Ruaidhri Higgins 'very confident' of further new signings

Ruaidhri Higgins is hoping to add more players to his squad in the coming days as Derry City head to Waterford hoping to keep pace with Shelbourne at the top of the Premier Division.

An eye-catching FAI Cup quarterfinal also waits for Higgins and his players, but at this stage of the season, and with so much at stake, every game in itself is like a cup final, with every single point vital.

The Derry City boss is well aware of the frailties in his squad at present, with the arrival of Andre Wisdom needed as defensive reinforcements have been light since the departure of Cameron McJannet.

“We're very, very confident that there'll be a few more additions,” he said. “There was a bit of a setback for us in that Daniel Kelly's tendonitis in his knee has flared up; we weren't planning on bringing in an attack-minded player, but we might be forced to do that. There definitely will be another couple of additions to the group.”

“In terms of team new, Patrick (McEleney) is getting very close, Ronan Boyce got re-scanned the other day and got good news, so he's not too far away either at all, even though both have missed quite a bit of football. Mark Connolly is looking okay as the week has progressed. I think the squad bar that's pretty much the same.”

Higgins is hoping that Wisdom will be available for the trip to Waterford, with the defender ready to go after spending time with Salford.

“We’re working hard to get him ready for Friday,” he explained. “He's had a full pre-season, he's good to go, he's played games, he's had a full pre-season and we've had a couple of lads in training with us for the last while, so anyone that we bring in will be in a decent place physically, which is really important to us.”

Higgins first spoke to Wisdom on Sunday evening, but already he has been impressed by the character of a player who has been through a lot in recent years.

“I won't let you into the full conversation, but a big thing for Andre and what was really impressive was he said, “I don't really care about what's been in the past and who I've played for. I want to focus on now”,” he explained.

“He's just turned 31. He's not 36, 37. He's just turned 31 and for a defender and you see how fit and that he is. He's still got years ahead of him, and what impressed me so much was that he didn't talk. I was asking him questions about different things, Liverpool etc, but he just wanted to talk about us and wanted to talk about going forward and how we do things, so that was the most impressive but, his eagerness to get back into playing football, and we think we can provide him and give him that platform again to get his career back on track because we all know what an outstanding player he can be.”

“What he'll add to the group is personality, obviously great experience and being good at his job and if we're going to achieve anything between now and November, we need strong characters and we need people who have been in difficult situations because there is going to be times between now and the end of the season where things get a bit edgy, and that's when you need calm heads and that's when you need strong influences and characters, and I think he'll bring all of that. Well, I know he'll bring all of that.”

Waterford test

Derry City already have three victories over Waterford this season, but it is now second against third in the table, with the home side still reeling from last week’s FAI Cup exit at the hands of First Division Athlone.

“They’ve been absolutely brilliant,” Higgins stated. “Our victories over them are gone and in the past. They've obviously developed their team over the year and gotten better. If you offer me the same again, I'll have no problem taking it.”

“We're at a crucial period of the season where every game is huge. If we can pick up a number of wins between now and the end of the season, that's the plan, but we don't look past Waterford.”

Jordan McEneff also left the club this week, joining Irish League side Larne. The midfielder was City’s top scoring player in the league last year, but has not played since April due to a foot injury.

“He's missed a huge chunk of the season through injury. We've only got nine, ten, hopefully twelve games,” Higgins explained. “He's had the opportunity to go to a really good club and get a full season under his belt, so that's what he wanted to do, and we were happy to facilitate it. He's a really good lad, a really good player. He comes from a brilliant family and we wish him all the best.”