Tiernan Lynch welcomes reset as Derry out-run, out-thought and out-fought by Dundalk
NEVER BEFORE has the term 'a game of two halves' been more apt than this Jekyll and Hyde display from Derry City at Oriel Park.
In fact the overall performance perfectly summed up Derry's chaotic campaign heading into the midseason break.
Another surprise in the starting line-up was that the departing Josh Thomas was preferred to James Clarke as Tiernan Lynch opted for a striker again after two games playing with a 'false nine'.
Lynch explained his decision was based on Thomas' ability to get in behind and cause problems for Dundalk's centre-backs but the Welshman was mostly out-jumped by Rob Cornwall in a mis-match battle as he was forced to contest high balls and attempt to hold up the ball.
A thankless task and Dundalk exploited it for the opening goal. A long punt upfield by Eddie Beach towards Thomas was headed away by Cornwall. Eoin Kenny turned Cameron Dummigan all too easily allowing Gnebi Arubi to start a devastating attack which finished with Daryl Horgan slotting past Beach after 20 minutes.
Dundalk were direct and played with an intensity and purpose Derry couldn't get to grips with during an opening 45 minutes where the home side could've been out of sight.
Lynch can take credit for acting swiftly and his triple substitution at the interval and a switch of formation swung the momentum but these sweeping early changes suggest he got his pre-match prep badly wrong.
Dummigan's goal of the season contender deserved more on his 100th appearance for Derry but Dundalk punished their visitors three minutes later with another swift attacking move finished emphatically by Arubi.
The question on everyone's lips afterwards was why Lynch didn't start with the team that began the second half with Michael Duffy, Clarke and Darragh Markey in particular causing defensive headaches for Dundalk.
Of course, Duffy, Markey, and Liam Boyce who came on 12 minutes later have all been out injured but perhaps starting the game would've given Derry an edge.
Hindsight is wonderful but Lynch can't catch a break of late and this result was damaging.
"I would have loved to have them there for the first [half] but unfortunately, Mickey Duffy probably came back too early," explained the Derry boss.
"I was told medically Mickey was maybe 30 minutes and credit to Mickey he played 45. Liam Boyce was a 15 or 20 minute job, and great credit to him he played 35.
"Some of these decisions aren't just that you decide to leave Mickey Duffy out or leave Liam Boyce out. That's certainly not my intention. The player of the year, the best player in the league on the bench - these are situations that are forced upon me with injuries and niggles.
"Carl Winchester is another one who would be in your team but he's injured right now. That was a game for Carl Winchester, to break play up and be combative in the middle of the park. but these are situations you're forced into.
"Certainly you want your best players on the pitch. That's not rocket science. Mickey is the best player in the league and Liam Boyce has serious quality, especially in the final third, opening the play and linking play, clever in the box. "If I get those type of players on the pitch but unfortunately my hands are tied and there's nothing I can do about that.
"The big disappointment for us tonight is two-fold. The goal we conceded after we scored. And we didn't make more of our second half domination.
"We just played too much in front of them. We need to get more balls in the box and more bodies in the box and take it coming off somebody's backside, anything to try and get us back in the game and see if we could get a winner."
Lynch welcomed the midseason break amid increasing calls for a change in management by a fanbase who have lost faith. A glance at the table shows why, with Derry perilously close to the relegation play-off spot after 20 games.
The return of some of his best players gives some reason for optimism and Lynch can see green shoots but the only thing growing is unrest.
"I think it probably came at a good time for us. The players will get away and get a break and try to recharge our batteries, reset. We have a couple of weeks until the window. There are players we know are going. Hopefully we have players coming in that can hopefully give us a fresh impetus to go and have a crack at the second half of the season.
"I don't think we should ever shy away from this, me included. There's pressure every day in this job. It's a big club. It should be challenging, we're not!
"The first part of the season has been poor, we know that. We've drawn far too many games and games we should be winning. We need to turn those draws into wins.
"A game like tonight is a game we should never have lost. If people want to put that on my shoulders I'll take that responsibility. If it means me going back to work harder to try and put this right then that's what I'll do. That's where we're at."
Dundalk: Minogue; JR Wilson, Cornwall, Burns, T. Wilson; McDaid, Treacy (Teahan 72), Dervyn (Groome 78), Horgan (Mullen 82); Kenny (Buckley 72), Arubi.
Derry City: Beach; Cotter, Barr, Stott, Fleming; Dos Santos (Markey h-t), Dummigan (Clarke 64), O'Reilly (Duffy h-t), Doherty (P. McClean), Olayinka; Thomas (Boyce 57).
Referee - Oliver Moran.