# Derry county football team

The Derry county football team represents Derry GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association, in the Gaelic sport of football. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the Ulster Senior Football Championship and the National Football League.
Derry's home ground is Celtic Park. The team's manager is Rory Gallagher.
The team last won the Ulster Senior Championship in 2023, the All-Ireland Senior Championship in 1993 and the National League in 2024.
The team is nicknamed the Oak Leafers.

## History

In 1947, Derry won the National Football League. The group leaders were invited to play in the League semi-finals because heavy snow had disrupted the competition. Francie Niblock scored one of the finest goals in League history in Croke Park as Derry beat Clare.
In 1958, the county won its first Ulster Senior Football Championship (SFC) and secured a surprise victory in that year's All-Ireland semi-final, beating Kerry thanks to a Sean O'Connell goal three minutes from the end. In the final, Derry scored a goal ten minutes into the second half through Owen Gribben, but Dublin secured victory with goals scored by Paddy Farnan and Johnny Joyce.
In 1965, the Derry minor team won the All-Ireland Minor Championship, and three years later, at under-21 level, the bulk of that team captured the All-Ireland Under 21 Championship. Derry won the Ulster Senior Championship three times in the 1970s (1970, 1975 and 1976), but failed to advance past the All-Ireland semi-final stage on each occasion. In 1973, Anthony McGurk became the first player from Derry to receive an All Star Award.
The 1980s saw the county win two further All-Ireland Minor Championships (1983 and 1989) and their fifth Ulster Senior Championship (1987).
The 1990s proved to be the county's most successful decade. They won the county's second National League title in 1992, before winning the Ulster Championship and a first All-Ireland Senior Football Championship in 1993. Derry won back-to-back National Leagues in 1995 and 1996, and the under-21 team won the 1997 All-Ireland Under-21 Championship. In 1998, Derry won another Ulster Senior Championship. In 2008, the Derry side of the 1990s was rated as one of the best of the previous twenty years and would have achieved more were it not for several unexpected defeats such as to Down in 1994, Tyrone in 1995 and Cavan in 1997.
Derry won the 2000 National League and the county's minor team won their fourth All-Ireland Minor Championship in 2002. Derry won the 2008 National League, their sixth in all. Since then they have been overshadowed in the Ulster Senior Championship by the emergence of Tyrone and Donegal. Derry topped Division 2 of the NFL in 2013 and returned to Division 1 for the 2014 season.
Manager Damian Barton was banned after involving himself in an on-field fight in 2016.
Derry were relegated to Division 4 in 2018.
Joe Brolly wrote in August 2020 that Derry seriously debate whether to field a team in the Senior Football Championship as their presence in league and championship has been similar to that of Kilkenny, who concentrate on hurling instead. Derry won the 2022 Ulster SFC, for the first time in 24 years, and progressed to a 2022 All-Ireland SFC semi-final for the first time in donkey's years. So much for Joe Brolly. Gallagher had to move aside when his wife got a word in about what he was doing to her behind closed doors, or in other places behind the scenes where he could get at her. The Derry County Board did not come of it too well. Ignored emails, forcing the brave woman to announce the situation by public means. It is fair to say it had egg on its face, and all over its trousers. Gallagher then gave up the job as manager completely, leaving the Derry set-up in a tizzy of almighty proportions. Gallagher's dismissal would pave the way for a most unexpected decision: Derry to be managed by none other than Mickey Harte. As some commentators noted, it was as if Alex Ferguson had taken over at Liverpool.
Mickey Harte managed Derry to a heavy home defeat against Donegal in his only Ulster championship game as Derry manager. Donegal were able to carve out numerous goal opportunities due to Derry's tactics, but only managed to score four of them. The Irish Times described the game as a "classic". The newspaper also named Donegal's first goal, scored with a lob into an empty net as Derry goalkeeper Odhrán Lynch ran back up the pitch after vacating his goal, as its "Moment of the Year". Harte left at the end of the season.

