Enda McGinley backs Tyrone to be dark horses for Sam Maguire

Enda McGinley reckons that Tyrone could catch fire and be in a with a real shout for a second All-Ireland in three years.

The Red Hands offered a poor defence of the Sam Maguire last year, beating Fermanagh before losing to Derry and Armagh as their Ulster and All-Ireland campaigns came to a shuddering halt.

A slow start to their Allianz League campaign this spring had them in the relegation conversation after three rounds, but three victories from their remaining four games saw them closer to a final place than the drop.

They fell to a third and fourth consecutive championship defeat when Monaghan overturned them in their Ulster quarter-final clash before Galway got past them in the group stages in Salthill.

They finally stopped the rot with a victory over old rivals Armagh last time out and for McGinley, who was speaking on the RTÉ GAA Podcast, what happened in 2021 - where Tyrone gradually grew into their campaign, before going on to lift the ultimate prize - can be the blueprint for the summer ahead.

"They can still take out a big gun if they finish third [in Group 2]," he said.

"Tyrone always have that factor within them. Do I think they would be genuine All-Ireland contenders? No, but it is possible.

"I would have said the same thing mid-season in 2021 when they went on and won it. Momentum is key. For some teams a hit below the water line will really, really hamper them.

"For the likes of Mayo, a loss would really stir up the skeletons that are in the closets there. For Tyrone, that doesn't matter just as much.

"I think they could still do damage."

Tyrone still have an outside chance of topping Group 2 if they were to beat Westmeath by a big margin on Sunday, and Armagh were to surprise unbeaten Galway.

On the other hand, a