McKenna Cup 2024

[The Bottom Brick]

Cavan v Derry Sunday - any thoughts?

I think Cavan will win this, SDerry seem to have a weak team out...

[never kickt a ball]

ODDs from Ladbrokes

McKenna Cup Group A
Armagh V St. Mary's 1/2 6/1 15/8
Fermanagh V Monaghan 4/5 5/1 5/4

McKenna Cup Group B
Derry V Cavan 4/7 6/1 7/4
Tyrone V Queen's 1/3 8/1 5/2

McKenna Cup Group C
Donegal V UUJ 1/2 6/1 15/8
Down V Antrim 1/3 8/1 5/2

£10 on all home teams would yield £113.14. Bet you someone draws to ruin the bet.

[never kickt a ball]

Will be at Tyrone v QUB match tomorrow and will try and provide some kind of report for tomorrow night. Anybody do the same for the other matches or does anyone else want to do the TY V QUB report?

[Stranworst]

Antrim +3 handicap looks a good bet seeing Ross has sent most of the first 15ers away on an extended holiday! Gonna have to wait and see how the newbies get on!

[tyroneman]

Will be in Omagh meself later today.....................might just throw a tuppenceworth in

[Chompinatthebit]

Tyrone beat Queens - any word on whom played well? Any of the new boys in the Tyrone forward line play well?

[Dubh driocht]

Down and Antrim drew in wet,windy and mucky Pairc Ruisseal. Neither  team impressed with Antrim probably the better side.Quinn, Close and Brady showed their experience to steady a young team although Quinn was lucky to stay on the field after hitting Turley right in front of the referee. Down paraded a real team of rookies and there were some encouraging signs but don't book the Burlington yet.Stephen Kearney suffered a serious leg injury and was removed to hospital. A day for the fire !

[Candyman]

anyone at the armagh game who can give an opinion on the new breed???

[tyroneman]

Poor conditions at Healy Park couldn't be blamed for what was at times the good, bad and ugly side of football. From the get go Queens no 12 (Charlie Vernon sticking to the big Joe tactic book) near decapitiated Hub and was fortunate not to see the line.

There was some good football played on both sides and despite a blistering first few minutes of the second half Queens kept some comnposure to make a stroing rally and reduce the deficit to 2 at one stage.

Tyrone keeper Curran was magnificent throughout shot stopping and his kickouts, bar 1 or 2, were excellent at finding men free. Could be find of the year as he wasnlt even in the original panel

Queens, despite playing well when they had the ball, seemed intent all game on fouling Tyrone as much as possible, without a terrible amount of sublty it must be said. how the ref missed some of the 'tackles' was beyond a joke. (He might have been from Derry right enough)

The sending off of O'Neill was a disgrace. First off Queens started a melee with about 10 players pushing and shoving - handbag stuff at best. Queens number 10, possibly aiming for a transfer to Chelsea, dropped to the ground after being pushed away by O'Neill and lay writhing clutching at his face. The ref was at the OTHER SIDE of the melee and had no clear view, neither did the linemans have much input and really he should have known better than to assume man on gound holding head = red card. Presumably this will rule SON out of the Dublin game. The incident happened right in front of where I was sitting and to be brutally honest O'Neill pushed him at best, there was no way he could even get his arm back for a swing to punch the lad.

Funny that the same ref saw fit not to take action against the Queens no3 who ran 40 yards to shoulder Cavanagh in the back while play was stopped.

In terms of performance - Joe McMahon needs to be the FB this year (where is he???), McGinley is not up to it. Penrose is poor, missing from between the posts 20 yards out in the first half is evidence enough of this.

Few new players stood out and some looked well out of thier depth (no 5 in particular continued to give the ball away all day long)

Work to be done. Was disappointed Daisy and Marlow didn't appear today.

[Candyman]

i think its unfair to think of Vernon as that type of player! he may well have put in a bad tackle but i'd imagine it was a case of bad timing rather than dirt (big joes book??) anyone who knows charlie, will know that he is a true sportsman/gentleman and this is not his style of play.....

[Chompinatthebit]

Paul Marlowe is still injured is he not and wont be featuring in the McKenna Cup for Tyrone?

[TacadoirArdMhacha]

Joe McMahon needs to be the FB this year (where is he???),

Getting sent off for St Mary's

[phpearse]

Tyroneman it was actually Kevin McGourty who was the QUB number 12 who put in the head high tackle early on. Vernon was number 8. His only contribution to the game was to clap as ONeill was shown the red card. If the Armagh crowd think this lad will be a possible addition to their team then he did little to prove that today against a makeshift Tyrone team. The O'Neill red card was deserved. He had been fouled a few times as the play became scrappy. I think it was a late tackle by the QUB number 10 as O'Neill was surrounded that rilled O'Neill but he did strike out, allbeit a short sharp knock to the players chest. Vernons clapping doing nothing to add to his contribution to the afternoon. As for the game itself 2-14 was good scoring considering the conditions, which were truely awful.

Curran made some decent first half saves but was unconvincing under the high ball. Kickouts were well placed and he could offer a bit more variety other that the 'big hoof down the middle' offered by McConnell.

The full back line was Paul McGurk, McGinley and Carlin. Dermot Carlin had an excellent first half. McGurk and McGinley were so so with McGurk being subbed in the 2nd half for Mickey McGee. Half back line of Ricey, Hub and Martin Penrose was somewhat surprising, with Ricey being the liveliest of them all. Hub and Penrose both looking out of place and in Hubs case slightly unfit.

MF of Sean Cavanagh and Kelvin Hughes. Cavanagh had an excellent match and looks very fit so early in the season. Hughes looked a bit slow in possession but the game will help him.

The half forward line was the weakest line on the field with Chris Colhoun of Pomeroy, Colm Donnelly of Clonoe and Declan Treanor of Dungannon. All three are very inexperienced at this level but are excellent club players and while they did some good work they did lack the fast thinking required at this level. However they may come good yet as they are young.

FF line of Niall Gormley, ONeill and Mugsy. Gormely will be happy with his first game scoring 1-4 I think. Mugsy was taken of at half time and replaced by Aidan McCarron who again looked lively. O'Neill was quiet until taken out to the half forward line but then he got too involved and will unfortunately miss the Dublin game.

It was difficult to judge players given the conditions but curran and niall gormley did themselves no harm. I'm sure we'll see the likes of mcdermott, tommy mcguigan, and paul quinn all get some game time next week

[TacadoirArdMhacha]

His only contribution to the game was to clap as ONeill was shown the red card

Imagine. Shockin behaviour altogether. Be even worse if he done it in a big game. Say like an All Ireland final?

[pintsofguinness]

Tyroneman

Poor conditions at Healy Park couldn't be blamed for what was at times the good, bad and ugly side of football. From the get go Queens no 12 (Charlie Vernon sticking to the big Joe tactic book) near decapitiated Hub and was fortunate not to see the line.

Phpearse

Tyroneman it was actually Kevin McGourty who was the QUB number 12 who put in the head high tackle early on. Vernon was number 8.

Imagine, a player who wasn't coached by Joe Kernan putting in a high tackle? I refuse to believe it!