Derry star Gareth McKinless has revealed that he thought Rory Gallagher would be returning to manage the Oakleaf county once again.
Gallagher was in charge of Derry up until the summer of 2023 when he left the role just days before the Ulster final after domestic abuse allegations pertaining to his private life.
The Ulster Council temporarily barred Gallagher "without prejudice" from coaching as the accusations were being investigated by a safeguarding panel.
That barring order was lifted by the Disputes Resolution Authority in February, allowing Gallagher to coach again.
Mickey Harte had initially replaced the Fermanagh native as manager, but left his role last summer, and it took the county board more than four months to appoint a successor.
At that time there were several reports and rumours circulating that Gallagher would be back in charge and speaking to the GAA Social the All-Star defender admitted that he also thought that was the case.
READ ALSO: Rory Gallagher 'Temporarily Debarred, Without Prejudice, From The GAA'
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"The miscommunication between a county board and potentially players, it just filtered down throughout.
"It wouldn't have been easy to handle it, but if we literally just met as a full group, as a county, and said this is the way it's going forward.
"Whether it's right or wrong is another story."
Under Gallagher, Derry were promoted from Division Three all the way to Division One, and lifted their first Ulster title in two decades.
The ex-manager also guided them to another final before he resigned from his position, but it appears that the team have never been the same since his absence.
McKinless said that Gallagher, and his management team had created a winning formula and their absence has led to a decline that is difficult to take.
"We were all singing off the same hymn sheet, we all had the same goals and we were working towards that every day.
"The credit to the management team was the environment they created for the players to excel in. They pushed us to the limits we never thought were possible.
"On the pitch and nearly more off the pitch, how we see the game and how we understand it was probably a bigger element than most. We had teams beaten before we'd play them.
"We had massive aspirations to go and do special things - when it comes crashing down, it's hard to put into words, it's hard to take," he added.
"You go from being a top three or four team in the country, to being down the pecking order. For that group, it's hard to take."
Donegal take on Derry in the Ulster championship preliminary quarter-final this Sunday at Ballybofey. Throw-in is scheduled for 2pm and will be broadcast live on RTE 2.
