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Irish Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Inside Kerry star David Clifford's life with girlfriend Shauna and son Óigí
David Clifford exploded onto the intercounty stage in 2018. Since his Kerry debut, he's been hailed as "a once in a generation" talent, with his abilities drawing comparisons to global icons like Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan. These accolades and his on-field achievements, including one All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, five Munster titles and three National Leagues, mean everything to the 26 year old – yet he stays humble and down-to-earth. He also claimed Young Footballer of the Year in 2018 and Footballer of the Year in 2022 and 2023. Earlier this year, Clifford spoke to our colleagues at RSVP Magazine to discuss his life off the field with his partner and son. A viral photograph captured you with Kerry performance coach Tony Griffin following the All-Ireland Football Final defeat to Dublin. Can you recall how you felt in that moment? There was a lot of disappointment and regret, I suppose. Croke Park is the best place to be when you win and the worst place to be when you lose. To have somebody like Tony and to have such close friends on the team shows how lucky you are. You survive through the bad days together. You must move on from it too, your life can't revolve around whether you win or lose a game. It would make for a long career for you, because you're going to have more losses than wins. Is it hard not to overthink things? We're all guilty of that. You need to be well settled off the field and have plenty going on away from sport. It's very easy to think about football all the time, but then there would be no enjoyment in it anymore. Off the field, for you, is it hard to get the balance right? It can be at times. The people around us make a lot of sacrifices so we can go out and train so many evenings a week. I try to be settled and relaxed, and I try to enjoy my life as much as I can. That allows me to put everything into the game. Your son Óigí is nearly three now. Does he recognise you on TV and know what the green and gold jersey means? Yeah, he's gone mad for sport at the moment. He's wearing jerseys and he loves it. But he's not too happy with me going out training because I'm going to be gone for a couple of hours. He loves coming along with me to watch the Fossa games at the weekend. He's great craic. Does that add an extra level of enjoyment for you, seeing him loving it as well? I hadn't thought about it like that until you said it. He's also copying the celebrations of the soccer players he sees. He's getting to that age now where I've an extra reason to go out there and play. Óigí is clearly gearing up for the All-Ireland! The structure of the championship has changed. The national league, provincial championship, round robin series and knock-out games are condensed into the first seven months of the year. How are you finding it? When you're stuck in the middle of it and you're going to work, training and matches, you don't think about that kind of stuff. It's great to have games and the structure at the moment is great because you've got a game, then a week off and then another game. You're recovering for a week and then preparing for a week. The four or five week gaps in the old system used to be long. I like that element of it. We're getting a lot of good competitive games, and there's very few negatives to that. Kildare legend Johnny Doyle won a club championship at 45 years old last year. Would you like to do something similar? It's hard to know. I want to play for as long as I can anyway. The day you're inside in the full-forward line and some young fella beats you out to the first couple of balls, that's probably when it's time to move on [laughs]. There has been talk of a return to September All-Ireland finals again. What do you think of that? I'm very happy with the split season. From a selfish point of view, as a teacher anyway. Nobody wants to hear about teachers and their holidays, but we get to have a month of summer holidays after the All-Ireland. That's very enjoyable, being able to go away. On the other side of it, when I was in primary school the build-up to an All-Ireland final in September was brilliant. There are pros and cons. What's your own schedule like? Much has been made about how busy you are with Fossa, East Kerry and Kerry. We're very lucky with our three managers, there's no problem if we need breaks here and there. We're conscious that winning doesn't last forever. East Kerry hadn't won the county championship for 20 years and Fossa has never won the junior. We have to milk it while we have it. It's important to get the breaks as well. It's not just tough physically, it's mentally draining as well. You have to deal with the highs and lows and the build-up to games. How do you deal with the pressure of being David Clifford in a football-mad county? The main thing is trying not to think about it like that. I have different targets for myself or different targets for the team. You always hear [Manchester City manager] Pep Guardiola saying that having targets takes the emotion out of the game. As boring as it sounds, that tends to work a lot of the time. You're big into other sports and you're a Celtic fan. How important is that, having interests away from GAA? That's my approach anyway, I try to have interests