Tyrone star Darren McCurry admits he would have left the Tyrone squad had Mickey Harte remained in charge.
The Edendork man starred as the Red Hands claimed the All-Ireland title last year under new managers Brian Dooher and Fearhal Logan and went on to win an All Star for his performances.
Ahead of their bid to retain the Sam Maguire for the first time in their history, six players have left the Tyrone squad, just as McCurry did himself in 2018 when his confidence was at a low ebb.
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Speaking on the BBC Social Podcast, McCurry went on to reveal that he would have left the Tyrone squad if Mickey Harte had stayed on for the 2021 season. The three-time All-Ireland winning manager left the Tyrone job in late 2020, after 18 years in the post.
“It was tough them boys leaving," he said following the departures of Lee Brennan, Tiernan McCann, Ronan O’Neill, Hugh Pat McGeary, Mark Bradley, and Michael Cassidy in recent months.
“A bit surprising as well because when you are trying to do something that a Tyrone team has never done, it is very, very important to have your full team and everybody putting in the full effort.
“If I was one of those boys in the 26, my frame of mind would be, ‘Let’s go back and try and do something that no other team in Tyrone has done,’ which is to try and win a back-to-back.
“I just felt that it was maybe - what way would you put it - an easy decision for some of them boys to walk away where maybe they are thinking a wee bit more about themselves than the Tyrone team and the people of Tyrone.
“When I left (in 2018) Tyrone hadn’t won an All-Ireland.
“That was probably one of the toughest decisions I ever had to make in my life.
“Something I thought about for probably two months before I made it. I would still think about it.
“I always had it in the back of my head that I would come back. I knew I would come back.
“I was not in the right frame of mind. I wasn’t enjoying it. I didn’t want to be there. I wasn’t happy. I wasn’t playing well. I felt like I wasn’t myself.”
McCurry continued: “I said in an interview after the (2018) All-Ireland final that I needed to get back to being ‘the dazzler’ and that’s what it was. I had lost all my confidence.
“I wasn’t playing. Mickey wasn't saying anything to me, wasn't giving me confidence. The backroom wasn’t giving me any confidence.
“Even in 2020 when Donegal beat us, I felt I was having a great first half. I think I gave the ball away once and I was taken off.
“I just could not get my head around this. To be honest, if Mickey had been there the following year, I would have left.
“Forwards need confidence. It’s one of the biggest attributes you have. Without confidence you will not take on the shot, try the dummy. For a forward, without that you are an average player.
“It was definitely tough. I know when I am playing well and when I am not.
“When I was playing well in training and in games and I still wasn’t starting, and when I made a mistake I’d be the first man off. Confidence just goes right down to rock bottom. I found that tough.”
says Tyrone’s backs are against the wall and they have to come out fighting.
The All-Ireland champions are in serious relegation trouble ahead of Saturday evening’s home encounter with Mayo and a tough final round trip to Kerry.
Tyrone, currently on three points from five games, will require at least one win to beat the drop.
McCurry said: "It’s a must win game this weekend and Tyrone usually play better when our backs are against the wall and our backs are definitely against the wall.
“The boys really need to knuckle down and get a result.
“We are All-Ireland champions and that comes with a bit of responsibility and a lot of boys need to be stepping up at those crucial points in the game to get the thing over the line.
“I think we have failed to do that. We realise it is an early stage of the season and we do not want to panic but now our backs are against the wall and we have to come out fighting over the next two weeks.”
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