Neill now intends to focus his energy on playing with Omagh St Enda's, the county champions in 2014 and 2017, before weighing up his inter-county options.

"Mickey has decided that Mattie (Donnelly) and Cathal (McShane) are more dangerous and physical up front and Petey (Harte) is playing off them," he said.

"The three of them are playing fantastically well and then you had myself, Connor McAliskey, Darren (McCurry), Lee (Brennan) and Kyle (Coney) fighting for other spots. It's a competitive field and sometimes those boys are going to be ahead and other times vice-versa.

"It happened to be me this time and I just thought I wasn't doing myself any justice sitting about there. I want to go back and play club football with Omagh which I love doing. I want to get a full year, hopefully injury-free playing football and playing to the best of my potential."

He added: "I thanked Mickey for helping me out over the years and the rest of the management – the boys who were there before and the boys who are there now – and the county board for supporting me.

"It'll not be the end of me but, for the time being, it'll be a halt of the progress."

[LeoMc]

RONAN O'Neill has quit the Tyrone panel in frustration after failing to feature in any of the Red Hands' Division One games this year.

The sublimely talented Omagh St Enda's clubman was an ever-present throughout Tyrone's successful Dr McKenna Cup campaign this year but he was unable to nail down a place in Mickey Harte's National League squads and has walked away with a heavy heart. At 26, hopes to return to the inter-county scene at some stage in the future but will concentrate on the club game for the rest of this season.

"Towards the middle of the League I wasn't getting a look-in and I thought to myself: 'Should I maybe step away from this?'" he explained.

"Ultimately it was an extremely hard decision to make because Tyrone has been the best part of my life for eight years. I sat down and chatted to my father and he said to see how the League went and to keep pushing at training.

"But I wasn't getting into the matchday squads and people were asking why I wasn't and I just thought 'You know, maybe it's time to take a step back here' so I saw out the League and met Mickey on Sunday night and explained my decision.


"I had to think what was right for me. I was sitting about being part of the squad but not making much of an impact and I wasn't really happy doing what I was doing.

"Mickey listened to my reasons and he was supportive.

"He said that I wouldn't be the first person to step away and then come back again the following year. He gave me some things to work on and I'll use this club season to do so and reassess where I am for next year."

O'Neill first came to prominence as a schoolboy with Omagh CBS, spearheading their runs to the MacRory Cup finals in 2009 and 2010 and he was the star forward when the Tyrone minors won the All-Ireland in 2010, scoring 1-4 in the semi-final and two points in the decider against Cork.




He announced himself on the senior scene with a first-touch debut goal in the McKenna Cup two years later and, by 2013, aged 19, he was captain of the Tyrone U21 side and an established member of the senior panel.

He suffered a serious setback when he ruptured his cruciate while training for the Ulster SFC quarter-final against Donegal but returned to the fold the following year and, after top-scoring for Ulster University in the Sigerson Cup final, hit the target in every game of Tyrone's Division One campaign.

Since then O'Neill has won two Ulster Championships with Tyrone, lighting up Clones in the 2017 decider with an audacious chip into the Down net that showcased his natural, uncommon flair and fans will remember his 'Dab' celebration after a goal against Cavan in the 2016 Division 2 final. However, as the era of the footballing athlete took hold and with Tyrone regularly playing just one inside forward, O'Neill found his opportunities becoming limited.

His last Championship start was as a lone frontman against Mayo in the 2016 All-Ireland quarter-final but he did feature regularly as a substitute in last year's run to the All-Ireland final.

"I'm only 26, so I wouldn't like to think my county career is over yet," he said.

"Not getting game-time is the most frustrating thing.

"You do all the hard training and you want to be rewarded. It's the manager's worst nightmare picking 15 boys and then putting five in, they can't keep everybody happy especially at Tyrone with the panel being so competitive.

"But it left me frustrated and I was probably a bit snappy about the house with my parents and brothers and my girlfriend. I love playing for Tyrone and I love my county and I wish all the boys all the best – I sent them a message and I really do think the team will go on to win the All-Ireland and that's what made the decision even tougher."

O'Neill now intends to focus his energy on playing with Omagh St Enda's, the county champions in 2014 and 2017, before weighing up his inter-county options.

"Mickey has decided that Mattie (Donnelly) and Cathal (McShane) are more dangerous and physical up front and Petey (Harte) is playing off them," he said.

"The three of them are playing fantastically well and then you had myself, Connor McAliskey, Darren (McCurry), Lee (Brennan) and Kyle (Coney) fighting for other spots. It's a competitive field and sometimes those boys are going to be ahead and other times vice-versa.

