Farley out to continue his fine form with Tyrone Minors

TWO crucial goals during the past two matches for the Tyrone Minors have highlighted the contribution of Cathal Farley as the young Beragh teenager prepares to play his part when the Red Hands meet Roscommon in Sunday’s All-Ireland semi-final.

A defender now turned attacker, he hit the net against Cavan at a stage when the tie was still very much in the balance, and then repeated the feat with an equally important strike during the first half of the quarter final against Cork.

Now both he and the rest of the Red Hand panel will be aiming to continue their good run against the Rossies, who defeated Louth in the last eight after accounting for Mayo in the Connacht final. They will travel to Breffni Park in Cavan on Sunday for the last four tie hoping to take another step towards achieving another notable success.

“Whatever role I’m given, I just try and do my best. It’s working out well for me and I’m glad I’m doing something for the team,” he said.

“It was good to get another goal and contribute for the team in that way.

“Gerry Donnelly says that hard work beats talent, and all you can do is to do your best, tracking men and putting in all you have for 60 minutes of the game. That’s what you do.

“We haven’t been beaten all year and it’s a record we want to keep. It has been class to build from Ulster and go through to the All-Ireland series.

The Red Knights youngster is one of several players from the club who have been marking their mark for Tyrone at underage level during recent seasons. Conor Owens was part of last year’s U-20 team and the Minors in 2021, while Cathal’s cousins, Paddy and Sean McCann, have also enjoyed All-Ireland success at U-20 level.

Nevertheless, this latest player from the club is anxious to make his own mark and realises the importance of what has been achieved by the side so far.

“It’s unreal and this is what we’ve been dreaming off all season, getting to the All-Ireland. Reaching the All-Ireland semi-final is a big achievement.

“It is also some achievement to get in here with the top teams in Ireland and this gives us great experience.Minor football sets you up for senior.

“Simple things like handling or winning breaks and being clinical up front are the most important things that we need to get right. We did work well against Cork. I know the conditions were poor in the second half and started to go against us with the rain and the wind, and we still coped well with that.

“We do a lot of running in training and we would be in good shape thanks to the coaches. You can’t thank them enough for that and on big days that really comes into play and we all work hard to get back and get forward. We have many key men in the team.”