Tyrone v Derry Sor Sun 12th Feb 2.30 in Omagh

[Fuzzman]

Let the fun begin. I'd say Mugsy will be target to get his wings (and hair) cut.
Will we have the McMahons & Sean Cavanagh back or will Sean only get 10 mins again?





From the unbiased Derry Journal.

Published on Tuesday 31 January 2012 12:32

IT HAS BEEN described as a 'joke' but James Conway's red card was no laughing matter for Derry boss John Brennan.

Michael Wilson reports:

His conundrum was simple. How exactly does a linesman - around 100 metres away on the far side of a pitch - spot an incident serious enough to warrant a straight red card when his colleague - positioned approximately five yards from that incident - sees nothing?

On the face of it, it's a simple enough query but Brennan is not likely to get any satisfactory answers. Not that he is expecting to. In previous games the Lavey man has watched as Sean Leo McGoldrick and Emmett McGuckin were hospitalised after challenges that went unpunished. Barry McGoldrick's name was also added to Derry's growing injury list after a challenge that annoyed the Derry boss in the Cavan game.


Then, in the 18th minute of Saturday's final, James Conway tangled with Tyrone's Colm Cavanagh close to the Derry dug-out and Fermanagh referee Martin Higgins, after consulting linesman Padraig Hughes, dismissed the Ballinderry midfielder to the shock of everyone in red.

By his own admission, Conway conceded to having a hold of Cavanagh's shirt but not even the television cameras present at the Morgan Athletic Grounds could clear up what exactly the red card offence was.

Whatever it was, it changed the game and Derry, who had strolled into a 1-03 to 0-01 lead thanks to Paddy Bradley's second goal since his return from injury, were suddenly up against it.

"I have to give credit to my players because we were down to 14 men for long periods of time and they came back to within three points so I have to give my players full credit," explained the Derry manager afterwards.

"I was impressed with their attitude and the pride they have for the Derry jersey but as everyone knows, the turning point for us was when we lost James Conway. The game took a u-turn from that point.

"I have faith in my players. They are a good bunch of players. They are dedicated and I feel sorry for them and the Derry supporters because we feel cheated tonight."

The Derry manager pointed an accusing finger at Cavanagh, who was booked in the incident, who he felt had made something out of nothing.

"We could have accepted what happened had the linesman three metres away given the decision but he didn't, it was the linesman who was 100 metres away who gave it. I find it very difficult to accept because for us that decision was wrong and up until it happened we were in a great position to win the game.

"Everything was going really well up until James was sent off. I haven't seen any footage of it yet but the reports that I've heard suggest absolutely nothing happened. The linesman who was right beside me and only a few metres away from what happened said that nothing happened.

"If a player wants to get an opponent sent off that way then let him live with it. We think that what happened was unfair but listen, we have prepared well and now our attention must turn to the National League because it's the big competition starting now."

Despite his obvious frustration at the result, the Derry manager said the Power NI McKenna Cup had once again proved a good season opener for his players.

"We were disappointed in the final result naturally enough because we would have liked to have won, we wanted to retain the trophy.

"We have done very well in the McKenna Cup and much as we would have loved to have retained the trophy, the players battled, I am proud of them and I am disappointed for them and for the supporters – but we'll fight another day.

"The bottom line for me at the minute is that I put out the best panel possible for the national league. We'll get together on Tuesday night again and start working towards the game against Galway in Celtic Park on Sunday."

Positive start

While all pre-match eyes were fixed on Peter Robinson, once the action got going Derry did their best to upstage the First Minister with a superb opening salvo that put the Oak Leafers firmly in the box seat. They took an early two point lead when Bradley converted two frees in the third and seventh minutes respectively as Conway and Joe Diver took a firm control of the midfield.

Tyrone were struggling to contain a Derry forward line in which Mark Lynch looked superb and the Banagher man took full advantage of poor handling in the Tyrone half-back line to fire over the bar in the 11th minute for a fully deserved three point lead.

Tyrone had seen two early chances sail wide but the impressive Michael Murphy finally got his side's first point on the board in the 12th minute though it looked like there would be little respite for Mickey Harte's men when Bradley found the net five minutes later. James Conway's high free was touched on by Cailean O'Boyle for Bradley - who had anticipated the touch -to gather, step inside and smash the ball past John Devine from close range for 1-03 to 0-1.

