Tyrone fans celebrate All Ireland success worth waiting for
over 2 years in The Irish Times
The victorious Tyrone players and backroom team are holding a special homecoming event at the county’s Healy Park this afternoon as supporters in the county celebrate its latest All-Ireland success.
It follows their five point victory over Mayo in Saturday’s final at Croke Park.
Among those relishing the joy of the latest Sam Maguire Cup triumph is 11 year-old, Eoin O’Neill from Beragh.
“I was at the final in 2018 when Tyrone lost and to see them win was just brilliant,” he said.
“We saw the Sam Maguire Cup afterwards in the Cusack Stand. It’s a dream come true for me and I really enjoyed the fun going home last night.”
“My favourite player is Petey Harte and I hope we’ll get to see the Cup again soon.”
His father, Declan, said the match was extraordinary and it was a thrill to see the Sam Maguire won again by Tyrone.
“It made my day for Eoin to be in Croke Park and to see all the excitement. We hugged after the final whistle. I was at the three wins before, but we’ve waited a long time for this one.”
A new generation of Tyrone supporters are getting to sample the joy of an All-Ireland win for the first time.
Conor Sally, who is chairman of the Omagh St Enda’s GAA club said there’s nothing like winning the Sam.
“This win is bringing everyone in the county together with great euphoria,” he told The Irish Times.
“It was special because we’ve waited for 13 years. This one was different because we knew Tyrone were going to win heading into added time because there was a five or six point gap and Mayo weren’t coming back.”
Last night, the players and management and their families attended a special celebration event in the Armagh City Hotel.
The players were welcomed into the function which was also attended by former manager, Mickey Harte.
A poignant tribute was paid to former trainer, Fergal McCann from Augher, who died earlier this year and had coached Tyrone to All-Ireland senior titles in the 2000s.
Joe McMahon, a member of the backroom team and two-time winner, said Mr McCann’s legacy would never be forgotten.
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