It was a routine victory for Tyrone over Fermanagh at Brewster Park this evening as they set out to defend their All-Ireland crown. However a second half red card in injury time for Conor McKenna casts a shadow over Tyrone's next fixture against Derry.
Ref Joe McQuillan opted to show a straight red card to McKenna after he was caught up in an 72nd minute melee. His teammate Con Kilpatrick had been pushed in the back by his defender while trying to claim a mark and a scuffle ensued. McKenna arrived on the scene and was involved with a scrap with Fermanagh's Brandon Horan, and ended up being shown a red card for contributing to a melee.
Sportsfile photographer Stephen McCarthy had a pretty good view of the incident.
16 April 2022; Conor McKenna of Tyrone and Brandon Horan of Fermanagh, 9, tussle during the Ulster GAA Football Senior Championship preliminary round match between Fermanagh and Tyrone at Brewster Park in Enniskillen, Fermanagh. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
16 April 2022; Conor McKenna of Tyrone and Brandon Horan of Fermanagh, 9, tussle during the Ulster GAA Football Senior Championship preliminary round match between Fermanagh and Tyrone at Brewster Park in Enniskillen, Fermanagh. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
16 April 2022; Conor McKenna of Tyrone and Brandon Horan of Fermanagh, 9, tussle during the Ulster GAA Football Senior Championship preliminary round match between Fermanagh and Tyrone at Brewster Park in Enniskillen, Fermanagh. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
16 April 2022; Conor McKenna of Tyrone is shown a red card by referee Joe McQuillan during the Ulster GAA Football Senior Championship preliminary round match between Fermanagh and Tyrone at Brewster Park in Enniskillen, Fermanagh. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
Tyrone reaction to the red card
The red card drew a huge amount of criticism from Tyrone supporters on social media.
Tyrone legend Owen Mulligan tweeted "Absolute joke of a red card.... Clearly 3 men on McKenna and a knee in the back on Con Kilpatrick which started the whole thing."
McKenna would be a huge loss for Tyrone. He started the game on the bench but played like a house on fire when he was introduced, and helped swing the game in Tyrone's favour.
It's just the latest disciplinary issue that Feargal Logan and Brian Dooher have to deal with. Back at the start of the League, four Tyrone players were sent off for their role in a fracas against Armagh.
After the match, Logan confirmed to reporters that Tyrone would appeal McQuillan's decision, while defending the character of his player.
Feargal Logan has confirmed that Tyrone will go for a Hearing at Croke Park over Conor McKenna’s red card. He launched a staunch defence of McKenna and says he was coming to the assistance of a teammate. He also has a real issue with the definition of ‘contributing to a melee’.
— Niall Gartland (@Niall_Gartland) April 16, 2022
Rian O'Neill had his one-game suspension rescinded for Donegal v Armagh during the week and Tyrone will be hoping for similar luck in front of the appeals committee.
Tyrone welcome Derry to Omagh on May 1.