Then came Conway's red card which will undoubtedly bring a Derry appeal but, initially at least, Conway's sending off appeared to have little impact. Lynch scored an absolute 'belter' of a point in the 23rd minute when he linked up with Conleith Gilligan on the right before sending over a huge score whilst hugging the touchline to give the Oak Leafers a six point lead.

Murphy got his and Tyrone's second score when he received a wonderful pass from Owen Mulligan in the 27th minute but as Conway's red card and a nasty knee injury to Gerard O'Kane which could seem him miss the start of the National League started to takes it toll, Tyrone roared back into contention with an excellent score from Peter Harte and a free from Stephen O'Neill.

Buoyed by the brace, Tyrone started to take hold of the game and when Mulligan somehow squeezed the ball past Danny Devlin at his near post in first half injury time, Derry's lead was reduced to one leaving Cathal McCarron to restore parity at 1-05 each on the stroke of half time.

Tyrone broke from the blocks first after the restart with a phenomenal point from Stephen O'Neill on the left hand side and they extended that lead to three when Mark Donnelly pointed after the ball rebounded off the post and O'Neill converted his second free of the game.

Gilligan pulled a point back but Tyrone were making full use of the extra man and in no mood to let Derry off the hook as four scores without reply from Mattie Donnelly (2), Dermot Carlin and Cathal McCarron gave them a five point lead.

Cailean O'Boyle's late injury time penalty was scant consolation for Brennan whose attention now turns to Sunday's league opener.

"We have two big games coming up in the National League and it would be brilliant if we could get four points from our opening two games. But, as of now, we are looking only to Sunday's game against Galway. If we get two points, then so well and so good, because then we can start building towards the next game. It's going to be a difficult league."

One notable bright spot from Saturday's frustrations was the continued progress of Paddy Bradley, although the Derry manager admitted his front had little to feed from after the red card.

"Paddy did well right up until we had our man sent off because after that he was starved of any real ball going into him. Paddy will come good like a lot of the other players. James Conway will be back and we have a few other players to come back from injury too.

"We'll get stronger because we have prepared well and hopefully we'll get better."

DERRY: D. Devlin; D McBride, L. Morrow, R. Dillon; G. O'Kane, B.McCallion, B. McGoldrick ; J. Conway, J. Diver; C. McKaigue, M. Lynch (0-2), S.L. McGoldrick (0-1); Cailean O'Boyle (1-0), P. Bradley (1-2, 2f), C. Gilligan (0-3, 2f).

Subs: N. Forrister for G. O'Kane 10 mins; K. O'Neill for N. Forrester 40 mins; P.J. McCloskey for J. Diver 46 mins; M. Craig for R. Dillon 54 mins; E. Lynn for C. Gilligan.

TYRONE: J. Devine; A.McCroy, J. McMahon, P.J. Quinn; C. McCarron (0-2), P. Harte (0-1), D. Carlin (0-1); M. Murphy (0-2), C. Cavanagh; Mattie Donnelly (0-3), P. Hughes, M. Penrose; O. Mulligan (1-1, 1f), Mark Donnelly (0-1), S. O'Neill (0-2, 1f).

Subs: J. McMahon for C. Cavanagh 21 mins; J. Lafferty for M. Penrose 38 mins; S. O'Neill for J. McMahon 47 mins; R. O'Neill (0-1) for S. O'Neill 64 mins; S. McNulty for M. Murphy 64 mins.

REFEREE: Martin Higgins (Fermanagh). Attendance: 4,715

[ONeill]

Very disappointed at you Fuzz, pulling on the no.4 shirt for Derry.

[sheamy]

With an ever growing injury list, this will be lambs to the slaughter. Not looking forward to it one bit 

[lynchbhoy]

Very disappointed at you Fuzz, pulling on the no.4 shirt for Derry.

LOL
not far off alright !!


see the continuity of the Tyrone side that night and the team that beat kildare.
compare the lannigans ball Derry side that was put out yesterday - and we wonder why we are playing so sihte..

[Man Marker]

Derry are brilliant at excuses. We have lost 5/6 of the bet players we have ever had, ie Mc Guigan Mc Ginley, Jordan, Hub etc and we are starting with a new inexperienced team in the past 5 matches. Kind of levels it out a bit sheamy!!!

