Richie Donnelly will sit out Tyrone's entire NFL Division One campaign due to a fractured bone in his back.

The luckless Trillick clubman, who tore his Achilles during the Ulster SFC semi-final replay against Cavan last summer and missed the high-profile championship games against Donegal and Mayo, hasn't featured for the Red Hands since and will be sidelined for at least two more months.

"It's very unlucky for him because he's a dedicated athlete," manager Mickey Harte told The Irish News. "He puts in a lot of hard work and there's nowhere he'd rather be than out on the field with the rest of the team.

"It sounds something like a stress fracture there which he probably didn't recognise at first. But it's transpired that is the case and it's something he'll have to tend to before he can get back out on the football field."

The news regarding Richie's brother, Mattie Donnelly, is better, however. Mattie will be available for selection for Sunday's top-flight clash with Cavan in Omagh, having got the all-clear after suffering concussion against Roscommon on February 5th.

All Star Mattie sat out the Dublin game due to concussion protocol. "His health is the most important and football comes a long way after it," Harte adds.

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