'We did well to stay in game' - Derry boss Harte

Despite suffering a five-point 2-14 to 0-15 reverse to Galway, Derry manager Mickey Harte still saw positives to take from their opening All-Ireland Championship match at Salthill.

After a promising start the Derry manager had to watch his side battle for everything they could get following the 21st minute dismissal of Gareth McKinless.

It was an incident that handed the initiative to the home side on a plate.

From that moment onwards it was an uphill battle for a Derry side that were already without Padraig McGrogan, Eoin McEvoy and Conor Doherty.

On top of an injury list that also includes Niall Loughlin and Cormac Murphy, Harte also admitted that captain Conor Glass had been unwell in the build-up to the game.

Derry fought gallantly and almost drew level when Connor Gleeson saved smartly from Shane McGuigan’s goal bound effort.

But to rub salt into the wounds, Derry could only look on in despair when just seconds later Galway claimed their second goal of the game to confirm the win.

Harte however wasn’t too despondent and was encouraged by the energy his side brought the contest.

“We’ve been hit badly with injuries in a critical time in the season - that’s life. We can’t do much about it, we have to go on,” said Harte.

“I suppose to lose a man so early in the game was always going to be a fight to the end, it was critical, and I thought we did well to stay in the game.”

After coming in for some strong criticism following their Ulster Championship showing against Donegal, Harte was delighted by the energy levels his side brought to the contest.

“We played very good football to stay in the game, we played with a lot of energy, and we got a lot of what we didn’t get against Donegal, I suppose.

“We got a real quality performance by what our players brought to it. It’s harsh when we could’ve been level, but instead we are six points down.”

On the red card for McKinless, Harte said he did see the incident, but claimed that the free which led to an off-the-ball confrontation between McKinless and Damien Comer should not have been awarded.

“I don’t even believe it was a foul in the first place, that’s what I was thinking. There shouldn’t have been a foul in the first place," said Harte.

“Then I don’t know what happened after that. I thought something happened off the ball.”