The perception of time is a peculiar thing. For a certain generation, the sight of Peter Canavan lifting the Sam Maguire in 2003 doesn’t feel like an event long enough in the rear-view mirror to be getting nostalgic about.
And yet the captain of Tyrone’s under-20 team this year wasn’t alive when it happened. Ruairí Canavan has heard the stories about his dad and he has seen the clips of him play, but Tyrone’s breakthrough All-Ireland happened before he was born.
All those years when Tyrone were the nearly men, when they couldn’t get over the line, the endless history back when they had never got their hands on Sam Maguire, those are tales from another lifetime. The old days. Way back when. You want nostalgia, you don’t need to skip too many generations.
“I never got to see him play,” says Ruairí, 19, when asked about his dad’s football career. “I wasn’t born for the All-Ireland in 2003, so I’ve no memory of anything like that. Just videos would be the height of it.”
Ruairí's progression to the Tyrone senior team has come as little surprise to anybody who has watched him come through the underage ranks. His brother, Darragh, who is four years older, was part of Tyrone’s 2021 All-Ireland winning team.
Being sons of such an iconic figure brings its own challenges as regards expectation levels, but Ruairí says they have always tried not to let the pressure weigh heavily on their shoulders.
“Not too bad, pressure wise. It comes with it. You just have to take it – it is what it is,” he adds. “I don’t feel any real pressure. I know there would be ones looking out to see you going well and some would like to see you doing poorly.
“Within our own house there is no pressure form uncles or cousins, but growing up watching minor teams in our club win a championship it would drive you on to practice harder and we worked hard at our game, but I don’t think because of our surname.
“[Dad] wouldn’t come at you with advice or criticism, he would very much let you find your own feet. If you had something to ask or he felt something that needed to be put back on track, he would do that. But he doesn’t overly burden us or anything.”
Tyrone’s form during this year’s league has been anything but consistent. They are currently hovering over the relegation trapdoor on four points, after two wins and three defeats in their five Division One matches.
Tyrone’s victory over Kerry last time out was the highlight of their campaign so far, and they can only hope it proves to be the spark that ignites their season. Ruairí came off the bench in that game and kicked two points from frees as the Red Hands earned an important victory in their bid to retain Division One status.
They travel to Clones on Sunday for another crucial game against a Monaghan side also sitting on four points after five games. Only Donegal, with three, have picked up less points so far.
“It was great to get the win against Kerry because we had been working hard in training, but the results hadn’t been coming our way the past couple of games,” he says. “To get over the line against Kerry was a massive one, but it won’t mean much if we don’t back it up in the next two games and stay in Division One.
“The next two games are massive. You want to be playing football in Division One obviously. Hopefully we can harness it and back it up.”
And backing up the Sam Maguire triumph of 2021 is something Tyrone will be hoping to do over the seasons ahead. Their All-Ireland defence fell away tamely enough last year, so the challenge for the current squad is to try revive the qualities and energy that got them over the line two years ago.
Ruairí was a key player in Tyrone’s All-Ireland under-20 winning team last May, and he believes there is huge potential for the county in the years ahead.
“Definitely there’s enough talent there to go far and achieve plenty, but the same as everything if you don’t put the work in you’ll not get anything,” he says. “I definitely think the talent and players are there and it is up to us to put our heads down and see where we can go.
“To see the under-20 team from 2015 come through was satisfying. It was very important. The challenge now is to make sure it wasn’t a one-off.”
Before his entire focus switches to senior matters, Ruairí is hoping to help Tyrone retain their under-20 title. They begin their Ulster championship with a quarter-final against Down on March 29th.
“The ambition would be to do well with the under-20s first,” he adds. “If I get the chance to get a bit of gametime with the seniors, I’d like to make an impact, get as far as we can and get a bounce-back from last season.
“Even the training with the seniors, it’s really enjoyable. You learn something every night. It’s a big step up, the physicality and stuff, but it’s class playing with the boys you grew up looking up to. You learn plenty from them.”
Not that Ruairí Canavan needs to go far to learn about the role of an intercounty forward.
Ruairí Canavan was speaking at the launch of the 2023 EirGrid All-Ireland under-20 football championship