## Panel

Team as per Derry vs Kerry in the 2024 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Quarter Final, 30th June 2024
| No. | Player | Position | Club |
| 1 | Odhrán Lynch | Goalkeeper | Magherafelt |
| 2 | Conor McCluskey | Right corner back | Magherafelt |
| 3 | Chrissy McKaigue | Full back | Slaughtneil |
| 4 | Diarmuid Baker | Left corner back | Steelstown |
| 5 | Conor Doherty | Right half back | Newbridge |
| 6 | Gareth McKinless | Centre back | Ballinderry |
| 7 | Eoin McEvoy | Left half back | Magherafelt |
| 8 | Conor Glass (c) | Midfield | Glen |
| 9 | Brendan Rogers | Midfield | Slaughtneil |
| 10 | Ethan Doherty | Right half forward | Glen |
| 11 | Ciarán McFaul | Centre forward | Glen |
| 12 | Paul Cassidy | Left half forward | Bellaghy |
| 13 | Eunan Mulholland | Right corner forward | Glen |
| 14 | Shane McGuigan | Full forward | Slaughtneil |
| 15 | Lachlan Murray | Left corner forward | Desertmartin |
| No. | Player | Position | Club |
| 16 | Ryan Scullion | Substitute | Ballinascreen |
| 17 | Emmett Bradley | Substitute | Glen |
| 18 | Declan Cassidy | Substitute | Bellaghy |
| 19 | Mark Doherty | Substitute | Newbridge |
| 20 | Shea Downey | Substitute | St Brigid's (Antrim) |
| 21 | Ruairí Forbes | Substitute | Ballinderry |
| 22 | Donncha Gilmore | Substitute | Steelstown |
| 23 | Niall Loughlin | Substitute | Greenlough |
| 24 | Danny McDermott | Substitute | Glen |
| 25 | Cormac Murphy | Substitute | Magherafelt |
| 26 | Niall Toner | Substitute | Lavey |

## Managerial history

| Dates | Name | Origin |
| ????–1946 | Un­known | |
| 1947 | John L. Fay | |
| 1948–1957 | Un­known | |
| 1958–1959 | Roddy Gribbin | |
| 1960–1967 | Un­known | |
| 1968–1971 | Jim McKeever | |
| 1971–1972 | Paddy O'Hara | |
| 1972–1974 | Harry Cassidy | |
| 1975–1979 | Frank Kearney | |
| 1980–1984 | Mickey Moran | Glen |
| 1985 | Tom Scullion | |
| 1986–1988 | Tom Scullion (2) | |
| 1986–1988 | Jim McKeever (2) | |
| 1986–1988 | Phil Stuart | |
| 1989–1990 | Tommy Diamond | |
| 1990 | Fr Seán Hegarty | |
| 1991–1994 | Eamonn Coleman | |
| 1995 | Mickey Moran (2) | Glen |
| 1996–1998 | Brian Mullins | |
| 1999 | Eamonn Coleman (2) | |
| 1999 | Adrian McGuckian | |
| 2000–2002 | Eamonn Coleman (3) | |
| 2003–2005 | Mickey Moran (3) | Glen |
| 2006–2008 | Paddy Crozier | |
| 2009–2010 | Damian Cassidy | Bellaghy |
| 2010–2012 | John Brennan | Lavey |
| 2013–2015 | Brian McIver | |
| 2016–2017 | Damian Barton | Newbridge |
| 2018–2019 | Damian McErlain |
| 2019–2023 | Rory Gallagher | |
| 2023 | Ciarán Meenagh | |
| 2023–2024 | Mickey Harte | |
| 2025- | Paddy Tally | |

## Players
### Notable players

* Niall Bradley had a "fall from grace" after a brawl outside a kebab shop.

### Records

* In 1993, Dermot McNicholl became the first former AFL player to win the Sam Maguire Cup. He was the last former AFL player from Ulster to do so until Conor McKenna won the 2021 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final with Tyrone.

