Joe Brolly Launches Stinging Attack On Malachy O'Rourke Over Tyrone Failings

Considering the manner in which Tyrone would overcome Donegal in their All-Ireland round robin opener, the manner of their performance in the loss to Mayo in the following game must have been a massive disappointment.

The Ulster side were completely outplayed by their opponents on the day, a game in which Mayo had entered on the back of their own poor run of form. The seven-point winning margin certainly did not flatter the visitors in Omagh, leaving Tyrone in a perilous position heading into their game against Cavan this weekend.

They will certainly need to improve in that one, otherwise leaving themselves in danger of missing out on the knockout phase of the All-Ireland series.

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It has been a mixed year for Tyrone, who suffered relegation from Division 1 before exiting the Ulster Championship at the semi-final stage.

There has certainly been a period of adjustment for the county under their new coaching ticket, with Malachy O'Rourke often struggling to get the best out the side early on in his tenure as manager.

O'Rourke previously experienced a huge amount of success at inter-county level with Monaghan, going on to dominate the club scene with Derry's Watty Grahams before landing the Tyrone gig. However, some are questioning his suitability to Gaelic football in 2025 on the back of the recent rule changes.

Writing in the Irish Independent, Joe Brolly did not hold back in his criticism of O'Rourke, suggesting that his negative approach has been found as we enter a new era of the sport.

After being relegated to Division 2, beaten in the Ulster semi-final, and walloped by Mayo at home, is [Malachy O'Rourke] all he is cracked up to be?

Malachy’s career, after all, has been built on successfully imitating Jimmy McGuinness’s blanket defence, possession-holding formula...

At its core was endless rehearsal of the zonal defence, hard running, holding of possession, no fouling in the scoring area, killing the game and all of the other features of that nightmarish decade for Gaelic football.

Tyrone have certainly struggled in 2025, although how much of that is down to their manager's tactical approach is certainly open to debate.

The 2021 All-Ireland winners still have an excellent chance of advancing deep into the All-Ireland series, with a win over Cavan this weekend putting them in the picture to advance straight to an All-Ireland quarter-final.