By 
WOUNDED by underwhelming results to their respective Leinster opponents in Round One, Tyrone and Derry renew their age old rivalry at Celtic Park on Saturday evening keen to kickstart their Division Two promotion challenge.
The Ulster duo were tagged as the pre-competition favourites to go back up (they both finished in the bottom two slots in Division One last season) but suffered a bit of a reality check in their opening league clashes.
The Oak Leafers came up short in their engagement with Meath at Croke Park, while in Omagh Tyrone coughed up a three point cushion in the closing stages against fourteen man Kildare to have to content themselves with a share of the spoils. It wasn’t the platform that either Malachy O’Rourke or his Derry managerial counterpart Ciaran Meenagh wanted to lay down for the weeks ahead.
A ragged and disjointed first half performance at Healy Park will have irritated O’Rourke who would have expected his charges to be primed for battle and relishing their first proper competitive assignment in 2026.
Yes they improved in the second half, the introduction of the likes of Darragh Canavan and Eoin McElholm bringing a creative spark to the attack, but ultimately few could argue that the visiting Lilywhites didn’t deserve some reward for their endeavours on the night.
Tyrone should have a stronger hand to choose from for this fixture, albeit the fresh faces handed the nod last Saturday far from disgraced themselves. But the experience Canavan and team skipper Brian Kennedy (another second half sub vs Kildare) bring to the fold could prove key traits as they venture into the lion’s den in the Bogside.
These two sides met in the first round of the League almost exactly twelve months ago in Omagh where Tyrone won comfortably. That was the precursor to a miserable campaign for Derry who lost all seven matches which entrenched their position at the foot of the table.
After an indifferent Championship to boot, Loughmacrory native Ciaran Meenagh was subsequently confirmed as the new manager, replacing Paddy Tally.
It was a role that he formerly held in an interim capacity in 2023 when he helped steer Derry to the All-Ireland semi-final.
A major upturn in fortunes will be requited in the coming months if they are to replicate that kind of success, but for now the home supporters at Celtic Park will be demanding a performance and a positive result against their neighbours from across the Sperrins.
Likewise visitors Tyrone know they can ill-afford to drop too many points early doors in what is set to be a scrap for those top two spots, with other rivals already showing their ambitious intent.
It should make for an interesting and feisty seventy minutes.