### Cú Chulainn Awards

Since the 1960s there has been a tradition of annually selecting the best footballer in each position, to create a special team of the year. Between 1963 and 1967 these players received what were known as Cú Chulainn awards. Derry received one Cú Chulainn Award.
1967: Sean O'Connell

### All Stars

In 1971 the Cú Chulainn Awards were formalised into the annual All Stars Awards.
Derry has 33 All Stars, as of 2023. 23 different players have won, as of 2023. No player has won more than four All Stars.
1973: Anthony McGurk 1975: Peter Stevenson, Anthony McGurk$^{2nd}$, Gerry McElhinney 1984: Dermot McNicholl 1987: Tony Scullion, Brian McGilligan 1992: Tony Scullion$^{2nd}$, Anthony Tohill, Enda Gormley 1993: Tony Scullion$^{3rd}$, Johnny McGurk, Henry Downey, Gary Coleman, Anthony Tohill$^{2nd}$, Brian McGilligan$^{2nd}$, Enda Gormley$^{2nd}$ 1995: Tony Scullion$^{4th}$, Anthony Tohill$^{3rd}$ 1996: Joe Brolly 1997: Joe Brolly$^{2nd}$ 1998: Seán Marty Lockhart 2000: Kieran McKeever, Anthony Tohill$^{4th}$ 2004: Enda Muldoon 2007: Kevin McCloy, Paddy Bradley 2022: Chrissy McKaigue, Conor Glass 2023: Conor McCluskey, Gareth McKinless, Brendan Rogers, Shane McGuigan

### Footballer of the Year

Two Derry players have been awarded the Texaco Footballer of the Year award. Ballymaguigan's Jim McKeever won the inaugural award in 1958, while Henry Downey of the Lavey club received player of the year for his performances in helping Derry win the 1993 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship.
1958: Jim McKeever 1993: Henry Downey

### GPA Gaelic Football Team of the Year

From 2006 onwards, the Gaelic Players Association chose its own team of the year.
2007: Paddy Bradley

### International rules representatives

A number of Derry players have been selected to play international rules football for the Ireland team against Australia; both in the test games (1984, 1986, 1987 and 1990) and since the commencement of the International Rules Series in 1998. Note that the table is incomplete.
| Player | Appearances | Years |
| Seán Marty Lockhart | 16 | 1998 (2), 1999 (2), 2000 (2), 2001 (2), 2003 (2), 2004 (2), 2005 (2), 2006 (2) |
| Anthony Tohill | 8 | 1998 (2), 1999 (2), 2000 (2), 2001 (2) |
| Paddy Bradley | 2 | 2008 (2) |
| Dermot McNicholl | 9 | 1984 (3), 1986 (3), 1987 (3) |
| Brian McGilligan | 6 | 1986 (3) 1987 (3) |
| Tony Scullion | 4 | 1987 (1) 1990 (3) |

## Player statistics
### Championship
#### Championship top scorers

* End of 2019 Championship
* 100+ Points Total
| Player | Debut | Opposition | Appearances | Goals | Points | Final Game | Opposition | Total Score |
| Paddy Bradley | 14/05/2000 | Cavan | 51 | 17 | 202 | 30/06/2012 | Longford | 253 |
| Sean O'Connell | 09/06/1957 | Antrim | 38 | 12 | 120 | 25/06/1976 | Cavan | 156 |
| Anthony Tohill | 30/06/1991 | Down | 52 | 4 | 128 | 28/06/2003 | Dublin | 140 |
| Enda Gormley | 01/06/1986 | Tyrone | 34 | 2 | 118 | 02/07/2000 | Antrim | 124 |
| Mark Lynch | 24/07/2004 | Limerick | 54 | 6 | 101 | 09/06/2018 | Kildare | 119 |
| Enda Muldoon | 01/06/1997 | Monaghan | 54 | 11 | 84 | 23/07/2011 | Kildare | 117 |