in other things. For other people, their interests may not be sports. At the moment, it's impossible to keep up with all the sports. You'd nearly want two or three TVs on the go [laughs]. You've been compared to Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan and been called a "once in a generation" talent. What's that like? There's an uncomfortable nature to it. I learned from my parents to be humble and not to appear arrogant. You don't want to be talking about yourself in that light, you want to let it brush off you. The Pittsburgh Steelers were in Dublin last April. Would you ever try your hand at playing in the NFL? It hasn't really crossed my mind. I'm a relatively safe person in that I'm settled in a job and settled in life. To turn that upside down to try something new isn't something that would appeal to me too much. It's class to see the Irish players that have joined the NFL. We're looking forward to seeing if some of them can get on the pitch. How does it feel to be settled so young? You've made your career in football at an early age, you've a child and a good job. Maybe it will all turn upside down at some stage [jokes]. It's fine, that's just the way things have happened for me. Things fell into place nicely. I'm far from perfect, let that be known. I enjoy life and I feel like I've a great life. I'm very lucky with the people I have around me. You were one of the youngest players when you joined the Kerry panel in 2018 and six years on you're one of the most experienced in the dressing room. It's hard to believe. A lot of us came into the panel together in 2018 and 2019, so we've gone through the years together. Without even noticing it, we've had some incredible life experiences with trips away and big wins and defeats. Every year before you commit to another season you have to make sure you're still enjoying it – thankfully, I still am. Your brother Paudie is team captain this year, what's that like? It's much the same as before. Paudie and I don't spend too much time talking about football together, but we do spend a lot of time together in general whether it's golfing or being around our same circle of friends. Him being captain is great for Fossa too. If you finished your career with one All-Ireland win, how would you accept that? You'd like to win the All-Ireland every year, but that's not the reality of it. If I was to retire I wouldn't be going around telling people that I've an All-Ireland medal or don't have an All-Ireland medal. While they're great to win and you do everything in your power to win them, you just have to get over it. Hopefully, that won't be the case! David Clifford of Kerry celebrates his goal (Image: ©INPHO/James Lawlor)
Time of India
15-07-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
MLB All-Star Game 2025: Start Date, Time, Location, How to Watch, Pitchers, Lineups and Anthem Performers, Odds
Pitchers American and National Leagues Lineups American League Starting Lineup Starting Pitcher: Tarik Skubal (Tigers) 2B: Gleyber Torres (Tigers) LF: Riley Greene (Tigers) RF: Aaron Judge (Yankees) C: Cal Raleigh (Mariners) 1B: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Blue Jays) DH: Ryan O'Hearn (Orioles) 3B: Junior Caminero (Rays) CF: Javier Baez (Tigers) SS: Jacob Wilson (Athletics) National League Starting Lineup Starting Pitcher: Paul Skenes (Pirates) DH: Shohei Ohtani (Dodgers) LF: Ronald Acuña Jr. (Braves) 2B: Ketel Marte (Diamondbacks) 1B: Freddie Freeman (Dodgers) 3B: Manny Machado (Padres) C: Will Smith (Dodgers) RF: Kyle Tucker (Cubs) SS: Francisco Lindor (Mets) CF: Pete Crow-Armstrong (Cubs) Game Date, Time, Location and How to Watch Date: Tuesday, July 15, 2025 Time: 8 p.m. ET Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, Georgia How to Watch: TV - Fox and Streaming - Fubo Live Events Anthem Performers All-Star Game History and Records Best Bets and Player Odds Moneyline: AL +100, NL -120 Total Runs (O/U 7): Over -120, Under +120 Aaron Judge +600 Shohei Ohtani +600 Cal Raleigh +600 Ronald Acuña Jr. +750 Junior Caminero +800 Pete Crow-Armstrong +875 All-Star Game 2026 FAQs (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel will take place on Tuesday, July 15, 2025. The event will be held at Truist Park in Atlanta, Georgia. It features top players from the American and National Leagues. The matchup begins at 8 p.m. ET and will be broadcast live on Fox. National League pitcher Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates will start for the second year in a row. American League pitcher Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers will open on the mound for his team. Skubal called it an honor to face the best in the Brown Band will perform the United States national anthem. Lauren Spencer Smith will sing the Canadian national anthem before the game starts at Truist American League leads the all-time series with 48 wins, 44 losses, and two ties. The American League won in 2024, while the National League won in 2023. The longest winning streak is 11 consecutive wins by the National League between 1972 and 1982. Ties occurred in 1961 and to BetMGM as of 4:30 p.m. ET:MLB All-Star Game 2026 will be hosted at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. The city last hosted the event in 1996 at Veterans Skenes will start for the National League, and Tarik Skubal will start for the American League at Truist game will air on Fox at 8 p.m. ET and can also be streamed live on or Fubo.
