Conor McKenna's red card: Was the Tyrone forward's dismissal the correct decision?

It was far from plain sailing, but Tyrone eventually found their feet on Saturday evening to see off Fermanagh and set up an Ulster SFC quarter-final against Derry.

It was in the balance at the half-way mark, with Tyrone leading by a single point. But the introduction of Conor McKenna turned the tide as the Red Hands scored 1-8 without reply to ease clear.

However, a perfect evening was spoiled at the end of the game when McKenna was shown a straight red card. The Eglish clubman was the third man into a melee, and referee Joe McQuillan gave him his marching orders.

His dismissal means he will miss the upcoming quarter-final with Derry, unless Tyrone manage to get the one-game suspension overturned.

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The pundits' view

"It's hard to believe that they ended up in that place at the end of the game, where they got caught up in a melee to be honest with you," said Jim McGuinness.

"The game was completely dead [by that point], so it's hard to fathom that Conor McKenna is on the sideline off the back of that second-half performance.

"McKenna electrified the game when he came on and it was definitely something that was missing from a Tyrone point of view [in the first half].

"When the game is in the melting pot, you want people who can come in and make an impact. He certainly did that. From a Tyrone point of view, it's very, very disappointing that he's been sent off.

"He was the third man in, and that really is the initiation of the melee. So probably in terms of the rules, the referee is within his rights to send him off.

"The other question you have to ask, is he doing more than the other lads in the melee? But if you're looking at it from an officials' point of view, you're probably looking that it might not have happened had he not gone in."

Former Tyrone star Peter Canavan added: "He's a massive loss. He made a massive difference. He turned the game around.

"And if he is suspended for the next game, which looks likely, he's going to be a massive loss for Tyrone.

"Did he do more than the other Fermanagh players that were on top of Conn Kilpatrick? For me, I don't think so. I find it hard to believe again.

"There was a melee up in Armagh, and that melee had four red cards to Tyrone, one to Armagh. Another minor scuffle here, and you have one red card for Tyrone.

"From a Tyrone point of view, they definitely will [be frustrated] because they've lost one of their best players for the Ulster quarter-final."

'We firmly believe that Conor was looking to the safety of one of his team-mates'

Tyrone joint-manager Feargal Logan said Tyrone would be appealing the decision, in the hope that McKenna will be available for the meeting with Derry on May 1.

"It's fair to say I have been deeply involved in GAA disciplinary processes for a long number of years now, and from virtually every angle of it," said Logan.

"Let me say it's causing a lot of difficulty, this position in terms of contributing to a melee.

"Joe McQuillan had a very difficult job out there, and did very well. But ultimately there are some times on a football field when a player isn't contributing to a melee, and he's simply looking to the safety of his own team-mate, or to the safety of others.

"And on this occasion, we firmly believe that Conor was looking to the safety of one of his team-mates, and that's simply why he moved towards the matters.

On this occasion, we firmly believe that Conor was looking to the safety of one of his team-mates, and that's simply why he moved towards the matters.

"I'm going to leave it for everybody else to watch the video and work it out for themselves, but at some stage there must be justification on a football field to begin to assist and see to the safety of others."

Sky Sports' live GAA coverage continues on Saturday with a huge hurling double-header. Watch Wexford vs Dublin and Limerick vs Waterford live on Sky Sports Arena from 4.30pm