The young man from Eglish was surrounded by gifted young footballers like Kevin Hughes and Eoin Mulligan (both pictured above) but it was McAnallen that Harte chose to captain the side and they went all the way to the 1997 All Ireland minor football final before losing out to Laois in Croke Park. However, the year was not without its tragedy when one of the team, Paul McGirr, died during a championship game in Omagh. It's said that McAnallen played a big part in helping his teammates to cope with the loss of one so close.

The very next year, this young group of players showed the strength and determination to once again battle through to the final and this time they captured the county's first All Ireland minor title in 25 years.

McAnallen, who at this stage was studying history at Queen's University in Belfast, again captained the side and delivered a memorable victory speech as Gaeilge in Croke Park.

The young players progressed and so too did their manager, with Harte taking over the under21 side and, as ever, McAnallen was a leader on the pitch. College life also brought success on the football field and in 2000 he won the Sigerson Cup title with Queen's, the ideal preparation for a run which brought Tyrone to that year's All Ireland under-21 final, a game they won this day seven years ago after a great struggle with Limerick.

Tyrone football was now on the crest of a wave and another national under-21 title followed in 2001 . . . McAnallen was also named Young Footballer of the Year. Then in 2003 a Peter Canavan-captained team brought home the Sam Maguire . . .

this time McAnallen also won an All Star. It was no surprise when he was chosen to captain the senior team in 2004 and the year started with more success when he lifted the Dr McKenna Cup after beating Donegal in the final.

However, just a couple of weeks later, the GAA world was plunged into shock with the news that Cormac had died suddenly from an undetected heart condition on 2 March, 2004. It proved a sad and tragic end for a man who lived life to its fullest.