It was in the spring of last year that Derry were seen as genuine All-Ireland SFC contenders. Their stock was on the rise and the expectation was of a continued upward trajectory, this after winning a Division 1 league crown and consecutive Ulster titles.
Mickey Harte was at the helm, an experienced hand to keep things moving. And then came a crash of sorts. Donegal proved too good in that 2024 provincial quarter-final. The All-Ireland series saw just one victory and their season ended after a most underwhelming effort against Kerry.
The new season saw the arrival of the well-regarded Paddy Tally as coach. Nothing so far has happened to indicate that Derry have rediscovered their spark. Relegation to Division 2 and a ten-point defeat against Donegal in their Ulster opener offer some grim reading on the report card. And on Saturday, it's a date with All-Ireland champions Armagh in the All-Ireland series as they begin their quest to arrest their alarming slide.
It's 6 April since Derry fell to that loss in Ballybofey. We haven't heard much from the camp since and you can bet that they shuddered at the prospect of also facing Galway and Dublin in their Sam Maguire group.
Speaking on the latest edition of the RTÉ GAA Podcast, former Offaly star Nigel Dunne expressed a sense of bafflement as to Derry's fall from such lofty heights.
"I think there should be a case study done on them," he remarked.
"What has happened in Derry? I've no idea how a team with back-to-back Ulster titles, who won a brilliant Division 1 title against Dublin and were at a stage where they looked like they could take the next step can then fall off a cliff. And I mean fall of a cliff in such dramatic fashion. It's incredible; I don't think I've ever seen such a steep fall.
"They have played 14 league and championship games since (winning Division 1 in March 2024) and they've only won one game in regulation time, that was against Westmeath and later won against Mayo, but after penalties."
The clash at the Box-It Athletic Grounds will see Derry back in action for the first time in 48 days, more than ample time for the Oak Leaf men to refocus, says Dunne.
"It's the quietest I've heard from the Derry camp, or the noise around it, in 18 months.
"It's probably a good thing from their point of view because there was a stage there where there were stories coming out every second day. They needed the time to reassess.
"Armagh will bring a performance. They have only lost one championship game in regulation time in three years. They are defiant. Everything that Kieran McGeeney was as a player has transferred on to them. Att the moment, Derry just don't have that consistency."
With Chrissy McKaigue retired and Gareth McKinless out injured, there is now a fear that other established Derry names may miss out on fully realising their potential, a view echoed by the now Offaly minor selector.
"They spent years building up the confidence going from Division 4 to Division 1, to get the inner belief that they could compete at the top table and then it's all washed way," Dunne added.
"Derry have the ability and can fall back on what they had in the not too distant past. You hope they would have used the time since the Donegal game to find that spark again. For Shane McGuigan, Conor Glass and Brendan Rogers, they are generational talents, their careers could go by and ultimately be unfulfilled. That is nearly a sin."
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 on the RTÉ Radio Player, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow a live blog on the All-Ireland Football Championship on Saturday on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app. Watch highlights on The Saturday Game (9.30pm) on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player and listen live on Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1