Tom's Guide
15-07-2025
- Sport
- Tom's Guide
MLB All-Star Game live stream 2025: How to watch Major League Baseball Midsummer Classic online from anywhere, starters
The MLB All-Star Game 2025 at Truist Park, the home of the Atlanta Braves, will be the 95th edition of the so-called Midsummer Classic between the best players selected to represent the American and National Leagues. The biggest names in baseball will do battle against each other, with the honor of being an 'all-star' added to the resumes. Read on and we'll show you how to watch MLB live streams from anywhere with a VPN — and potentially for FREE. The All-Star Game 2025 takes place on Tuesday, July 15. • Time: 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT / 1 a.m. BST (Wed.) / 10 a.m. AEST (Wed.)FREE STREAM — Kayo Sports 7-day FREE trial (AUS)• U.S. — FOX (via Sling TV)• U.K. — TNT Sports (via Discovery Plus)• Watch anywhere — Try NordVPN 100% risk free Two of the biggest names in baseball will be on opposite teams as Aaron Judge (American League) and Shohei Ohtani (National League) topped the vote-getters in the first phase of voting to automatically earn their starting spots at outfield and designated hitter, respectively. Ohtani returns after hitting a home run last year, but ending up on the losing side as the American League emerged 5-3 victors. The Pirates' Paul Skenes and Detroit's Tarik Skubal. For the second straight year, Pittsburgh Pirates' Paul Skenes has the honor of being the National League's starting pitcher, while Detroit Tigers' Tarik Skubal will hurl for the American League, after another stellar season that includes a 153-to-16 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 121 innings. There will be four rookie starters in Cal Raleigh, Jacob Wilson, Ryan O'Hearn (all American League) and Pete Crow-Armstrong (National League). Who will come out on top? Here's everything you need to know to watch MLB All-Star Game 2025 this season — including free streaming options. Though there's no free live stream for the MLB All-Star Game 2025, baseball fans in Australia will be able to watch the action with a Kayo Sports 7-day FREE trial. Once the trial is up, you must then decide whether to take up a Kayo Sports subscription, or to cancel. Scroll down to the Australia section of this article to find out how much a subscription will set you back. But what if you're usually based in Australia but aren't at home to catch that free MLB All-Star Game coverage? Maybe you're on vacation and don't want to spend money on pay TV in another country, when you'd usually be able to watch for free at home? Don't worry — you can watch it via a VPN instead. We'll show you how to do that below. Away from home at the moment and blocked from watching the baseball on your subscriptions? You can still watch your usual MLB live stream thanks to the wonders of a VPN (Virtual Private Network). The software allows your devices to appear to be back in your home country regardless of where in the world you are, making it ideal for fans away on vacation or on business. Our favorite is NordVPN. It's the best on the market: NordVPN deal: FREE $50 / £50 Amazon gift card Boasting lightning fast speeds, great features, streaming power, and class-leading security, NordVPN is our #1 VPN. ✅ FREE Amazon gift card worth up to $50/£50✅ 4 months extra FREE!✅ 76% off usual price Use Nord to unblock Kayo Sports and watch the MLB All-Star game live online with our exclusive deal. The 2025 MLB All-Star Game is being televised nationally on FOX in the U.S.. If you've already cut the cord and don't have a cable package, you can get all of those channels through an OTT cable TV alternative. Sling TV is one of the better options. It includes FOX, plus ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, TBS, FS1 and ABC in its combined Orange & Blue plan, which costs $65.99, though you get your first month half-price. Alternatively, FOX, FS1, ABC and TBS are included in the Sling Blue plan which starts at $50.99/month. You can get FOX, FS1, ABC and TBS on the Sling TV Blue package, which also includes NBC, USA