Football

Down head up to Derry with both counties aiming for second wins

The red card for Down's Conaill McGovern against Derry in the 2015 Ulster SFc was a pivotal moment for the Mournemen. Picture Margaret McLaughlin.
The red card for Down's Conaill McGovern against Derry in the 2015 Ulster SFc was a pivotal moment for the Mournemen. Picture Margaret McLaughlin. The red card for Down's Conaill McGovern against Derry in the 2015 Ulster SFc was a pivotal moment for the Mournemen. Picture Margaret McLaughlin.

Allianz Football League Division Two, round four: Derry v Down (Celtic Park, 2.30pm tomorrow)

DERRY assistant boss Brian McGuckin reckoned last Sunday's last-gasp win over Kildare flipped "our season on its head".

Yet you can toss a coin to decide the winners of this clash – and the losers, if there are any, will be in serious trouble again, going off with their tails between the legs, despite the highs of their round three results.

Down travel up to Celtic Park with a huge weight lifted off their shoulders, backs, legs, and heads. Their 22-month wait for a win in League or Championship no doubt dragged them down. The one-point defeat at this venue in the 2015 Ulster SFC under Jim McCorry was a momentous result in hindsight.

The understandable fear between their players' ears about letting the desperately-needed victory slip out of their grasp was evident in the closing stages against a lightweight Meath outfit last Saturday night.

Derry looked like they were going to suffer another setback in a tight tussle, but instead they got their first League win since last year's second round, when they had edged out Cavan in Breffni Park.

Their wait for a home success in the League was slightly longer, from last year's season opener against Fermanagh, although Derry did defeat visitors Louth and Meath in last year's Championship.

Yet Brian McGuckin did not under-estimate the importance of the late winning goal by his namesake Emmett in added time against the Lilywhites, turning what seemed set to be another gut-wrenching defeat into an uplifting victory:

"Fabulous. We knew that if we were to get a result that it would flip our season on its head…

"We knew if we won that we were putting ourselves back in a very good position again."

However, it's arguable that both counties' league campaigns are balancing precariously on the knife-edge of this encounter.

Derry know they must make the most of their penultimate home game, as they have games in Galway and Fermanagh either side of hosting Cork in round six.

Down's subsequent schedule is arguably more difficult. They have two home games, but they're against high-flying Kildare and Galway, while in round seven the Mournemen must make the testing trip to Cork.

Given that they're still bottom of the division, with only two points, Down's need for victory is greater.

Arguably, so is the talent available to their boss Eamonn Burns, especially given that the four subs he used last week were all quality – Benny McArdle, Jerome Johnston, Mark Poland, and Paul Devlin. All four should get more game-time tomorrow, with the last two named only on from the 65th minute onwards against Meath.

Derry manager Damian Barton used Mark Craig and Ryan Bell similarly, introducing them earlier than planned as Kildare came back strongly in the final minutes of normal time, and the latter sent in the long ball that Emmett McGuckin fisted to the net for a one-point victory.

Barton's options are limited due to injuries, as his assistant Brian McGuckin pointed out: "There have been critics, and rightly so, but you also have to take into consideration that we are blooding a lot of new players, that we're missing a lot of players – but we have a lot of faith in the players that we have there. They really stood up to the mark [against Kildare] and showed that they are fit to play at this level."

This could come down to how the youngish home defence handles the admittedly low-scoring visiting attack.

Down, appear better defensively, and more experienced, having handed first starts in this League last weekend to Darragh O'Hanlon, Peter Turley, Kevin McKernan, and Conor Maginn.

Defeat tomorrow won't condemn either side to the drop but a tentative nod that Down will have their heads up tomorrow evening.

Derry: C McLarnon; N Keenan, C Nevin, P Hagan; N Forester, O Duffin, M McEvoy; J Kielt, C McAtamney; E Lynn, E McGuckin, C McWilliams; D Tallon, N Loughlin, B Heron. Substitutes: T Mallon, O Hegarty, C McGrogan, G O'Neill, C Mullan, M Craig, R Bell, M Warnock, N Toner, B Grant, J Doherty.

Down: Down: M Reid; R McAleenan, G McGovern; D O'Hagan; D O'Hanlon, C McGovern, C Mooney; A Carr, P Turley; K McKernan, C Maginn, J Murphy; S Millar, B O'Hagan, R Johnston.

Referee: Paddy Neilan (Roscommon).