Derry facing 'must win game' in promotion bid

Derry manager Ciarán Meenagh was disappointed on a number of fronts after Saturday’s defeat at the hands of Louth in Ardee.

With Cork and Meath also winning, it leaves Derry’s promotion hopes out of their own hands ahead of Sunday’s visit of Cavan.

“We come hoping to take a step towards promotion,” he said after Saturday’s defeat.

“We came, we felt we were well prepared but we didn't get the performance overall.

“We didn't get the performance in all facets of play, so, it was a disappointing day at the office.

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“They're (Louth) are hard to beat here. We've had the experience here three years ago and seen them in recent weeks against Tyrone. It's a unique venue and all credit to them.”

On a day when the final pass fed into Louth’s counterattacking plans and the Oakleafers missed chances, Meenagh was disappointed his side didn’t meet their opponents in the battle.

“I thought it was how we defended, I thought it was our ability in the battle,” he said. “I thought we lost that today, which is the most disappointing thing.

“We struggled on both sets of kick-outs then as well.

“All in all, I think Louth more than deserved the victory. They trumped us in every regard, so fair due to them and to their management.”

It was a contrast to Derry’s comfortable win over Cork that boosted their promotion hopes with an excellent display.

“That's the danger of winning a couple of games by so much,” Meenagh said.

“It leaves you sitting a bit on a pedestal to be knocked off and they (Louth) would have knew that and they had their homework done, so, fair due to them.

“We'll have to see how the rest of the results go now and we have Cavan next week and that's a must-win game.”