Damian McErlain saluted the character of his young Derry side as they pulled off a memorable second-half comeback to quell the challenge of a gritty Sligo in Ballybofey on Saturday.
And he called on the Derry supporters to get behind this team as they gear up for an All-Ireland semi-final date with either Dublin or Clare.
McErlain added that it was a “pleasant change” to hear the Derry supporters really get behind their team in the second half.
“Yes, that was a pleasant surprise,'' he said.
“I think they nearly went into a chant at one stage and that is the first time I have heard that in three years at any level.
“It is great to hear that and lets have more of the same.''
Derry hit 15 wides but manager McErlain said a tricky breeze was a major factor in this unusually prolific wastage.
“It was some second half and we went down by five just after half-time so we really had to dig it out.
“It was great character from the lads but it is only when you are down on the pitch that you realized just how tricky the breeze was.
“We were shooting into that breeze in the opening half and we had 20 attacks and 18 shots in the first half which is always a key barometer.
“That was the difference and they had a 90 per cent conversion rate in the first half.”
But a key factor in the change in fortunes for Derry was the introduction of the injured Conor McCluskey and Simon McErlain (Damian’s nephew) at half -time.
“The two lads were injured and we thought they would not last the hour and we felt if we needed them which we absolutely did, they would be better coming in than having to pull them out after half an hour,” he added.
That decision proved to be inspired as the duo made a big impact on proceedings and the immense contribution of Sligo’s red Og Murphy was greatly diminished.
“This enabled us to re-shuffle things a bit and thankfully it worked out,'' said McErlain.
“This team has great character and when you come after winning an Ulster title it is just all about getting through the next day.
“We were given a good test on Saturday and that display would just not be good enough in the semi-final.
“But it did show the strength in depth we have on the bench and that is very important to have if you want to win big matches.''
And he also graciously saluted the marvellous display of Sligo’s Red Og Murphy, who almost won this match virtually single-handed.