Dooher- ‘We need to pick up winning habit’

STELLAR performances are all well and good, but Tyrone joint-manager Brian Dooher says the time is ripe to start clocking up a few championship victories, starting with Saturday’s clash with fierce rivals Armagh.

Dooher says that the “stark reality” is that Tyrone have only claimed a solitary championship victory since their All-Ireland triumph of 2021, but they can take solace from the manner of their performance in a narrow defeat to Galway a fortnight ago.

Tyrone now have two remaining attempts at ensuring their championship campaign doesn’t end at the last 16 phase, and Dooher isn’t expecting anything simple against Armagh, even though they were somewhat off-colour against Westmeath last weekend.

“You can go out and play well and give a good account of yourself in games but winning gives you confidence and momentum going forward and you can’t beat that. We have to get a win on Saturday to keep things moving.

“Let’s be honest we have only won one championship game in the last two years and that is the stark reality of it.”

He continued: “Armagh are a very good side and they showed that in the closing stages when they finished the game strongly to win. That showed the resilience that is in there amongst them to dig out a result when perhaps they weren’t at their best. They didn’t click the way that they would normally click and maybe that was because they were going into the game on the back of an Ulster Final defeat, a game that they could have won.
“We need to take it up another gear or two though if we are going to beat Armagh this weekend.

“We know that there was very little between the two sides the last time that we played and they will be coming to Omagh on Saturday with a stronger team as they had a few key players missing the last day.”

Tyrone will be without a few established faces this weekend with Cathal McShane still sidelined with injury while Frank Burns is serving a one-game suspension having picked up a red card against Galway.

Dooher said: “Cathal (McShane) won’t be available due to injury while Frank (Burns) will be a massive loss as well but that is what we have a panel for.

“It’s an opportunity for somebody else to stand up and be counted. Sean O’Donnell and Niall Devlin both came on against Galway for their senior championship debuts and they didn’t do themselves any harm and that is the way it is, if you are training hard you will get your opportunity.

“We would love to have a full squad to pick from but that is the hand that we have been dealt this time and we just have to knuckle down and get on with it.”

The Red Hands consigned Armagh to relegation on the final day of the league with a hard-fought 0-18 to 0-16 victory. It was a strong performance from the Red Hands but they’ll also be conscious of their defeat to Armagh in last year’s qualifier series.

“Armagh shouldn’t have been relegated from Division one this season but that’s the way things just worked out for them. Let’s be honest there is very little between us and I would say that Armagh are coming in in a stronger place this time as they have the momentum from the Ulster championship as well as that win in the opening game of the group last weekend.

“They will be a stronger side than the last time we met them but at the same time I would like to think that we have come on as well.”

As for his thoughts on the new championship format, Dooher says that it invariably leads to a tough run of games as it theoretically involves the top 16 teams in Ireland.

“The backdoor historically you maybe got a handy game at the start but those days are well and truly gone. Whenever you draw last year’s All Ireland finalists Galway in your first match it says it all and every game in the group is going to be tough and a battle.”