CORMAC Quinn feels he needs to occasionally pinch himself to verify that a dream debut season is actually a reality.
His call-up to the Tyrone squad has been an instant success, and suddenly he finds himself a regular in a team stacked with household names.
The 21-year-old has played every game in the League, emerging as a tenacious defender with a flair for attack and a natural ability to read the game with the guile of a veteran.
“It’s not too long ago that I was sitting on the sofa watching these boys, sitting in Croke Park watching them in All-Irelands and stuff,” he said.
“It all came as a bit of a blur, but it’s great, even to be training and getting tips off them, some of the best players in Ireland, so there’s no better place to be.
“It all came a bit quickly, but I’ll just try and take everything as it comes and keep improving. That’s all I can do.”
Of all the new recruits to the Red Hand squad, including a handful of last year’s All-Ireland U20 winners, Quinn is the only one to nail down a place in the team.
He’s grateful for the trust shown in him by manger Feargal Logan and Brian Dooher, and for the support of his new team-mates.
“Brian and Feargal and all the management have been class to me.
“When you get to know the system and the way they play, it’s great, and the lads are all supporting me.
“I’m just taking it a game at a time, it’s a seriously competitive environment.
“There’s been loads of boys that came in at the same time, and all fighting for a jersey, so I’m happy with any sort of a jersey that I can get.”
Whether at wing back or in the corner, the Errigal Ciaran man has delivered solid displays through a League campaign that started slowly for the Red Hands, but ended in a rush with three straight wins as they eased clear of relegation.
And with each passing game, Quinn has grown in confidence, building on his spirit of adventure in attacking forays which saw him smash home a goal against Monaghan.
“It’s a very relaxed environment in that way, you can get forward and take scores.
“It’s not often that I would get a score, but I’ll take them when they come, and they help the confidence.”
The next target for Tyrone’s latest discovery is a Championship debut.
League performances have taken him this far, but he must continue to produce it as the tempo is raised during the famously competitive in-house matches at Garvaghey ahead of next month’s Ulster SFC opener against Monaghan.
“There’s plenty of boys breathing down your neck, and hopefully I can push on in training ahead of the Championship and try and nail it down.
“I know myself that if I wasn’t on the pitch, I’d be fighting for a jersey, the same as all the other lads are.”
Tyrone scored a comfortable League victory over the Farney men, who had two men sent off at Clones in the penultimate Division One round.
Quinn has no doubt that Vinny Corey’s side will be a much tougher opponent when they travel to Omagh on April 16.
“We played them in the League and it was a bit of a war.
“They were provably unlucky in that they had two men sent off, and if that hadn’t happened, it would have been a different game.
“The Tyrone-Monaghan rivalry has been about as long as I can remember, they’re always been tight game, so it will be a good one and I’m looking forward to it.”
