'I don't like being against my own county' - Harte

When you think of Tyrone football, you think of Mickey Harte and the euphoric scenes of the three All-Ireland titles he led his native county to.

Harte was to Tyrone what Sir Alex Ferguson was to Manchester United. He spent over three decades coaching in the white and red, winning All-Ireland titles at all levels.

In an 18-year dynasty with the senior team, he guided the county through their greatest triumphs, the pinnacle being their first All-Ireland title in 2003, followed by further wins in 2005 and 2008.

Add to that six Ulster titles and one league triumph, Harte bowed out in November 2020 after Tyrone's Ulster quarter-final defeat by Donegal, played behind closed door during the Covid pandemic.

It was a low key end to a period that transformed football in Tyrone, firmly establishing their place at the top table.

On Saturday, Harte will manage in his native county for the first time since his departure as the Red Hands play at O'Neill Park in Dungannon for the first time since April 2011.

The Errigal Ciaran club-man was in the dugout that day as his side beat Kildare in a Division Two encounter.

It will not be the first time that Harte manages against Tyrone as he led Derry to a league victory over his home county at Celtic Park in 2024.

"No, I don't like being against my own county, but it happens sometimes when you're managing somebody else and you find yourself in the same division," Harte told BBC Sport NI.

Harte wasn't out of the inter-county game for long, joining up with Louth ahead of the 2021 season and guiding the 'Wee County' to Division Two with back-to-back promotions.

Harte's upward trajectory continued when he made the shock switch to Tyrone's neighbours and footballing rivals Derry, leading the Oak Leaf county to the Division One league title later that spring before departing in the summer after a poor championship.

None of this quenched Harte's thirst and he found himself at the helm in Offaly in 2025, guiding the county to an unlikely Division Three title alongside co-manager Declan Kelly.

The scale of the Faithful County's task in the second tier was bluntly laid out in Celtic Park as they were hammered 2-25 to 0-8 by Derry, leaving them bottom of the table with four defeats in a row and a scoring difference of -42.

"It was a long, hard night for us and probably everybody knew long before half-time that the result was a foregone conclusion, so that happens," said Harte.

"I've been in that place once or twice before. It's not easy to watch, but sometimes you find that you have to deal with those things.

"You're playing a higher quality of team than we're used to and we're missing a serious amount of players. We're missing about seven starters from last year and we haven't got the depth to cope with that. The boys that are in there are doing their very best.

"They're getting experience. It's hard experience for many of them, but at least they'll learn from it. It's not good to us at the moment, but I think in the long term it'll be a benefit to the players."

Malachy O'Rourke is now in charge at Tyrone and his side are embroiled in a relegation battle after starting the campaign as the favourites to make an immediate return to the top tier.

The Red Hands are one point above the drop zone after taking just three points from their first four games, with a sobering loss to Louth last time out dealing a major blow to their promotion hopes.

Tyrone v Offaly will be streamed live on the BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website and app on Saturday 28 February, with throw-in at 18:00 GMT.