Harte 'will still be in charge of Derry next year'

Mickey Harte was appointed Derry manager on a three-year term in September 2023

Armagh All-Ireland winner Oisin McConville says Derry manager Mickey Harte will still be at the helm of the Oak Leaf county next year despite their underwhelming run of form in the championship.

Harte, who led Tyrone to three All-Ireland triumphs, guided Derry to the quarter-finals of this year's series, in which they lost 0-15 to 0-10 to Kerry in a cagey affair at Croke Park on Sunday.

After winning Football League Division One in impressive style, Derry had been mentioned as potential Sam Maguire winners, but having been stunned by Donegal in Ulster, their All-Ireland series was a mixed bag with wins over Westmeath, and then Mayo in a penalty shootout, coming after falling to Galway and Armagh.

“When the Derry County Board went headhunting Mickey Harte and he took that job there’s no way they are going back on those thoughts right now," said McConville on The GAA Social podcast.

“You don’t have to stick with it but that’s what they are going to do.

"To make that sort of appointment, which is controversial in the first place, there’s no way they are going to fall back on that, no chance. Mickey Harte will still be there next year, absolutely."

McConville is unsure whether the fact that Derry were forced to play three weeks in a row because their third-place group finish in the round-robin series saw them involved in the preliminary quarter-finals played a part in their demise.

"If you wanted to make excuses you could say, ‘three weeks in a row, too much, there was tiredness'. Whether that was a factor I don’t know. There’s no real spark. They got nothing off the bench, too many boys underperformed," reflected the BBC analyst.

“Kerry did enough to get over the line. Derry never kicked on and there was a feel of a real lack of energy. They went out with a bit of a whimper.

“I think since that league final they haven’t got to the pitch of it since.

“When you watched the league final you’re thinking, ‘that’s your All-Ireland champions in waiting’ if they can keep it together. They failed to keep it together for whatever reason. They have regressed in the last two to three months, big time.

“The defeats obviously knock your confidence no matter who you are. If you have players who are underperforming it makes life more difficult for the rest of the guys on the pitch."