"It happened to be me this time and I just thought I wasn't doing myself any justice sitting about there. I want to go back and play club football with Omagh which I love doing. I want to get a full year, hopefully injury-free playing football and playing to the best of my potential."

He added: "I thanked Mickey for helping me out over the years and the rest of the management – the boys who were there before and the boys who are there now – and the county board for supporting me.

"It'll not be the end of me but, for the time being, it'll be a halt of the progress."

A year of club football will do him the world of good.

[trailer]

RONAN O'Neill has quit the Tyrone panel in frustration after failing to feature in any of the Red Hands' Division One games this year.

The sublimely talented Omagh St Enda's clubman was an ever-present throughout Tyrone's successful Dr McKenna Cup campaign this year but he was unable to nail down a place in Mickey Harte's National League squads and has walked away with a heavy heart. At 26, hopes to return to the inter-county scene at some stage in the future but will concentrate on the club game for the rest of this season.

"Towards the middle of the League I wasn't getting a look-in and I thought to myself: 'Should I maybe step away from this?'" he explained.

"Ultimately it was an extremely hard decision to make because Tyrone has been the best part of my life for eight years. I sat down and chatted to my father and he said to see how the League went and to keep pushing at training.

"But I wasn't getting into the matchday squads and people were asking why I wasn't and I just thought 'You know, maybe it's time to take a step back here' so I saw out the League and met Mickey on Sunday night and explained my decision.


"I had to think what was right for me. I was sitting about being part of the squad but not making much of an impact and I wasn't really happy doing what I was doing.

"Mickey listened to my reasons and he was supportive.

"He said that I wouldn't be the first person to step away and then come back again the following year. He gave me some things to work on and I'll use this club season to do so and reassess where I am for next year."

O'Neill first came to prominence as a schoolboy with Omagh CBS, spearheading their runs to the MacRory Cup finals in 2009 and 2010 and he was the star forward when the Tyrone minors won the All-Ireland in 2010, scoring 1-4 in the semi-final and two points in the decider against Cork.




He announced himself on the senior scene with a first-touch debut goal in the McKenna Cup two years later and, by 2013, aged 19, he was captain of the Tyrone U21 side and an established member of the senior panel.

He suffered a serious setback when he ruptured his cruciate while training for the Ulster SFC quarter-final against Donegal but returned to the fold the following year and, after top-scoring for Ulster University in the Sigerson Cup final, hit the target in every game of Tyrone's Division One campaign.

Since then O'Neill has won two Ulster Championships with Tyrone, lighting up Clones in the 2017 decider with an audacious chip into the Down net that showcased his natural, uncommon flair and fans will remember his 'Dab' celebration after a goal against Cavan in the 2016 Division 2 final. However, as the era of the footballing athlete took hold and with Tyrone regularly playing just one inside forward, O'Neill found his opportunities becoming limited.

His last Championship start was as a lone frontman against Mayo in the 2016 All-Ireland quarter-final but he did feature regularly as a substitute in last year's run to the All-Ireland final.

"I'm only 26, so I wouldn't like to think my county career is over yet," he said.

"Not getting game-time is the most frustrating thing.

"You do all the hard training and you want to be rewarded. It's the manager's worst nightmare picking 15 boys and then putting five in, they can't keep everybody happy especially at Tyrone with the panel being so competitive.

"But it left me frustrated and I was probably a bit snappy about the house with my parents and brothers and my girlfriend. I love playing for Tyrone and I love my county and I wish all the boys all the best – I sent them a message and I really do think the team will go on to win the All-Ireland and that's what made the decision even tougher."

O'Neill now intends to focus his energy on playing with Omagh St Enda's, the county champions in 2014 and 2017, before weighing up his inter-county options.

"Mickey has decided that Mattie (Donnelly) and Cathal (McShane) are more dangerous and physical up front and Petey (Harte) is playing off them," he said.

"The three of them are playing fantastically well and then you had myself, Connor McAliskey, Darren (McCurry), Lee (Brennan) and Kyle (Coney) fighting for other spots. It's a competitive field and sometimes those boys are going to be ahead and other times vice-versa.

"It happened to be me this time and I just thought I wasn't doing myself any justice sitting about there. I want to go back and play club football with Omagh which I love doing. I want to get a full year, hopefully injury-free playing football and playing to the best of my potential."

He added: "I thanked Mickey for helping me out over the years and the rest of the management – the boys who were there before and the boys who are there now – and the county board for supporting me.

"It'll not be the end of me but, for the time being, it'll be a halt of the progress."

