Donnelly expects stiff Cavan challenge on Saturday

HAVING enjoyed a first round stroll Tyrone Minor manager Gerard Donnelly cautions that his team face a significant step up in terms of quality when they tackle Cavan next up in the Ulster Championship this Saturday afternoon.

The Breffni boys toppled the back-to-back All-Ireland champions Derry last day out and will no doubt represent a serious test for the Red Hands, who put Fermanagh to the sword in a one-sided contest on the same afternoon.

Goals from Eoin Long and Peter Garrity put the tin hat on a facile 2-19 to 0-3 triumph over the Ernesiders for the recently crowned Ulster League champions, but Donnelly appreciates that Tyrone’s Championship challenge starts out properly this Saturday in the high noon showdown at O’Neill’s Healy Park.

“ Cavan are a very good team. We played them in the league and got a couple of scores near the end to pull away. They had a massive win beating the two times All-Ireland champions Derry last week so we know they will be coming fully motivated and confident.

“ They will also have no fear of us after that last (league) game because they were right in it up until the end

“ They also have a big game under their belt which is an advantage for them. They had a great tussle with Derry. So the Championship really gets going now for us and we have to get up to the intensity required to match Cavan.”

A teacher at St Michael’s in Enniskillen Donnelly stated that he had a fair degree of sympathy for the Fermanagh boys last time out, even though he was very firmly in the opposition corner.

“ It was tough to get going in that one because it was really a no-win situation for us. We were expected to win it and we did. Don’t get me wrong we respected Fermanagh and we had our homework done on them.

“ So we got over that one and now it is on to a much tougher assignment in Cavan next. It’s tough to say that because I know all those Fermanagh lads from school and they put in the same effort as everyone else.”

The Ulster Council have revamped the Minor Championship this season, doing away with the protracted group stages, to streamline the competition. The Tyrone boss was a strong advocate of the changes.

“ The fact our lads are playing club football too means that it;’s better having less games to play in the Championship. We were playing matches eight out of nine weekends last year and physically that was tiring on the boys. At least with this new format the matches are a bit more spread out and you have more preparation time.

“ There is more of a Championship feel to it this year because it is more cut-throat and a bit more jeopardy involved. If you lose you only have one more opportunity to stay in it and then if you lose that you are gone. So I do like this format as it’s less taxing on the boys.”