Network and FX. New subscribers get 50% off their first month. Buy now and watch the MLB All-Star game LIVE. TNT Sports has the rights to the MLB All-Star Game 2025 in the U.K.. Coverage starts from 1:30 A.M. BST. You can get TNT by subscribing to the Discovery Plus Premium plan for £30.99/month, or you can add TNT Sports through Sky, BT, EE or Virgin Media to watch via your television provider. If you're not in the U.K. right now but already subscribe to TNT Sports and Discovery Plus, try using NordVPN to watch Major League Baseball as if you were back at home. MLB All-Star Game 2025 rights belong to Sportsnet in Canada this season. You can stream games live on Sportsnet Plus, which costs from CA$24.99/month ($199.99/year) and provides access to a whole host of other sports. Both Standard and Premium plans let you watch MLB. If you live in Canada but aren't at home right now, you can still watch MLB live streams by using a quality VPN like NordVPN to unlock your usual service. Aussies will find MLB All-Star Game 2025 live streams on ESPN via Foxtel. Don't have Foxtel and don't want to subscribe? Specialist streaming service Kayo Sports is also showing the baseball, with its affordable, commitment-free plans starting from just $30/month, and hosting plenty of NBA, cricket, AFL, rugby, F1 and loads of other live sports besides. There's also a 7-day FREE trial for anybody who hasn't used the service before. Not in Australia right now? You can simply use a VPN like NordVPN to watch all the action on your Kayo account as if you were back home. American League C: Cal Raleigh, Mariners1B: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays2B: Gleyber Torres, Tigers3B: Jose Ramirez, GuardiansSS: Jacob Wilson, AthleticsOF: Aaron Judge, YankeesOF: Riley Greene, TigersOF: Javier Baez, TigersDH: Ryan O'Hearn, Orioles Starting Pitcher: Tarik Skubal, Tigers National League C: Will Smith, Dodgers1B: Freddie Freeman, Dodgers2B: Ketel Marte, Diamondbacks3B: Manny Machado, PadresSS: Francisco Lindor, MetsOF: Ronald Acuna Jr., BravesOF: Pete Crow-Armstrong, CubsOF: Kyle Tucker, CubsDH: Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers Starting Pitcher: Paul Skenes, Pirates We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
Irish Daily Mirror
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
How Tyrone was transformed from makeweights into one of football's superpowers
It wasn't that Tyrone were an irrelevance. No, throughout the first 100 years of the GAA, they had won people's respect. Their problem was they won precious little else. The bottom line is that up until the GAA's centenary year, Gaelic football had two permanent superpowers and everyone else either came and went or else weren't seen at all. And Tyrone were stuck in the latter category. These are the facts. In 1983, 99 years after the GAA was formed, Tyrone had three Ulster senior championships and three minor All-Irelands engraved onto their honours board. But in the 42 years since, the etcher has been carving history. Until 1986, they had never appeared in an All-Ireland final. They've since been to seven. Until 2003, they had never won an All-Ireland. They now have four. Until 1998, they had won three minor All-Irelands. They now have nine, the latest arriving last Sunday. Until 1990, they had never won an Under 21 All-Ireland. They now have eight. And that's before we mention the two National Leagues, the six All-Ireland Vocational schools titles, the 13 Ulster senior titles, picked up since 1984. Someone should write a book about that year. For that was when it all changed for Tyrone, when the foundation stones were built which saw them turn from an easy touch into a genuine football superpower. 'I'm not comfortable with the word superpower being attached to us,' says Benny Hurl, who was involved in the management team that won a minor All-Ireland last week. 