‘We've got a real chance’ - Derry manager Ruaidhrí Higgins

Derry City manager Ruaidhrí Higgins believes his side are in with a real chance of progression ahead of tonight’s second leg Europa Conference League tie with Tobol Kostanay of Kazakhstan.

The Limavady native was no stranger to big European nights as a Candystripes player and this evening he’ll be on the touchline in Tallaght as his troops try to overturn a 1-0 defeat in last week’s first leg encounter. Victory would see them progress to a play-off tie – with success there leading to European group stage football for the first time in the club’s history.

But all of the focus for now is on tonight’s game and Higgins explained that last Thursday’s stoic and impressive performance has given his team every chance against Tobol, who knocked out FC Basel in the previous round.

“It’s something to really get excited about. I think we’ve given ourselves a real platform to go and try and progress, and that’s what we wanted coming home,” he admitted. “They were exactly what we expected – high pressing, aggressive, playing on the front foot, with the front three being really talented footballers. They have a specific way of playing and I felt, by and large, we nullified a lot of their threats and stuck to our own principles.

“Probably after 15 minutes or so we settled into our own rhythm and I thought it was a good away performance.”

The bare minimum is what separates the sides as things stand and, while Higgins knows his side definitely needs to score at least once, he is willing to play the long game – especially with the old ‘away goals rule’ out of the picture.

“It doesn’t matter if we get the first goal in the 5th minute or the 85th minute, it’s not overly important that we score early, as long as we score. We certainly have the players.

“We’ve seen in recent times our players are cutting edge, they’re in good form and that gives us a real chance,” stated the City boss. “I think there’s a huge change with the away goal rule taken away from a psychological point of view and how you can approach matches.

“The 2-1 game here against KuPS in the first leg, we might have been edgy with them having an away goal going out there but it’s a completely different dynamic. We wanted to go out there and play like we played in the second half here at home because that away goal thing was gone. I think it’s had a huge change, particularly from a psychological point of view.”

FAMILIAR SURROUNDINGS

UEFA rules mean that Derry City will be playing their ‘home’ leg in Dublin – and Shamrock Rovers’ – Tallaght Stadium but after playing on a less than ideal pitch in the first leg, Higgins is looking forward to his players expressing themselves on a wide, slick surface.

“We enjoy going there. It’s a big pitch and the groundsmen down there do an unbelievable job in how they look after it.

“The players really love going there and playing their football and we have players that can hopefully make the most of that. It’s something to really look forward to. We’re in good form and we’re playing well so why not go and get ourselves through to the next round.”

The weekday trip to Dublin does add an extra element of difficulty for supporters looking to get behind their team but Higgins fully expects that the red and white army will be backing his men from the stands, and he knows how special a big win would be.

“It would be brilliant not only for the players and staff but for everyone connected to the football club and the city. There’s a real buzz around the place at the minute and the public are getting right behind it,” he said. “You can see it on the faces of people and all the children with their Derry gear on – it’s amazing and it gives you real pride and satisfaction. We don’t want to go and just tick a box, we want to go and try to get ourselves into a play-off.”

GOOD SPIRITS

The Candystripes manager detailed that Cameron Dummigan and Patrick McEleney continue to harbour ‘knocks’ ahead of tonight’s game, while Sam Todd is edging closer to being match fit. Long-term absentees Ciaron Harkin and Colm Whelan remain the only major misses.

“Sam Todd’s not far away at all, he’s getting through a good bit of work at the minute. We’re really excited by Sam and what we’re seeing. The rest of the squad – Dummigan’s been carrying a knock, Patrick’s been carrying a knock but you can see the impact that he’s had from the bench in recent times has been amazing so we’re in good spirits. The players are in great form, enjoying each other’s company, and we’re playing good stuff at the minute so a lot of positive things going into Thursday.”

Despite the notably absences of Dummigan and McEleney from the starting line-up, Higgins feels that players like Sadou Diallo – man-of-the-match in the first leg – and Adam O’Reilly have really stepped up to the plate in the engine room.

“Sadou has probably played more than anybody this season. In recent times he’s had a huge impact on the team and he seems to really enjoy Europe. His performance last week was really top level in and out of possession,” insisted Higgins. “It helps when you have two young players like Adam and Diallo, having that experience to help and guide them. There’s a real unity and bond in the group at the minute. The dressing room is very much pulling together. It’s a good place to be at the moment.”

From a Candystripes perspective there isn’t much too complain about of late, with big games coming up in Europe, the domestic league, and the FAI Cup. So, what would be more special for Higgins – to win the league or to progress in Europe?

“We’ll take both,” joked the City boss. “I don’t think at this stage of the season – we’re still in Europe, we’re positioned really well in the league, we’re in the next round of the cup – I don’t think you can pick and choose. You have to enjoy it and stay in the moment.

“We have a brilliant squad here and it would be silly not to use it. In the type of form that we’re in at the minute, we can handle different competitions. They’re all equally as important for different reasons. We are literally just focusing on the next game.

He continued: “After last Thursday night, Drogheda United became the biggest game of our season and I mean that. We spoke about it to the players. We knew the significance of Sunday and how big it was. It was one of our games in hand in front of our own supporters after travelling back from Kazakhstan. I felt it was a pivotal game in our season. I know we made five changes but you look at the players we were able to bring into the team.

“We’ll treat every game on its merits. We can’t pick and choose at this stage, we have to enjoy it while we’re in it and really embrace it,” he concluded.