Mark Bradley left the Tyrone panel after helping his county lift their fourth All-Ireland in their history, and he wasn't the only one.
Along with Rory Brennan, Ronan O'Neill, Tiernan McCann and several others, once the '21 season ended, they hung up their inter-county boots.
A part of that was perhaps down to a lack of game time, for although Bradley had played a significant role in a lot of matches that year, particularly the Ulster final when he was drafted into the starting team and played brilliantly, he did not feature at all in the All-Ireland final.
Since then the Killyclogher man has been captaining his club and delivering fantastic performances on a regular basis, taking it to another level this season when he has arguably been the best player in the Tyrone championship.
When Brian Dooher and Feargal Logan resigned as managers last summer, and Malachy O'Rourke was announced as their replacement, it is as though everyone has been given a fresh slate.
With Bradley's performances in particular catching the eye, fans were hoping that he would be returning to the inter-county scene and when he made himself available for Ulster in the inter-provincial tournament, that only stoked the fire further.
After two fantastic performances for his province, it is clear that his the flying forward can still mix it at the top level.
Ulster teammate and former Tyrone colleague Kieran McGeary told The Irish News after the match that he would love to see Bradley back in a Tyrone shirt.
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“Sure it’s like he never left – sharp as ever, left foot, right foot...
“He’s a handful, he always has been… it’ll be interesting to see what way it goes. Having him, potentially, as an addition to the team, would certainly be favourable.”
A skilful player with lots of talent, the new rules that were being trialled in the inter-provncial tournament might also persuade Bradley to make a return.
Instead of having to track back, play 15 behind the ball and do a lot of the dog work, he and other forwards could benefit so much more with the extra space and opportunities to score.
