On Sunday it comes around. Just under 12 years ago, Pat Gilroy took Dublin footballers on the trip to Healy Park in Omagh. For the first time in over a decade they were challenging for a Division One title and a win could put them in the final.
For Tyrone the stakes were as high – if not higher – in that they needed a win to avoid the first relegation of Mickey Harte’s management. It’s easy to forget at this remove how formidable the county had become in what was roughly the first half of the Harte years.
As soon as he took over in 2002, the new manager was emphasising the need to contest everything – in his 18 seasons they even won 12 McKenna Cups. There woul …
- March 9, 2022