'A lot of hard work goes on in Tyrone for sure, but hard work takes place all over Ireland. It's not just us.' Perhaps so, but it's clear that Tyrone works smart as well as hard. For these are the facts: only two other counties, Dublin and Kerry, have won more All-Irelands this century; only three teams, the Dubs, Kerry and Mayo, have appeared in more All-Ireland semi-finals since 2000 while no county has won more All-Irelands than Tyrone at minor and Under 20/21 level in the same timeframe. This is the story of how Tyrone footballers morphed from Clark Kent into Superman. FOOTBALL IS ART Before there was Mickey Harte, there was Art McRory, the founding father of Tyrone coaching. 'A hugely gifted and influential man,' says Hurl. McRory was a teacher by profession but really he was more than that. 'A pioneer,' says Joe McMahon, a Tyrone All-Ireland winner in 2005 and 2008. 'He guided; he led; he moulded men.' It was McRory who brought Tyrone to the 1986 and 1995 All-Irelands as well as to their first national title at senior level in 2002. More than that, he was Tyrone's Rinus Michels, Harte their Johann Cruyff. Everything started with McRory, those successful coaches that came after - Harte, Paddy Tally, Hurl, Peter Canavan, Ciaran McBride, Danny Ball, Brian Dooher, Fergal Logan, Martin Coyle, Liam Donnelly - learning from the master. Between them all, they shaped Tyrone. The titles started coming, first at underage level, then - when Harte took charge in 2003 - at senior. 'Anything Mickey did was competitive, whether it was a drill or an in-house game,' says McMahon. 'He is a great wordsmith in terms of how he gets his message across, too. When he speaks, people listen. 'When I was there, his big thing was instilling pride and privilege into you with regard to playing for Tyrone. 'You have earned this jersey,' he'd tell us. 'Make sure you leave it in a better place'.' This is 2008 footballer of the year Sean Cavanagh's take: 'Mickey's big thing was he never felt inferior to anyone or anything, ever. The stars almost aligned. Peter was established; a new crop of underage players had emerged; and Mickey took charge. 'We knew the talent was there in 2003. But we had never won anything, All-Ireland wise. We had an inferiority complex. 'So, Mickey drilled into us that we were better than Dublin, than Kerry, than Armagh. Ever since we won that first All-Ireland, we have not feared anyone. We almost love the feeling, 'Come on Tyrone, we are on our own'. That is who we are. We are not ashamed to be a part of that.' JUST JEALOUS GUYS Before Tyrone, there was Down, All-Ireland champions in 1991 and 1994. Then came Donegal, champs in 1992; next was Derry, the 1993 winners, and then Armagh. 'One thing you have to acknowledge is that Tyrone is a big county, and a footballing county. There is a lot of ambition here,' says Cavanagh, who remembers being a boy waiting for two hours to see the Derry bus pass through The Moy, his village, with their 1993 All-Ireland. 'The stimulation of the other Ulster sides winning in the early '90s played a part in our rise, no question. For me growing up, we were told as children to support the Ulster team in an All-Ireland. We always felt that Ulster pride. 'I idolised the likes of Anthony Tohill, Mickey Linden; their success stoked fires in us. We had the brilliance of Peter The Great and came so close ourselves in 1995. I remember crying in the Cusack Stand that day when Dublin beat us by a point. 'But at the same time the fires were starting to ignite and from then on, it was only a matter of time before we began to win things … big things.' TROUBLES ENDING The Troubles is a touchy subject. Those of us who lived through it, don't like to speak of it, too much loss, too much pain. Yet you can't ignore the fact that the GAA has thrived in the six counties since the political situation stabilised in the 1990s. Just look at the facts. Until 1990, Ulster teams had won the All-Ireland on eight occasions. Since then, Tyrone (four), Down, Donegal and Armagh (two each) and Derry (one), have brought Sam home. You can't say it is a coincidence that as soon as the intimidation ended, our games thrived. 'As a child, I remember going to Dungannon Leisure Centre and being told, 'take off your Tyrone top, you aren't allowed to wear it',' says Cavanagh. 