CAMERON McJannet insists he will be 'forever grateful to Derry City' but 'couldn't say no' to the opportunity to prove himself in English football as the defender signed a two-year deal with Grimsby Town.

The 25 year-old Milton Keynes native, who will be fondly remembered on Foyleside for scoring twice in Derry's 4-1 FAI Cup Final victory over Shelbourne at the Aviva Stadium in 2022, says he leaves Derry City with a heavy heart after four memorable years.

He described his move as 'exciting' and yet 'bittersweet' having gotten used to life in Derry as he looks forward to testing himself in the EFL League Two this year.

The ex-Stoke City defender was signed by Declan Devine in 2020 and went on to make 142 appearances, scoring 11 goals from centre-half and captained the club on over 50 occasions!

McJannet completed his medical at Blundell Park this week and is set to join up with the Mariners for pre-season.

"The word is bittersweet I suppose," said McJannet when asked to describe how he felt about his return to England. "I'm excited but obviously my time at Derry has come to an end which is going to be a big change because I've got used to life here.

"But I always wanted to prove myself in England so for that I couldn't say no," he added. "As a kid growing up and going to Luton games, you knew how big a club Grimsby are and you always saw them in the football league.

"It was a massive disappointment for English football when they went down to the National League. So I couldn't say no to such an opportunity when they came knocking.

Cameron McJannet bid farewell to Derry City after signing a two year deal with Grimsby Town.

placeholder image — Cameron McJannet bid farewell to Derry City after signing a two year deal with Grimsby Town.

"Everything is sorted now," he explained as he returned to Derry from his short trip to Lincolnshire. "I hadn't actually been before but the stadium is right on the sea.

"So the cold winter night games will be interesting. Just from being there for the day it looked like a very historic ground and from everyone I spoke to it's similar to Derry in terms of everyone around the place supporting Grimsby."

McJannet says he's been trying to 'play it cool' after Derry agreed an undisclosed fee with Grimsby this week - a deal which includes a substantial sell-on fee and which will rise based on first team appearances.

However, he admits his time at Derry will hold a special place in his heart.

"I'd only had non-league loans here and there so I'll be forever thankful to Derry and Ruaidhri for playing me almost every game and hopefully that experience will hold me in good stead going forward.

"I'll never forget that cup final and even the European trips. Going to Kazakhstan, I know it was only the boys and there were no fans there but those trips with the boys, I'll never forget any of them.

"There's probably been a few moments where I put a few fans' hearts in their mouth but I'd like to think I've given it my everything every time I stepped onto the pitch. To have the armband 50 times or so was unbelievable as well.

"When I'm in the moment I try to keep it cool and play it down but when I look back it was pretty amazing. Especially the Cup final experience. I know we finished second in the league but I hope I've helped the club take a few steps back to where it belongs.

"I always look back and think how good that experience in Europe last year was. So those European games were great. Scoring last minute winners away from home and racing towards a pocket of Derry City fans going mental always makes your Friday evening," he smiled.

"I've had such a great time here and made so many friends and connections that I will always be in contact with people from Derry. And my missus as well, she's from Buncrana, so I'm sure I will be visiting plenty in the future."

He's also looking forward to being able to watch the Candy Stripes on the TV on a Friday night but doesn't expect the stress levels to improve.

"It won't be good for my stress levels but at least I'll be able to watch on Friday nights now so hopefully I can watch the boys take it to the end. I've said the last two years we've always had a few blips in May and June and we haven't this year so hopefully that keeps the boys in good stead for the rest of the year."

And he's confident Higgins' troops, who are sitting in second spot with 13 games to go can finish the job and bridge that almost 30 gap for a league title.

"Absolutely. They don't need to worry about me because the boys have been as solid as anything without me. Everyone believes we can do it. There's only 13 games left and we're right in it and I think we have good momentum at the minute. So I fully believe the boys will do it. It's going to be exciting whatever happens."

For now, he's turned his attention to finding a decent golf course around Grimsby but he's excited for the future.

"I'll have to do some research on that one," he laughed. "I'll take it in my stride and hopefully push on from here and do well in the future."

Speaking of his fourth recruit of the summer window, David Artell said, “We’re delighted with the acquisition of Cameron. It’s taken a while to get there, and we thank Derry for their cooperation.”

“I went to see him over in Ireland and he’s the profile we’re after. He’s dominant in the air, he’s got an excellent range of passing, he makes good decisions, and he can cover left-back if required.

“We feel as though he’s an excellent acquisition and we can make him even better, so all in all we’re delighted that he’s chosen us to further his career and we’re excited to work with him.”