THE Freemantle Dockers’ decision not to recruit any international rookies for next season has the potential to be a massive boost for Tyrone.
It means that highly-rated young forward Eoin McElholm will not be leaving for Aussie Rules – in the short-term at least – and so he will be available to Tyrone manager Malachy O’Rourke and U20 manager Paul Devlin for next season.
Meanwhile, Fermanagh fans will also be relieved that Ultan Kelm is not on his way ‘Down Under’ either. Kelm made no secret of his understandable desire to carve out a career in professional sport in the AFL.
Injury and then the Covid pandemic scuppered earlier moves and it was thought that the marauding Erne Gaels forward was on the verge of a switch but he will line-out for his county once again next season.
Tyrone starlet McElholm impressed in several trials in Australia and it is understood that the Dockers will continue to monitor the progress of the talented youngster who scored a match-winning 0-7 (all from play) as the Tyrone U20s beat Kerry in this year’s All-Ireland final. He remains eligible for U20 football next year.
Following that success, the Loughmacrory clubman marked his Tyrone debut with a point when he was brought on as a second half substitute in last season’s All-Ireland quarter-final preliminary round game against Roscommon.
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He was among the outstanding performers in the senior club championship and his form earned him a call-up to the Ulster squad for the Inter-provincial championships. McElholm was among the scorers as Kieran Donnelly’s men beat Leinster and Munster to win the title.
Alongside his slick skills and eye for a score, McElholm is blessed with pace and power and his considerable talents can now be harnessed by new Tyrone manager Malachy O’Rourke.
The Fermanagh native took over the Red Hands after Brian Dooher and Feargal Logan stepped down at the end of last season during which the 2021 All-Ireland champions had struggled to find any consistency.
A poor performance followed hot on the heels of an encouraging one and, although Tyrone maintained their Division One status, they exited the Ulster Championship at the semi-final stage and made a low-key exit from the All-Ireland series in front of a small crowd at Healy Park against Roscommon.
However, a batch of talented youngsters including McElholm was brought through by the previous management and O’Rourke – who guided Watty Graham’s Glen to the All-Ireland club title in January of this year – is likely to benefit from that.
McElholm’s availability could be particularly valuable during the early stages of the National League when O’Rourke may not have Errigal Ciaran forward duo Darragh and Ruairi Canavan at his disposal.
Alongside Peter Harte, Cormac Quinn and several other county regulars the Canavans are all involved in their club’s All-Ireland club campaign.
After beating Kilcoo to win the Ulster title for the first time since 2022, the Tyrone champions are now preparing to face Kerry and Munster kingpins Dr Crokes in the All-Ireland semi-final stage in Portlaoise.
Victory in that game will see Errigal progress to the decider against either Sligo’s Coolera/Strandhill or Dublin’s Cuala on January 18, just eight days before Tyrone begin the National League with an Ulster derby against Derry at Healy Park.
