Veteran Derry defender Chrissy McKaigue believes that his county are reaping the rewards of years of development work at all levels after they claimed an emphatic 2-19 to 1-09 victory over Roscommon to book their place in the Allianz Football League Division 1 final.
After a fairly sedate first-half performance at Celtic Park, Derry raised their game massively in the second half to blow the visitors away, restricting Roscommon to just a single point in the final 30 minutes.
The result saw Roscommon drop into Division 2 for next season, while Derry have a Croke Park final against Dublin to plan for.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport afterwards, McKaigue was quick to pay tribute to those working through all levels of the Derry GAA structures, which he believes are now paying dividends.
As a full-time games development officer with Slaughtneil and a PE teacher, McKaigue is perfectly placed to see the impact that investment in youth and school GAA in having.
"We're getting a wee bit sidetracked at times thinking it’s just down to the Derry senior team," he said.
"I’m fortunate to be around primary school and secondary school sport, I see local clubs, Derry has been on a ride for a long number of years now and there’s a conveyor belt of quality coming through.
"It’s not by coincidence that we see things like we do today.
"Obviously the senior team doing well helps, it gives us that bit of exposure and gets kids coming to games but there’s been a lot of work that’s been done in the last decade.
"It’s testament to clubs and schools because they’ve really got their house in order and the conveyor belt of talent that I’m seeing is just so exciting as a Derryman."
At 34, McKaigue is now one of the elder statesmen of this Derry side and as the county prepare for their first league final since 2014’s defeat to Dublin, he’s at a stage now where he’s able to appreciate the significance of showpiece finals a bit more.
"Not only was I in the last league final, I played in the Division 1 final in 2009 also – that was a while back," he admitted. "It’s my third Division 1 final, I’ve been around a long time.
"I’m a different age and I’d appreciate it, I wouldn’t say a wee bit more, but I’d definitely have a deep appreciation for it.
"The likes of Conor Glass and Shane McGuigan, they’ve gone through their whole career with St Pat’s Maghera and the Derry minors, they’ve been used to winning Derry. I just didn’t have that privilege growing up as being used to winning with Derry.
"I’ve still played a fair amount of my football in Division 1. Obviously Slaughtneil doing well in the hurling and football denied be a lot of playing in the league campaigns, the club calendar used to go deep in March as we know.
"I’m just deeply grateful now. I’ve know I’m definitely closer to the end that I am to the beginning but it’s a great place to be.
"It gives a great belief in the players and a great belief in the players that are coming behind. Derry is going to be competitive for a long, long time."