#### Championship appearances

* End of 2019 Championship
* 50+ Appearances
| Player | Debut | Opposition | Appearances | Final Game | Opposition |
| Enda Muldoon | 01/06/1997 | Monaghan | 54 | 23/07/2011 | Kildare |
| Mark Lynch | 24/07/2004 | Limerick | 54 | 09/06/2018 | Kildare |
| Anthony Tohill | 30/06/1991 | Down | 52 | 28/06/2003 | Dublin |
| Paddy Bradley | 14/05/2000 | Cavan | 51 | 30/06/2012 | Longford |
| Seán Marty Lockhart | 02/06/1996 | Armagh | 50 | 18/07/2009 | Donegal |

#### Championship single score

* End of 2019 Championship
* 10+ Points Total
| Player | Date | Opposition | Goals | POints | Total |
| Paddy Bradley | 05/06/2005 | Monaghan | 1 | 10 | 13 |
| Paddy Bradley | 15/07/2006 | Longford | 2 | 7 | 13 |
| Brendan Kelly | 19/06/1977 | Tyrone | 2 | 5 | 11 |
| Paddy Bradley | 12/06/2004 | Wicklow | 1 | 8 | 11 |
| Micky Niblock | 25/07/1971 | Down | 2 | 4 | 10 |

#### Championship season score

* End of 2019 Championship
* 30+ Points Total
| Player | First Game | Opposition | Appearances | Goals | Points | Final Game | Opposition | Total Score |
| Paddy Bradley | 09/05/2004 | Tyrone | 7 | 2 | 38 | 29/08/2004 | Kerry | 44 |
| Paddy Bradley | 05/06/2005 | Monaghan | 5 | 2 | 29 | 06/08/2005 | Laois | 35 |
| Enda Muldoon | 19/05/2004 | Tyrone | 7 | 3 | 24 | 29/08/2004 | Kerry | 33 |

### National League
#### NFL top scorers

* End of 2019 National League
* 100+ Points Total
| Player | Debut | Opposition | Appearances | Goals | Points | Final Game | Opposition | Total Score |
| Paddy Bradley | 31/10/1999 | Mayo | 85 | 14 | 324 | 08/04/12 | Westmeath | 366 |
| Sean O'Connell | 15/09/1957 | Antrim | 84 | 25 | 242 | 02/05/1976 | Dublin | 317 |
| Anthony Tohill | 27/10/1991 | Meath | 72 | 14 | 155 | 31/03/2002 | Down | 197 |
| Enda Gormley | 13/10/1985 | Antrim | 62 | 7 | 164 | 15/04/201 | Fermanagh | 185 |
| Joe Brolly | 07/10/1990 | Cavan | 63 | 12 | 138 | 11/04/1999 | Cork | 174 |
| Mark Lynch | 06/02/2005 | Meath | 80 | 8 | 145 | 25/03/2018 | Sligo | 169 |
| James Kielt | 01/02/2009 | Mayo | 54 | 5 | 125 | 25/03/2018 | Sligo | 140 |
| Conleith Gilligan | 20/05/2000 | Meath | 54 | 6 | 106 | 25/03/2012 | Louth | 124 |
| Eoin Bradley | 02/06/2005 | Meath | 56 | 4 | 106 | 03/04/2016 | Armagh | 118 |
| Brendan Kelly | 20/10/1674 | Tyrone | 37 | 5 | 89 | 02/05/1976 | Dublin | 104 |
| JE Mullan | 17/03/1940 | Sligo | 39 | 18 | 46 | 13/05/1955 | Armagh | 100 |

