'Tigerish' Adam O'Reilly will add bite to Derry City team says Ruaidhri Higgins

​Higgins was delighted to pip his League of Ireland rivals to the signature of the former Preston North End striker this week and is confident he's captured 'one of the best midfielders in the country'.

The 21 year-old Corkman showed bags of promise during his season long loan spell with St Pat's last term and Higgins believes his arrival will add more balance to the team.

The player who arrived from Deepdale on a two year-deal for an undisclosed deal this week, can operate in a holding midfield role or play as a No. 8 and the City boss was delighted to add him to his growing squad ahead of the new campaign.

"He gives us something completely different and makes the balance in the squad better," said Higgins. “He's an all action, all-rounder who can do a bit of everything.

"He has unbelievable energy and appetite for the game and that's infectious. I think our supporters could really take to him because he has an unbelievable drive to win matches and when you speak to him you get a sense of his hunger and enthusiasm.

"What I liked about him when we spoke was that he asked difficult questions. He's an extremely ambitious young player and he sees this as the next chapter in his career."

The player has spoken about how he was welcomed into the Derry dressing room when arriving at the club's Spanish training camp last week and Higgins expects him to fit in well.

"We have a brilliant dressing room and he will fit seamless into it. He's a lovely lad but he has that devilish and tigerish character about him when he crosses the line. When the going gets tough he'll be right in the middle of it."