Were we looking at title contenders in Omagh yesterday? It was hard to figure. For two teams intent on discovering a new enlightenment, there was a distinctly retro aspect to this match.
On the Tyrone sidelines were Art McRory and Mickey Moran, two men who have travelled far and nobly in their ceaseless passion for the game. And on the field, it was Tyrone's Peter Canavan and Donegal's Tony Boyle, two great survivors from the dog days of the early 90s, that caught the eye most stirringly.
For sure, both counties have young talent coming through. Tyrone's Declan McCrossan has made a seamless progression through to the senior ranks and brings to the team the lively, intelligent wing-back play that set him apart as a youngster. Cormac McAnallen, too, remains a terrific prospect.
For Donegal, James and Andrew Gallagher were at the heart of the county's brightest period of play, five minutes into the second half, when the team constructed three wonderful scores from play. Paddy McConigly had a respectable debut, keeping company with Canavan and living to tell the tale. Adrian Sweeney has quietly emerged as an essential cog in Donegal's attack.
You look at these counties, at the still-promising mid-career players like Damien Diver of Donegal and Ciaran Gourley of Tyrone, and you can see, for sure, that they are each going places. But as to whether they are travelling fast enough for this summer's great rave remains to be seen.
McRory acknowledged that he was pleased to pick up the points and then quickly dismissed the game as being dull as dishwater. But that was almost flattery. Tyrone hit form for two brief, if significant periods, firing two fine points in injurytime to build a half-time lead of 0-7 to 0-5 and in the last quarter of the match, when they fired four points without reply after Donegal had levelled the score at 0-8 apiece.
As the home side took control, the contest deflated as inevitably - and almost as excitingly - as a slow puncture.
"Mentally, they were more up for it and they possibly had an edge on us in terms of fitness. It was partly disappointing, but I was pleased that we came back at them in the last five or six minutes and created a few halfchances," said Donegal manager Mickey Moran afterwards.
Most of the visitors' telling moves came through Tony Boyle, who was solid and direct at centre forward, repeatedly forcing the Tyrone defence to drag him down. But there was a flatness to an attack that looked so imaginative before Christmas. Poor handling, mis-fired passes and inconsistent finishing pegged them back as much as the Tyrone back six.
Tyrone's game-plan revolved, as ever, around Canavan. It was far from the solo shows he sometimes treats us to - Gerard Cavlan lobbed a couple of fine points and Eoin Gormley was always a threat - but the elusive Errigal Ciaran man still was the defining influence on the afternoon.
Only once, midway through the first half, did he fully expose the Donegal back line, ghosting through and forcing a block by Tony Blake. It was not a day for dazzlement, just bread and butter scores.
Noel McGinley traded places with McConigly for the last half hour and shadowed Canavan with admirable diligence. But the Tyrone man converted a 44th-minute free, set Cavlan up for a point four minutes later and then broke free for a score of his own on the team's next possession. Donegal simply couldn't engineer enough possession or momentum to recover from that swift burst.
The win established Tyrone as the kingpins of Division 1A and the staunch home crowd dispersed in chirpy form. Donegal have a couple of tough weekends ahead and will, as Moran acknowledged, learn much about themselves.
So will we see these two teams do business with one another again, on brighter, louder days? Right now, it is hard to know.
TYRONE: F McConnell; M McGee, C Lawn, C Gourley; R McMenamin (0-1), S McTeague, D McCrossan (0-1); Pascal Canavan, C McAnallen; B Dewher, S O'Neill (0-2, frees), G Cavlan (0-2); E Mulligan, E Gormley (0-2), Peter Canavan (0-4, one free). Subs: K Hughes for B Dewher (50 mins), D Gormley (0- 1) for G Cavlan (50 mins).
DONEGAL: T Blake; P McConigly, M Crossan, N McGinley; E Doherty, S Carr, D Diver; J Gildea, B Monaghan; M Doherty (0-1), T Boyle, J Gallagher (0-2, one free); A Gallagher, A Sweeney (0-5, two frees), B Devenney (0-1).
Referee: J Bannon (Longford).
