Conor McKenna has left the Tyrone panel amid speculation he is set to return to the Australian Football League (AFL).
The Eglish native helped the Red Hands win the Sam Maguire in 2021 after linking up with the Tyrone squad in 2020.
A sublime underage talent, McKenna played in the All-Ireland Minor final defeat to Mayo in 2013 and he was snapped up by Aussie Rules outfit Essendon Bombers the following year.
Read more: U20 stars can help Tyrone return to the top says Niall Sludden
He spent five seasons with the Melbourne club and often came back to line out for Eglish in the Tyrone Club Championship.
In 2020, he left the Bombers and was called into the Tyrone panel by the-then Red Hand boss Mickey Harte. Tyrone were eliminated from Ulster and, therefore, the All-Ireland series by Donegal in Ballybofey with a straight-knockout Championship being brought in during the pandemic.
Last season, his two goals helped Tyrone overcome Kerry in the All-Ireland SFC semi-final before they defeated Mayo in the decider last September with McKenna setting up Darren McCurry’s goal.
However, this year was a bitterly disappointing one for Tyrone. Despite retaining their Division One status with a last day win over Kerry in Killarney, Feargal Logan and Brian Dooher’s men fell flat in the Championship.
They stuttered past Fermanagh in the preliminary round with McKenna picking up a controversial red card late on.
He was cleared to play in the Ulster SFC quarter-final, but disaster struck for Tyrone as they were ambushed by Derry in Healy Park with Rory Gallagher’s men claiming a deserved 11-point win.
McKenna was also dismissed late on for a second booking while midfielder Brian Kennedy received a straight red in the first half.
In the Qualifiers, McKenna hit the first goal in the Athletic Grounds, but it was to be a false dawn for the Red Hands as their All-Ireland defence ended with a six-point loss to Armagh.
While Tyrone endured a turbulent Championship campaign, the success of their U20 squad in 2022 means they are unlikely to slip too far down in the pecking order.
Ruairi Canavan, Matthew McGleenan, Niall Devlin and Steve Donaghy were called up to the senior squad ahead of the clash with the Orchard County in the Qualifiers and more look sure to make the step-up in the coming years.
Yet, the loss of McKenna is a body blow to Tyrone, who were without a host of attacking talents this season after the likes of Paul Donaghy, Ronan O’Neill, Lee Brennan and Mark Bradley stepped away from the squad following their All-Ireland success.
Tiernan McCann, Hugh Pat McGeary and Michael Cassidy also quit, meaning Logan and Dooher were without seven All-Ireland winners this term.
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