Derry's Holt hoping for 'title-winning consistency'

Derry City centre-back Kevin Holt feels consistency will be the key to clinching the Premier Division title this season.

The Brandywell men, who currently sit joint top alongside Shamrock Rovers, are the in-form team in the division having picked up 22 points from their last 10 ten games.

City have actually won five of their last six league games, with the only blip coming against Waterford. It is by far the best form of the season and the best form under Tiernan Lynch and Holt wants that form to continue at Drogheda United, tomorrow night.

“I think it’s consistency that’s going to win the league this year,” he insisted.

“I think the team that can put the run together for the longest is going to go on and win the league.

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“I think everyone has just got within them to go on that run, it’s the team that manages to do it, stick together and to come places like Cork and get big results, which we did last Friday night.”

Although it will be Holt’s first time playing at Weavers Park, he is expecting a close encounter against Kevin Doherty’s men, who will be looking to bounce back from their 3-0 loss at Shamrock Rovers.

Drogheda in fact have won the last three against Derry City, including the FAI Cup Final at the Aviva Stadium back in November.

Holt played in the defeat to the cup winners at the Brandywell back in April, when City's world imploded in a crazy 10-minute spell. Liam Boyce gave the home side the lead, but within minutes the hard work had been ruined, with Boyce's red card followed by two quick-fire Drogheda goals. The visitors eventually ran out 3-1 winners. It promises to be just as difficult tomorrow night.

“I’ve seen that in a lot of away grounds, they are very similar in terms of obviously the fans get right on your back and they make it kind of hostile, the pitches are tight, but I know the boys will prepare properly, which they’ve done for all the games. You can tell that with the performances we’ve put in,” stated Holt.

With a home game against Shamrock Rovers on the horizon, Holt understands the importance of momentum, especially heading to a ground where the Candystripes have faced great difficulty over the years.

“Obviously the Waterford game we under performed and we knew that, but we bounced back with three big wins in a row, but there’s no point in doing that if we go and drop points at Drogheda on Friday.”

“We really need and want to keep our form going, but we all know it’s going to be difficult at Drogheda.”

The 32-year-old scored his first goal for the club, heading home the winner at Turner’s Cross and he acknowledged that the win over the Leesiders was big.

“It was a huge three points for us and obviously we had two great results coming into the Cork game, so we knew coming into the Cork game, the last time we won two games back to back we dropped points at Waterford and we didn’t want that to happen again,” he added.

“We knew it was going to be hard and they made it very hard for us, but I felt we weathered the storm really well and got ourselves back in front, before seeing the game out comfortably.” Holt acknowledged he took time to settle into things on Foyleside, but he believes, just like the City squad, he's starting to find his form.

With players returning from injury in recent weeks, the competition in the squad is now more fierce than ever, and Holt believes that is part of what is driving the squad on at present.

“The squad rotation from all our games recently, the boys coming on are right at it and they’re desperate to play and that’s what the manager needs from the boys pushing each other and that’s what we’ve got. It’s a great squad,” he explained.

“There’s two boys for every position and you look right through the squad it’s a really talented group and as long as it’s done the right way, boys driving each other on and everyone is wanting the team to win, which they are, the boys are right together and you can see that over the last six games and we just want to build on that.”