Mayo test awaits for Derry but questions remain

Mickey Harte said Saturday’s win over Westmeath won’t solve all of Derry’s problems but it is the early steps of building the confidence dented by their recent run of championship defeats.

Derry will now face Mayo next weekend's All-Ireland SFC preliminary quarter-final and they will do so with question marks still remaining over the ability of the team to bounce back after recent painful defeats.

Since winning the league title in late March, the Oakleafers lost their Ulster title at the hands of eventual champions Donegal.

After losing their All-Ireland opener to Galway in Salthill, they were taught another lesson by Armagh in Celtic Park.

“We couldn’t think of anything else other than getting a result,” was Harte’s initial reaction to Saturday’s victory in Páirc Esler.

Anything less than victory on Saturday, and Derry would have been wiped from the All-Ireland conversation.

Harte said Derry were “very impressed” with Westmeath’s performances against with Armagh and Galway, saying how Dessie Dolan’s side were also on a mission.

“Coming off the results we had our morale was dented,” he said of Derry’s preparations. “It was difficult for the players to get back the belief they had that took them to the top of Division One.

“That (beating Westmeath) is the beginning of the process of building back a bit of confidence and a bit of belief that they can play very good football, but it doesn’t solve all our problems.

“We still have to be aware of what caused us damage in the games that we lost, and try and continue to work so they don’t happen again, certainly in such a prolific fashion.”

Conor Glass played in a more defensive role for much of Saturday’s win and both goals played a vital part in steering Derry over the line.

“The one at the end (by Emmett Bradley) was very important because, at that stage, we were clinging on by a point,” Harte said.

“We didn’t actually push ahead as much as I’d have liked to at the start of the second half. We had chances to push out that scoreline rather than have it closed on us, and when it started to close on us, it was dangerous.”

With Derry’s poorer score difference, even a draw would’ve been enough for Westmeath to book their spot in the knock-out stages.

“That second goal was really, really important to make sure they had to go for a goal, so they weren’t going to get a draw so handy,” Harte said of the final twist of momentum.

The win brought to a turbulent week to an end. After rumours circulated on Tuesday that Harte’s immediate future as manager was in doubt, Derry GAA Chairman John Keenan, in a statement to BBC, insisted Harte would be in charge and that the county was united.

“It was just another Tuesday for me,” he said when asked about the clouds gathering just four days before their must win visit to Newry. “There are so many people that can have a voice and bring it out as if it was the gospel truth.

“You know what they say about empty vessels, they make the most noise, and that’s probably part of it.”

While the win, Harte feels, will help lift confidence in the team, he insists there are more questions and answers to follow.

“Obviously it’ll do them some good,” he said of ending their losing streak. “How much, I don’t know. We’ll be in the same position next week. We’ll be out to play a game where it’s winner takes all.

“If you win it, you can say ‘yes, the confidence of this week was great,’ but if we don’t win that game then you might say it didn’t fix the confidence issue. That’s all to be answered yet.”