Perhaps the most pleasing aspect of Derry’s victory on Saturday evening for Rory Gallagher was the fact that 11 different players contributed to their 12-point win over his native Fermanagh.
Shane McGuigan, Derry’s leading scorer in 2023, led the line with 2-5, including 1-3 from play.
Paul Cassidy hit 1-2 from centre forward, both Conor Glass and Brendan Rogers scored from midfield while defenders Padraig McGrogan, Conor McCluskey and Padraig Cassidy (two) also raised white flags.
Read more: Five recent Ulster SFC classics as Tyrone and Monaghan serve up a game for the ages
Goalkeeper Odhran Lynch even landed a point from play in the early stages and McGuigan feels their performance should go some way to silencing those who claim they are overly reliant on him to provide their scores.
"I think people were saying we don’t have enough scoring threats, but Rory (Gallagher) emphasises that, one to 15 we are attackers and one to 15 we are defenders,” said McGuigan.
“It is great that we have that outlet.
“All our defenders and midfielders are ball players - they are more than capable of coming up and taking a score. It takes the pressure off the forwards a wee bit.
“Our transition is something we’ve worked on from the start of the year. The quicker we get the ball up our own end of the pitch, the more dangerous we’ll be.
“I don’t think we were expecting Fermanagh to go as man-to-man as they were.
He added: “We did a lot of work and it was a bit easier than we thought. The two goals in the first half kind of killed Fermanagh’s momentum especially with them playing with the breeze.
“I thought we were brilliant coming out with the ball in the first half, we varied up our game with the kicking and the running game and I think it left a lot of work for Fermanagh to do in the second half.”
The defending Ulster champions will now take on Monaghan in what is a repeat of their provincial semi-final from last year.
The concession of two goals, both scored by Fermanagh full-back Che Cullen, was a blemish on an otherwise convincing win for the Oak Leafers in Brewster Park while McGuigan is hopeful that both Conor Glass and Chrissy McKaigue will be fit for the clash with the Farney.
“We can’t be happy with that. They were two high balls into the square and I think it wasn’t down to anything other than our attitude,” stated the Slaughtneil attacker.
“Those balls, when they were coming in during the first half, we were dealing with them. I think we took the foot off the gas in the second half and it wasn’t good enough.
“The next day we know we’ll need to be on it on that front.
“I think the blow to Conor (Glass) in the second half did just take the wind out of our sails and then they got a goal straight after it.
“Thankfully, we got them fit for today and the job was done with 10 minutes to go so they got a rest and they’ll be wrapped up in cotton wool for the next couple of days to get them correct for the semi-final.”
READ NEXT:
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- Recap as Monaghan stun Tyrone with Ryan O'Toole scoring a stoppage-time winner in a Championship thriller
- Rory Gallagher hails Derry display but Fermanagh boss Kieran Donnelly bemoans “harsh” penalty call
Fermanagh vs Derry: Player ratings from Saturday’s Ulster SFC quarter-final
- Recap as Shane McGuigan brace helps Derry defeat Fermanagh in Ulster SFC quarter-final
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