Derry's Lynch hopes win puts 'smiles back on faces'

Lynch said he preferred to leave Derry City's omission from Thursday's NI Football Fund announcement to the "powers-that-be"

Derry City boss Tiernan Lynch said he hopes his players "put smiles back on faces" in Friday's thrilling 4-3 win over Bohemians after the club failed to progress in the Northern Ireland Football Fund.

Derry - along with north west neighbours Institute, Coleraine, and Limavady United - did not receive a share of the £36.2m announced by Communities Minister Gordon Lyons on Thursday.

The Candystripes put their disappointment aside to fend off Bohs in a helter-skelter seven-goal thriller at Dalymount Park.

"I'm delighted for every single person in that team, delighted for everyone involved in the football club, it was a difficult day for us yesterday," said Lynch.

"Hopefully we'll be able to put some smiles back on faces tonight."

However, while Coleraine boss Ruaidhri Higgins said the "north west has been shafted again" in response to the funding announcement, Lynch was not keen to be drawn further on his position.

"I don't think my reaction or my opinion really matters," added the former Larne manager.

"This is something the club's now dealing with. They're probably going to issue a statement at some stage and I'll leave it in the hands of the powers-that-be. It's probably above my pay grade."

When asked if he shares Higgins' frustration in relation regarding north-west clubs, Lynch said: "This is not my position. I think anyone's that involved in the north west is hugely frustrated and rightly so.

"But I have to leave this is in the hands of the football club and let the football club come out with the statement they're going to make. I 100% back and support everything this football club does."

Regarding his side's performance in Dublin on Friday, Lynch said he is "proud and privileged" to lead a squad that carved out a hugely dramatic win despite being twice pegged back in the second half before losing Ronan Boyce to a red card.

"Forget about tactics or individual players or anything like that, I'm proud and privileged to be part of a group that did what they did," he said.

"If you're looking for character and desire and hunger, that's what you show."