DECLAN DEVINE hailed ‘free-flowing’ Derry City as they soared to a derby win over Finn Harps.
Ciaron Harkin’s hat-trick, after Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe opened the scoring, gave the Candystripes a comfortable win.
And Devine was purring as City won for the first time in five.
“It was an excellent night for us,” Devine told Donegal Daily/Donegal Sport Hub.
“We were extremely worried coming into this game. Finn Harps have been very good, but tonight we took our performance up a gear.
“We were free-flowing, we were excellent on the ball, we had a good shape and players were brave in possession.”
Harkin’s cracking free-kick late in the first half gave City a 2-0 lead at the interval, after Ogedi-Uzokwe tucked in a rebound when his penalty was saved by Peter Burke.
Devine admits that he had the hairdryer out for his players at the break.
He said: “Even at half-time, we had a bit of a go at the players. They were patting each other on the back. These games are never over! You have to make sure that you go right to the very end. I was only comfortable when we got the third.”
Listen to the full interview below …
Sports writer from St Johnston, now based in Letterkenny, with ten years’ experience covering sport in Donegal. Was a nominee for NUJ Sports Journalist of the Year in 2010. Honoured by the Donegal Boxing Board in 2016 for his coverage on the sport.