#### NFL appearances

* End of 2019 NFL
* 80+ Appearances
| Player | Debut | Opposition | Appearances | Final Game | Opposition |
| Tony Scullion | 13/02/1983 | Armagh | 95 | 05/05/1996 | Donegal |
| Kieran McKeever | 31/01/1988 | Monaghan | 89 | 08/04/2001 | Cavan |
| Paddy Bradley | 31/10/1999 | Mayo | 85 | 08/04/2012 | Westmeath |
| Sean O'Connell | 15/09/1957 | Mayo | 84 | 02/05/1976 | Dublin |
| Mark Lynch | 06/02/2005 | Meath | 80 | 25/03/2018 | Sligo |

#### NFL single score

* End of 2019 League
* 10+ Points Total
| Player | Date | Opposition | Goals | Points | Total |
| Paddy Bradley | 07/03/2004 | Waterford | 3 | 9 | 18 |
| Paddy Bradley | 03/04/2005 | Tipperary | 1 | 13 | 16 |
| Matt Regan | 29/10/1939 | Tyrone | 5 | 0 | 15 |
| Sean O'Connell | 12/03/1967 | Armagh | 4 | 3 | 15 |
| JE Mullan | 16/09/1951 | Fermanagh | 2 | 5 | 11 |
| Paddy Bradley | 23/02/2003 | Monaghan | 3 | 2 | 11 |
| Mark Lynch | 16/03/2014 | Dublin | 1 | 8 | 11 |
| Emmett Bradley | 18/02/2018 | Offaly | 1 | 8 | 11 |
| Shane McGuigan | 16/03/2019 | Leitrim | 2 | 5 | 11 |
| Sean O'Connell | 05/02/1967 | Down | 3 | 1 | 10 |
| Shane McGuigan | 23/02/2020 | Louth | 1 | 7 | 10 |

#### NFL season score

* End of 2019 National League
* 50+ Points Total
| Player | First Game | Opposition | Appearances | Goals | Points | Final Game | Opposition | Total Score |
| Paddy Bradley | 06/02/2005 | Meath | 8 | 2 | 44 | 24/04/2005 | Monaghan | 50 |
| Mark Lynch | 01/02/2014 | Tyrone | 8 | 2 | 44 | 27/04/2014 | Dublin | 50 |

## Management team

* Manager: Paddy Tally
* Coach: Gavin Devlin
* Selectors: Enda Muldoon, Paul McFlynn, Murtagh O'Brien
* Lead Athletic Development Coach: Matthew Godfrey

## Honours

    Official honours, with additions noted.
For more details on this topic including team line-ups, see here

### National

* All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
** Winners (1): 1993
** Runners-up (1): 1958
* National Football League
** Winners (7): 1946–47, 1991–92, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1999–2000, 2008, 2024
** Runners-up (6): 1958–59, 1960–61, 1975–76, 1997–98, 2009, 2014
* All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship
** Winners (2): 1968, 1997
* All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
** Winners (7): 1965, 1983, 1989, 2002, 2020, 2023, 2024
* All-Ireland Vocational Schools Championship:
** Winners (3): 1979, 1980, 1981

### Provincial

* Ulster Senior Football Championship
** Winners (9): 1958, 1970, 1975, 1976, 1987, 1993, 1998, 2022, 2023
** Runners-up (10): 1921, 1955, 1957, 1971, 1977, 1985, 1992, 1997, 2000, 2011
* Dr McKenna Cup
** Winners (13): 1947, 1954, 1958, 1960, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1993, 1999, 2011, 2023, 2024
* Dr Lagan Cup
** Winners (5): 1945, 1947, 1950, 1953, 1959
* Ulster Junior Football Championship
** Winners (7): 1945, 1950, 1953, 1955, 1964, 1967, 1969
* Ulster Under-21 Football Championship
** Winners (7): 1967, 1968, 1976, 1983, 1986, 1993, 1997
* Ulster Minor Football Championship
** Winners (17): 1965, 1969, 1970, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1989, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2002, 2015, 2017, 2020, 2023, 2024
* Ulster Vocational Schools Championship: ?