“Does he have a full 26 actually to name a panel?”
Tyrone legend Enda McGinley questions Derry’s squad depth ahead of their Ulster championship opener against Fermanagh this weekend.
Rory Gallagher’s team are looking to retain their provincial crown this season after an historic triumph last year that seen them end a barren run of 24 years.
Nobody questions Gallagher’s pedigree or capabilities as coach, particularly as the turnaround in the Oakleaf county has been seismic since his arrival.
However, the Fermanagh native is known for keeping his panel very small, and cultivating a strong bond within the team, and this could be potentially treacherous.
McGinley makes the point that against Dublin in the Division Two final, they had a few injuries, and it didn’t look they had the man power necessary to fill the gaps.
“Going back to the thinness of the Derry panel, which I think was exposed against Dublin,” he told the RTÉ.
“They’ve moved Brendan Rogers out [from full-back] because Emmet Bradley is away this year, who was playing midfield. Yes, Eoin McEvoy has come in, great, but it means that your options are thinner on the ground again.
“Oisin McWilliams, who was one of their main subs to come in, if he’s out, if Conor Glass is out, you’re looking at a really, really stretched team.
“He obviously made a big shout about the Under-20 championship because he has four or five U20s on the panel, and that’s only on a panel of, what, 27 he’s carrying?
“If two or three of them are down, does he have a full 26 actually to name a panel?”
A positive note for the Ulster side is that Ciaran McFaul has returned to the squad after missing a year of football, but he doesnt have long to catch up with the fitness side of things.
“It’s phenomenally tight margins and he [Gallagher] doesn’t have huge experience….I actually think Ciaran McFaul, if he’s home with any fitness, he’ll see game-time.
“He is an excellent player, whenever he is fully fit and fully at it. He’s a player I would have a lot of time for and I think he will make an impact on that team and give them that wee bit of added depth or options to move things around.”
Related links:
- Lorcan O’Dell scores goal of the season as Dublin find Derry’s net four times
- Gareth McKinless has the kind of impact that all subs dream of as Derry beat Dublin
- Chrissy McKaigue opens up on losing Derry captaincy to Conor Glass