Never really happened for him. There's no doubting his ability and talent. Probably have a storming season for Omagh now.

[trueblue1234]

He worded his withdrawal well without having a dig at anyone else and left the door open for a return. Fair play to him.

[BennyHarp]

In a different era, Ronan O'Neill may well have developed into a top class forward, but during an era of packed defences and forwards spending most of their time 70 yards from goal and tackling back, it was never going to be his forte. Omagh will benefit massively from this as he is a top class club forward. His cameo v Meath last year was the winning of the game. I wish him well.

[TabClear]

He worded his withdrawal well without having a dig at anyone else and left the door open for a return. Fair play to him.

Yeah, you cannot really argue with any of that. Really skilful forward but probably just not as naturally athletic as some of the other players he is competing with which is just a reflection of where the game has gone. Massive boost for Omagh for the club season.

[Fuzzman]

Very well worded and complimentary of Mickey and his team mates. Amazing talent with ball in hand and could deliver a pin point pass with great vision but sadly, his lack of pace and urgency for me meant he was often turned over and gave the ball away.
Despite his skill set he did have a tendency to miss the odd important free in big games that other "clutch" players would nail. I think Mickey played him a lot of times when you could see he was struggling to meet the grade and so he never really fulfilled the potential he had as a younger player, but that happens many players.
It will be interesting to see how Coney does now he has been given a second chance and if the fans can help him rather than get on his back when a difficult pass goes astray or he tries a tough shot when a more simple ball was on.
Many of us have got on McShane's case the last few years but the lad has got on with it and looks one of our best forwards now. If we could make him go for goals more often when he wins a high ball inside like the Dubs do regularly and are so much more clinical than us. Look at how Costello had only one thing in mind when he won that ball a few weeks ago. Mugsy should have a word with him. 

[tiempo]

He worded his withdrawal well without having a dig at anyone else and left the door open for a return. Fair play to him.

Yeah, you cannot really argue with any of that. Really skilful forward but probably just not as naturally athletic as some of the other players he is competing with which is just a reflection of where the game has gone. Massive boost for Omagh for the club season.

Captain of Tyrone U21 at 19 going into an Ulster Final with regular comparisons to Canavan he seemed to be in a great place and had no bother carrying the expectation then it all came tumbling down with that bad knee injury at training. I think he had a bit more raw pace that never came back after the injury, add to the rehab the bulking and pure distance these lads have to cover now as athletes and it all just picked away at his strong suit and no doubt confidence as the days of a small elusive inside man are numbered at county level, of the few we have Canavan and Brennan still have that fresh bounce and natural pace to do damage, hopefully they stay free of major injury.

[southtyronegael]

Best of luck to ronan o Neill in the future. Ruined by negative puke ball this last 5 odd years. Could have been a star. Such a waste of talent. Harte has alot to answer for and now he taking credit for playing the way we should have been all along

[trueblue1234]

Best of luck to ronan o Neill in the future. Ruined by negative puke ball this last 5 odd years. Could have been a star. Such a waste of talent. Harte has alot to answer for and now he taking credit for playing the way we should have been all along

It's really bugs you when Tyrone start to play well doesn't it.

[nrico2006]

Best of luck to ronan o Neill in the future. Ruined by negative puke ball this last 5 odd years. Could have been a star. Such a waste of talent. Harte has alot to answer for and now he taking credit for playing the way we should have been all along

He just wasn't up to the standard unfortunately.

[southtyronegael]

Best of luck to ronan o Neill in the future. Ruined by negative puke ball this last 5 odd years. Could have been a star. Such a waste of talent. Harte has alot to answer for and now he taking credit for playing the way we should have been all along

It's really bugs you when Tyrone start to play well doesn't it.

bugs me? I really enjoy it and the last 2 games look like a new era. How could any football man not enjoy it? What bugs me is the fact we have just wasted at least 5 years.

[trueblue1234]

Best of luck to ronan o Neill in the future. Ruined by negative puke ball this last 5 odd years. Could have been a star. Such a waste of talent. Harte has alot to answer for and now he taking credit for playing the way we should have been all along

It's really bugs you when Tyrone start to play well doesn't it.

bugs me? I really enjoy it and the last 2 games look like a new era. How could any football man not enjoy it? What bugs me is the fact we have just wasted at least 5 years.

No your devastated. Same way you went quiet for most of the year last year. Doesn't help your constant narrative on here when the team are playing well. Only in your eyes would 2 Ulsters, quarter final appearances, semi final appearances and AI final appearance be classed as wasted especially in an era when we are up against the best County Team I've seen playing. Tyrone had many a wasted year in your reckoning.