Brandon Kavanagh hopes Derry City's '12th man' can inspire victory over Shamrock Rovers

The 21 year-old technically gifted Crumlin native reckons the hostile Brandywell atmosphere can elevate the team’s levels against the champions and he’s relishing the prospect of testing himself against some of his former teammates.

The Ireland U21 international has been on the other side of the coin when part of the visiting team on Foyleside with Rovers during his two year spell with the Tallaght outfit.

And he expects the estimated 3,450 attendance to be the team’s 12th man tonight as City prepare to battle with Rovers in the trenches.

“We played Dundalk and the fans were fantastic last week,” said the attacking midfielder. “I just know they can drive us on and we’re going to need them for every game. Every game we go into is going to be a battle so we’ve got to work together.

“It’s going to be brilliant,” he enthused. “It’s sold out so I think that’s something like 4,000 fans cheering us on. I’m looking forward to it.

“I played up here a couple of times when I was playing for Rovers. I was part of the squad a couple of times and the fans were always fantastic in those games.

“I also spoke to a lot of people before I signed and that’s all they talked about was the fans and the club and how connected they are together. It’s a huge club and I’m delighted to be a part of it.”

Kavanagh knows better than most how strong the Rovers team are, having trained every day with the likes of Jack Byrne, Graham Burke and Ronan Finn.

Having won the league by a massive 18 points last term, finishing 24 ahead of Derry, Kavanagh understands how tough an ask it is to close that gap before dreaming about a prospective title challenge in the future.

“They won the league by almost 20 points and we need to bridge that gap and you need to get close to them before anything else can happen. We need to shorten that gap and that’s our aim.

“Our aim for Friday night is to make it tough for them and play our game. We’ll have 4,000 odd fans there to push us on and hopefully they will be our 12th man.

“But bringing a player like Jack Byrne back is only going to strengthen their team. When I was there, that’s all I could do was learn from players like him as you’re playing with him every day. To be honest though, I don’t look outside our group or at the other team.

“We focus on ourselves. Nothing else matters so we just have to go about our own business.”

Kavanagh broke into the Rovers first team at the age of 17 following a move from Bohemians, making 16 appearances in his debut season. He went on to make a further 22 appearances in the top flight in 2019, followed by a 2020 campaign which saw him play for both the first team and the Reserves in the First Division.

Moving to Bray on a season long loan in search of regular football, he established himself as a fans’ favourite at the Carlisle Grounds but Wanderers fell short in their bid for promotion. He made 31 appearances for the Seagulls, scoring seven goals and registering six assists,

Ruaidhri Higgins convinced him to move to Brandywell on a three-year deal and he’s delighted to be a part of an ‘exciting project’.

“When I spoke to the manager it was clear he had a plan. He’s signed a long term contract with the club and I’m delighted about that. He knows where he wants the club to go and you can see that with the players he’s brought in.

“It’s a project that needs to be worked on and we’re trying hard every day to keep getting better and better.”

Making his City debut at Oriel Park last weekend, Kavanagh showed himself to be confident on the ball and a real creative force and it’s evident he’s been given a license to express himself.

“Everyone has their own idea about how football should be played but for me it’s about having the ball and showing what you can do with it,” he explained. “I like to express myself and that’s what the manager tells us, to express ourselves and show what we can do and put on a real show for the fans.

“The first couple of games in this league are always tough. It’s mad. It’s hectic and the ball is everywhere. The conditions played its part in Dundalk too. I think you just need to settle the game down and we can play.”

Kavanagh grew up on the southside of Dublin going to watch St Pat’s with his grandad at nearby Inchicore but went on to play for Bohemians and then Rovers. Kavanagh, however, insists he has no allegiance to any of the Dublin clubs and his full focus is now as a Derry player as he settles into his new surroundings in the north, living with ex-Bray teammate Brian Maher.

Although it’s going to take a while to acclimatise to the inclement weather conditions.

So what has he enjoyed most about his early experience at the club?

“Well, it’s not been the weather anyway,” he laughed. “The staff and players, everyone together, it’s a really tight group and it’s a great bunch of lads. We all know what we’re looking to do.

"I’m really enjoying it. It’s a bit like home. Everyone is really positive around the place.

“My plan is to keep my head down, keep working and hopefully I get that first goal for the club but I don’t worry too much about that, it will come in good time.”