'It was a real taboo thing. Now GAA jerseys are everywhere and anywhere but because you have more of an openness and pride in the GAA, participation levels have gone through the roof. The political stuff has settled down.' GRUNT WORK Benny Hurl is a GAA man. It's in the blood. A Sigerson Cup winning coach with UUJ, now a minor All-Ireland winner with Tyrone, he flies under the radar on a national level, but only because Tyrone have produced so many outstanding coaches. And that's just the point he seeks to make. 'Throughout the county, at club, at primary school, at secondary school, you have so many outstanding coaches,' says Hurl, 'people who have a love for Tyrone, surely, but the GAA in general. That's the same everywhere, I know. It's not just us.' That's true. But Tyrone does things differently. They run their own summer camps, for example; the number of former inter county players - such as Peter and Pascal Canavan, Ciaran McBride - who are coaching in schools is disproportionately higher in quality and numbers than in other counties. 'In 1984, the GAA placed an emphasis on developing facilities for our centenary year,' says Hurl. Tyrone, with 54 clubs, really went after that idea. Cavanagh said: 'When I go to Go Games around the county, I see junior clubs which now have five or six pitches, walking tracks around them. I coach Under 5s. We have 30 kids on any training night. Thirty years ago, we would have had around five.' Then there is Club Tyrone, the fundraising body set up in 1995. 'We are a big county, lots of engineering firms and big businesses,' says Cavanagh. 'There has been a real buy-in to developing football in the county.' Their centre of excellence at Garvaghy is not just a building, not just a meeting place but a footballing university where coaching standards are raised. 'We're a big county; Garvaghy is smack bang in the middle,' says Cavanagh. 'The quality and investment in coaching have increased. The right people have been behind them. A lot of counties seem to be fractured. Tyrone has been very good at pooling resources and trying to get the best out of us.' VIRTUOUS CIRCLE 'Success breeds success,' says McMahon. His career came after the 1998 All-Ireland minor breakthrough and the back-to-back Under 21s who followed. He was on the Hill in 2003 but on the pitch in 2005 and 2008. And that's the point people have missed. That generation in the Noughties has been followed up on. Today, against Kerry, Tyrone will appear in their 11th All-Ireland semi-final in 22 years. That's serious consistency and that's before we mention the four Hogan Cup successes enjoyed by their schools in that timeframe, the three Under 20 All-Irelands won in the last four years, the minor All-Ireland won last weekend. McMahon says: 'You look at the quality of schools' football in the county. Tyrone schools and underage clubs constantly competing at the top end. The quality and drive of coaching has been way ahead for a number of years.' Hurl reckons being a large county - one that has 54 clubs - helps as well as the fact it is largely a rural population, as the GAA thrives outside of urban areas. For McMahon, the number of county players working as teachers in Tyrone schools is huge: 'That kind of coaching and belief they gave us was special. 'The power of those guys being role models in the schools; and then the people and role models you had in your own clubs, how would you not have success from that? The foundation of a good player is having that hard work and belief. The other attributes will fall in behind that and support that. The teaching is a huge part of why Tyrone has had success.' NO FEAR Once upon a time, Tyrone had an inferiority complex. Like in 1986, they led that All-Ireland final by seven points before missing a penalty and losing it by eight. Today, they won't hold any fear. McMahon says: 'We are not fixated on past glories. There are generations now who want to prove themselves and put their own stamp on things, write their own chapter for Tyrone's history. 'Any team that has success drives the next generation. That's who we are.'
