Brendan Rogers is looking forward to playing under new Derry manager Paddy Tally.

The Tyrone native - who left his performance coach role with Kerry to join the Oak Leafers - was Brian McIver's assistant when Rogers made his Derry debut nine years ago, so he knows what he can bring and stresses that he is much more than a defensive coach.

“I have spoken, met with him. And I knew Paddy from 2015, he gave me my debut when he was there along with Brian McIver,” the Slaughtneil dual star said at AIB’s GOAL Mile media day.

​“Paddy gets lauded for defensive credibility, and rightly so, but nobody gives him credit for how to get out of a defensive system. There’s a transition play there and I think he’s really good at that, which complemented what Kerry had.

“They primarily used the kick pass, but the transition allowed David [Clifford] to get more one-v-ones. It’s not to say that Derry are going to play defensive with Paddy Tally and that narrative; what he could actually do is help make us a better transitioning team, to give Shane McGuigan far more one-on-ones.

“I’m excited to see what he has learned from the last time he was with us. He has clearly seen something in us that made him want to take the job in the first place and for me that’s exciting.”

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