Aidan Clarke knows he faces a battle to hold his place in the right corner of Tyrone’s defence, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
New boss Malachy O’Rourke is blessed with a wealth of options, and faces increasingly tough decisions as the weeks progress.
The return of Rory Brennan and Peter Teague to the squad has strengthened the Red Hands’ defensive cohort, while Padraig Hampsey is working his way back from shoulder surgery, and a couple of handy Errigal Ciaran backs are due to return.
“Any good squad has serious depth and competition. It wouldn’t be right if you were in easy, and there’s plenty of battling throughout the places,” said Clarke.
“It’s great that those lads are about the place and it’s the same throughout the team, there’s plenty lads putting their hands up and that benefits everybody.”
Saturday’s clash with Armagh brings the second of three Ulster derby ties for the Red Hands, with the Orchard men determined to bounce back in front of their own fans at the Box-It Athletic Grounds following an opening day loss to Galway.
“I’m sure after winning the All-Ireland they’ll want to stay at the top and after losing, they’ll want to put that right, but listen, we’ll prepare just the same way.
“Getting over the line against Derry isn’t something we take for granted, it’s a big win but we can’t get ahead of ourselves. It’s just about knuckling down and getting ready for Armagh.”
The Omagh St Enda’s man expects this season’s Allianz League Division One campaign to be the toughest for years, with All-Ireland champions Armagh and a resurgent Donegal added to the mix.
With an opening day win over Derry under their belts, Tyrone’s appetite for the battle has been whetted.
“You want to play the best teams in the country and they won the All-Ireland and that speaks for itself, but at the same time we won’t approach it any differently, we’ll focus on ourselves.”
Clarke looked comfortable and confident in his first competitive brush with the new rules last weekend, and feels the adjustments will have a positive impact o the game.
“It definitely speeds up the game. Personally I’m enjoying it, there’s a lot more one v ones all around the pitch, so it’s good that way.
“If it’s a slow attack, you still have a lot of bodies back, but if that fast attack is on, you really have to be on your game in defence.”
It’s been a busy pre-season despite the removal of the Dr McKenna Cup from the calendar, and a condensed league schedule places sustained demands on inter-county players.
“I do like it, you don’t have too long to recover but when you’re playing well, you want to keep playing. It’s just about maximising recovery and keeping yourself right so you’re fit to play.”
Clarke was brought into the squad by previous manager Feargal Logan and Brian Dooher, and now he’s adapting to a fresh set of ideas from Malachy O’Rourke and his team of coaches.
“Both Brian and Feargal were great to us. It’s just a change of ideas, and we’re really enjoying the new lads as well, they’ve a great track record so it’s great to have them on board.”