Harney happy with battling Roes character

ON the back of a battling derby draw with Aghyaran last Friday night Owen Roes coach Tim Harney said the the team were happy to go to Dolan Park and secure a point.

Thanks to some fine individual displays, with keeper Ryan McShane and midfielder Tony Devine really standing out, the O’Neill’s came away with a 0-12 to 1-9 draw, Devine the goalscorer. Harney believed that the result had to be viewed in a positive light.

“ Not many teams will come up to Aghyaran and get anything, let alone a point. We could say we were unlucky not to get a win and we had the chances in a game that could have went either way. We are happy with the draw as they are a team that won’t be far away come the end of the season.”

Former Glenelly and Tyrone underage keeper Harney is part of Stefan Deery’s managerial backroom team at Glenmornan and he is also joined on the sidelines by ex- Tyrone and Urney star Johnny Lafferty. Tim stated that his influence is already rubbing off.

>body2text<“ Johnny has come in and is doing a great job. It is what we expected. He has played at club and county level and won things in both as well as playing other sports. He has vast experience and as coaches we are learning from him too.”

>body2text<A talented netminder in his own day Harney was full of praise too for McShane, the  number one at Glenmornan these days.

>body2text<“Ryan is the best goalkeeper in Division Two if not all three divisions. He is a perfect example of the modern goalkeeper, a good shot stopper and fielder of the ball.

“ He has a good kick out and has over the past while added to his game with a bit of an attacking edge. Ryan has worked on that himself to improve his game with the attacking and got a couple of fine scores there again against Aghyaran.”

Tim also praised the contribution of midfielder Devine, stating that he is consistently one of the best operating around centre field at club level these days.

“ The cat’s out of the bag when it comes to Tony,” laughed his coach, after Devine embodied everything that was good about the Roes on Frday night. He secured key primary possession, funneled back when called upon, set up attacks, as well as bagging that crucial goal.

“ No doubt about it you see that level of performance in every game and teams will try and deal with that. Tony will win the ball and try and break through and will get a handful of fouls on him but he gets on with it. That’s Tony- a great player and character around the club.”

Tyrone’s Championship loss last weekend will be Owen Roes gain in that their challenge will be bolstered by the return of Cathal McShane to the club fold. While acknowledging that everyone liked to see the county side being successful, Harney said that you could not underestimate his value to the club.

“ Cathal is a vital cog in the club as well as the community and we have missed him that’s for sure. It’s a pity Tyrone have gone out now but after our mixed start with two narrow losses, a win and draw we really have missed him. Cathal is a big player for us and what an addition he will be for this weekend against Derrylaughan.”