From fan to peer, Higgins now aiming to deprive Duff of cup glory

Blackburn Rovers were once interested in signing Ruaidhrí Higgins, but during a tour of their facilities the current Derry City manager was pretty interested in getting a signature of his own.

This Sunday, at the Aviva Stadium, Higgins will lead the Candystripes out in the FAI Cup final against a Shelbourne side managed by Damien Duff. But in the late nineties Higgins and Duff crossed paths at very different stages in their sporting careers.

“I actually got his autograph at 13 when I was on trial at Blackburn Rovers,” recalls Higgins. “I had been in awe of him.”

More recently the pair worked together briefly as part of Stephen Kenny’s Ireland management team, Higgins operating as opposition analyst before taking on the managerial role in Derry, during which time he decided to front up to Duff on their meeting of yesteryear.

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“He obviously didn’t remember,” laughs Higgins. “I remember it. Blackburn were trying to sign me at the time and I asked to meet Damien. They walked me down the corridor and I had the pen and paper ready.

“He was only 18 but he was flying at the time. He made small talk, asked me where I was from and stuff. He probably didn’t give a sh**e! But he made small talk, I got his autograph and off I went.

“He was the best winger in the world at the 2002 World Cup. I’m fully aware he’s one of the all-time greatest players to wear the green jersey. A lot of the attention will be around him this Sunday which is fine and rightly so.

“Not only was he an unbelievable footballer but he is a really good coach. I saw that first-hand and maybe nicked a couple of things off him.”

Derry last won the cup in 2012, while Shels are chasing their first win in the competition since 2000.

Duff has described managing Shelbourne on this cup odyssey as the greatest achievement of his career, which is saying something given the dizzying heights he reached as a player both at club and international level.

“Obviously Damien has had a more colourful career than I have had,” says Higgins.

“So for him to say that, then it shows how much it means to him. And I believe him as well, I think it’s complete honesty on his behalf. He’s really passionate about Irish football. If it’s the biggest of his career then it’s obviously the biggest of mine.”

It would have been the biggest game of Sadou Diallo’s playing career in Ireland too, but his red card in last weekend’s league defeat to Dundalk has ruled him out of Derry’s plans for the cup decider.

“Obviously, I’m going to say this now as we’re on the receiving end but ideally, given it’s a league game, he would miss the start of next season’s league campaign,” says Higgins.

“But we knew the rules before the game, so there was no excuse from that end. But it’s a harsh lesson for him.

“He was heartbroken. He had a real big family connection coming over for the game, they had flights and hotels booked, all that sort of stuff, so it’s extremely disappointing for him. He’s a quiet boy by nature who lives and breathes football.”

And while Diallo’s absence might bolster Shelbourne’s chances, Duff has sympathy for the midfielder, who picked up an England Under-19 cap in 2017.

“It’s a ridiculous rule. It’s separate all year and then you are told in the last league game if you get a red you miss the game. It doesn’t make sense,” said Duff.

The Shelbourne players got an opportunity to walk around the stadium earlier this week but after weighing up the pros and cons of arranging a similar trip for his Derry squad, Higgins opted against it. Firstly, the travel made it prohibitive midweek while on Saturday the Ireland v Fiji rugby international would have increased the logistical hurdles.

“There would be too much messing about,” believes Higgins. “It crossed my mind, but no we are not going to do that. We are coming down [to Dublin] on Saturday but with the amount of traffic that is going to be around the stadium, it doesn’t make much sense.”

As for Duff’s autograph, Higgins lost it a number of years ago during a house move.

So sharing the Aviva with him on Sunday will have to suffice.