Conor McKenna hasn't ruled out the possibility of lining out for Tyrone in 2021 while he admits that his positive test for Covid-19 remains a mystery.
Last month the Essendon defender was the subject of major controversy in Australia after becoming the first AFL player to test positive for Covid-19, leading to the indefinite postponement of his club's clash with Melbourne.
McKenna returned home due to homesickness in February and was told that it was possible he picked up the virus on his travels.
"I still don’t know what happened to be honest," McKenna told Teamtalkmag.com.
"On the Friday the test came up a false positive, whatever that means, so I had to get retested again on Saturday and that came up positive.
"I then got retested again on Tuesday and that came up negative. I tested negative maybe three times in a row that week.
"I got bloods done and that came up that maybe I had it six weeks before that when I was in Ireland after a flight. So there still is no real clarity on it.
"They are not sure if I had it ten weeks ago when I was in Ireland or three weeks ago but I was another ten days stuck in my room.
"I felt 100% and that was the biggest shock as I was due to play my first game this year. The day before a game you go for a bit of a jog about and went in.
"Before I started training the doctor came over and said that I had to go for a retest.
"Even the week after that I never had any symptoms so it really didn’t affect me in any way physically."
McKenna was grateful for the support he received during a tough time Down Under with a lot of unfair criticism being aimed at him through the Australian media.
"My club have been very supportive while I was in quarantine and I can’t thank them enough. The Irish Embassy sent me a care package of Irish treats as did Taste Ireland," he said.
"Even the GPA got in contact with me to see could they help me in anyway. It is unbelievable the support that you get from the Irish community on the other side of the world."
Having only returned last weekend in a 14-point win against North Melbourne, the former Tyrone minor footballer is sidelined for a week after breaking his finger in the game.
Returning to play for Tyrone is something that he still also thinks about a lot and while his contract with the Bombers runs through the 2021 season, he hasn't ruled out playing for the Red Hand County next year.
"I came home for four weeks in February but I was always going back out again. I wanted to come home and talk to Mum and dad and the family," said McKenna.
"I talk about it every year, home sickness is not really something that I really shy away from and at the end of each season I make my decision about whether to go back or not, if it’s worth my while.
"I will do the same thing at the end of this season, October time, make my decision and come Christmas I will have decided whether I want to go back out again or not and it will probably just come down to that week what I decide to do.
"I went to the All-Ireland final in 2018 and it was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do, to sit there and watch Tyrone playing."