[rrhf]

Id be too long at this game to not expect a Derry backlash this week.  They will see Tyrone as the ultimate pick-me-up.  Bradley will be all the better for the football he has under his belt to date.  We could see a return of "Paddy the Power" this Sunday in Omagh.  Any word on mcMahon * 2.  My ideal Tyrone formation would be Clarke at 3, Justy at 6, Joe and Sean Cavanagh at 8 and 9 and Petey at 11 with O Neill playing at 14 even if he has 15 on then back.   

[Fuzzman]

Very disappointed at you Fuzz, pulling on the no.4 shirt for Derry.

Haha I've also been called Nigel Winterburn the odd time. Who is it? I used to think I looked like

If Derry lose this one they could be struggling for points come March. Who else do they have at home?

[sensethetone]

you would think derry would be well pumped up for tyrone on sunday think derry have some really good players but diver n devlin the goalie are not really guys to keep a cool head. P harte playing chb is bit like enda mc ginley doin fb for a while can see him come back to hf line.

[Mr. Nakata]

Tyrone enjoyed the wide open spaces of HQ and a pitch in great nick as always. We all know what Omagh will be like next Sunday. Heavy conditions that will sap both teams. I hope we can keep improving and move onto 4 points, but the old enemy will be licking their lips. Tyrone should have more experienced players to come in. Conor Clark would be very unlucky to get the shepherd's hook, but at the same time Paddy Bradley looks as potent as ever. Team selection will be interesting. 

[Fear ón Srath Bán]

Very disappointed at you Fuzz, pulling on the no.4 shirt for Derry.

Haha I've also been called Nigel Winterburn the odd time. Who is it?

Ryan Dillon of Swatragh I believe, aka Fuzzman -- too close to the Derry border on that mountain!

[God14]

Team selection will be very interesting & Thursday night will tell a tale...

Goalkeeper - will be rotated, Devine In.

Defence - On the plus side Joe McMahon & Dermy Carlin will be available again for selection. Think Justy is injured again (unconfirmed) , as is Conor Clarke who pulled the hamstring on Saturday night (confirmed). Clarke was unavailble for Omagh U21's on Sunday & likely to miss out next sunday as well. Damian McCaul pushing hard for a chance now. Ricey will be hoping to see game time also.

Midfield - I rate big Cassidy highly, and he took one for the team on Saturday night. No where near fit enough to participate (following another injury setback) but he made himself available for selection under the circumstances and emptied the tank. Michael Murphy's star didnt shine as brightly last time out. Jury still out IMO. Perhaps we could see Joe McMahon line out here again? He was very effective there in the McKenna final.

Forwards - Peter Hughe's position you would feel would be under serious threat. The other 5 positions i feel pick themselves now. Harte wont t**ker with a winning formulae here. I think Tommy McGuigan is available again, plus Big Sean will likely get another 10 mins towards the end to continue his rehabilitation. As I alluded to before, I would like to see Kyle Coney given an opportunity. McNiece, Gervin etc didnt really grab the bull by the horns in the McKenna cup but Coney hasnt even had a decent opportunity this year to date. Also - what of Lafferty? Seems like a long time ago now that he impressed against QUB. Seems to be slipping down the pecking order.

Regardless of team selection - Derry will be well up for this one. They need the points, and they are getting slated by their own at the minute. Expect a backlash in the shape of a negative, bitter ugly battle, heavy narrow pitch, pulling & dragging match just - which will level it up immensely. There wont be more than a couple of points in it at the end. Discipline is crucial, however hopefully Tyrone's superior class will shine out.

[omagh_gael]

Good post there god but healy park narrow? jaysus i remember playing there for the u-16s thinking id need a hurricane to blow to carry the ball across the field!

[Club Rossa]

Derry will be well fired up for Sunday's game and going by their performance against Galway it would look like a Tyrone win.But as we all know with these derby games it's never as simple as that.They won't lack motivation after what happened in the McKenna cup final and will be a very dangerous opponent come Sunday.

[ONeill]

[shezam]

No Sean ONeill for this game, 3 month suspension arising from St Marys Sigerson game last week.