Yahoo Sports O'Rourke's reign off to flyer as Tyrone beat Derry
Malachy O'Rourke's reign as Tyrone manager got off to a winning start as his new side defeated Derry by 2-13 to 1-9 in Division One in Omagh.
A goal in each half from Michael McKernan and Peter Teague helped the home side earn an opening round Allianz League win with the eagerly awaited new rule 'enhancements' in operation for the first time.
Tyrone led 1-7 to 0-6 at the break with a superb Conor Glass goal helping Derry, who had Paddy Tally in charge for the first time, back into the lead midway through the second half.
Tyrone recovered and finished strongly in the final quarter with Darren McCurry's two-pointer one of the memorable scores.
New rules strictly enforced
The sight of two arc lines on the Healy Park pitch was a tad confusing, as the original blue line was not the correct size or shape and had to be replaced by a second white line being drawn.
Otherwise, the rule 'enhancements' themselves were not that confusing and contributed to a lively, entertaining game.
The 'three up' change definitely seemed to lead to more space for forwards to attack and the teams were not catching on to the fact David Coldrick was going to be strict in other areas.
If a team failed to immediately hand the ball over to their opponents after they lost possession, he was quick to bring the play forward 50 metres and Tyrone profited from that one with a Ronan Cassidy point in the first half.
Derry raced into a three-point lead, which included Brendan Rogers' two-pointer after seven minutes.
Tyrone didn't score until the 11th minute and then scored five on the trot to lead 0-5 to 0-3 after 24 minutes.
Defender McKernan scored 1-2 in the first half with a superb goal after 30 minutes when he turned down an easy point option to blast the ball high into the net.
Goal against the run of play seals Red Hands win
Derry needed a good start to the second half and got it with a fine Glass goal after Shea O'Hare gave away possession.
Tohill sent Glass away and he unleashed a fierce shot from distance to beat Niall Morgan.
It sparked a strong second half from Derry and with Morgan's kickouts not finding their intended targets, the Oak Leafers profited, and a pair of Shane McGuigan frees midway through the second half put them in front for the first time since the opening 10 minutes.
It was all Derry in the second half when Tyrone scored a goal against the run of play.
Morgan's superb pass to pick out Ciaran Daly sparked it off, and after Niall Devlin was held up on the line, Teague bundled the ball over the line.
It left Tyrone 2-8 to 1-9 ahead with 10 minutes to go and they finished strongly to earn an opening round win.