Irish Daily Mirror
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
'It left an inspirational legacy for the youth' Tyrone hero on 2000s team
Some counties arrive and then depart swiftly. Tyrone came and, to their credit, have stayed. After Cavan faded as an All-Ireland force in the 1950s, Down emerged in the '60s, winning three All-Irelands, but then they didn't add to their tally until the '90s, when they claimed two more. They have done little since, however. Donegal and Derry made All-Ireland breakthroughs in the '90s too but struggled to make an impact in Ulster over the next couple of decades. Armagh's golden era ended post-2008 and while they won their second All-Ireland last year, it came after a couple of stints in Division Three and a lengthy run without even winning a game in Ulster. Tyrone haven't enjoyed an era as bountiful as that between 2001-10, when they won three All-Irelands, five Ulster titles and two National Leagues, but they certainly didn't fall off the face of the earth in the meantime, regularly reaching the last four of the Championship, picking up a further three Ulster titles, winning another All-Ireland in 2021 and contesting the final in 2018. And they might be approaching another golden period, similar to 20 years ago, given their recent underage success. It all suggests that the legacy that the 2000s team left has not been squandered, as often happens elsewhere. 'I think it's nice to be part of that,' reflects Stephen O'Neill, one of the most exciting talents in a team gleaming with them back then. 'I suppose if you look at the whole history of it, there were certain things that happened at that time which really bonded the whole county together. 'You think in 1997, Paul McGirr passed away, then Cormac [McAnallen] passing away in 2004 so there were a number of tragedies at that time that gelled the whole thing together and I suppose really focused the whole county and got the whole county in behind us and that's left an inspirational legacy for the youth and that's all you can hope for. 'That legacy and that inspiration will inspire the next generation, which in turn will inspire the next one. 'I look at my own children growing up and they just love going to the matches and all the young lads you'd be coaching, that's their goal, to play at that level and play for Tyrone. You just need success to keep that building all the time consistently.' Having won three of the last four All-Ireland under-20 titles along with this year's minor crown, their fifth of this century, that success is at hand. 'People are asking, what is the secret? I think it's just the drive within the clubs in Tyrone,' O'Neill explains. 'The county board obviously support it well, but each club is putting in so much time and effort into their underage coaching and really, really pressing it. 'They all have high quality coaches and the children are getting well coached at the club. The schools are pushing it as well; primary schools and secondary schools have good people in them who are pushing the football and the children are responding - they're all mad keen to get playing for Tyrone some day, so it bodes well for the future. 'But it's a big step getting from under-20 to play senior football; even under-20 into senior club football is a big step, so to step up to senior county football is another massive leap for players. It'll be interesting just to see how that goes. 'It's a big job for Malachy O'Rourke to get those young, talented players through and get them developed over the next year or two.' With Tyrone in another senior semi-final tomorrow against Kerry, the possibility of winning all three All-Irelands in the one year, something only achieved once by the Kingdom themselves 50 years ago, remains alive. It would surely be the crowning glory, for all they have done over the past couple of decades. 'It definitely would be,' O'Neill admits. 'It would be an amazing achievement. I'm sure it's something that the senior team have probably seen in the minor and under-20 success, they'll be delighted with that and they'll be hoping to get over the line. 'It's such a massive thing for the county. I'm sure Malachy O'Rourke will be keeping their minds off that. It'll be one game at a time. 'Kerry is such a big challenge, you're obviously marking three or four of the top forwards in the country, I would say the senior team will be focused on that. 'As a supporter and as a county, to win the three, clean sweep, would be a very special achievement.'
