Derry defender Chrissy McKaigue says he is not sure if the narrative around his county's demise over the past decade was as accurate as publicly believed.
The 32-year-old Derry captain, who had a spell playing for Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League a decade ago, says that the stars have aligned for his county after some turbulent years.
Following Sunday’s hard-earned Ulster title win against Donegal, the county is on a high and looking forward to going further in championship 2022.
The county fell to Division 4 football, conceded huge scores in games, failed to deliver in the championship and saw their efforts hindered by huge club rivalry and internal disputes.
But speaking at the GAA Football All-Ireland Series National Launch, McKaigue said things were never as bad as they were made out to be.
"I’m not sure it was as bad as the narrative bandied about, certainly in the way we were seen as a divisive county," the Oak Leaf skipper said.
"It was used as an excuse because we hadn’t produced on the inter-county stage.
"But there were other factors too. Slaughtneill had very productive club campaigns and they had a significant number of players on the county panel and that would have disrupted Derry’s plans too.
"I always thought, though, that there was a conveyor belt of talent there and with the appointment of Rory (Gallagher), I think those two curves have met now and it resulted in Sunday’s win.
"But look deeper. On Sunday Derry were in the Ulster minor final for the sixth time in eight years.
"St Mary’s Magherafelt have been going really well in the Hogan Cup and McRory Cup competitions, and I think you are starting to see all that coming through.
"Still, we needed that signature win to validate what was happening on the ground.
"That’s why Sunday was massive. I don’t think we’d have achieved it except for Rory and his knowhow. He has been good for Derry and Derry has been good for him."
McKaigue always held firm that the county’s fortunes could change - and that they could change rather speedily too.
"I did think it could turn around that quickly because it went downhill that quickly," he stressed.
"’I’ve played in all four league divisions and it’s not a pathway I would recommend but it’s the one I have been on, and I knew if we had the right things in place and the right people that we could turn things around quite quickly.
"Derry have been there at the top table before and we need to protect what happened on Sunday and keep pushing on.
"I would say that Derry folk are fanatical about Gaelic football and maybe it’s only yesterday that some people are starting to see that. Where I’m from football talk is never too far away. And people want more days like Sunday."
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Listen to the RTÉ GAA Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
