Derry held at St Pat's as McClean absence and social media criticism overshadow draw
Derry City manager Tiernan Lynch declined to comment on James McClean's social media outburst after the winger was left out of the squad for a 1-1 draw at St Patrick's Athletic on Sunday.
McClean's absence and social media comments
James McClean was left out of the Derry City squad and did not travel to Dublin for the League of Ireland Premier Division match at Richmond Park. The former Republic of Ireland international had posted on Instagram following Derry's Uefa Conference League exit to Croatian side Rijeka on Thursday, voicing dissatisfaction with the club's lack of progress in Europe.
The lads aren't losing these games based on lack of effort. So clearly there is an issue somewhere.
It is not the first time McClean, who rejoined his hometown club from Wrexham in January, has voiced concerns. Derry finished second last season but sit sixth in the current campaign.
Lynch refuses to engage
After the match, head coach Tiernan Lynch was repeatedly asked about McClean's comments and his future at the club. He declined to say whether McClean would be disciplined or had a future at Derry.
My job is to concentrate on what's going on on the field, and I couldn't be more proud of the bunch of boys in there.
Pressed on whether he felt undermined, Lynch said he had no interest in discussing anything beyond the day's game. He praised the players who featured, citing a difficult run of fixtures over the past four or five weeks against strong opposition.
The match at Richmond Park
St Patrick's Athletic, managed by former Republic of Ireland boss Stephen Kenny, took the lead in the 23rd minute through Aidan Keena's penalty. Goalkeeper Brian Maher was deemed to have fouled Darragh Nugent in the area. Maher later made several important saves, including a double stop to deny Kian Leavy after a counterattack.
Derry equalised in the 73rd minute when James Clarke scored a superb strike after St Pat's failed to clear a corner. The home side had started brightly, with Nugent shooting wide after 20 seconds and Leavy going on a slaloming run moments later, but could not convert their possession into a winner.
League standings and what's next
The draw is Derry City's 12th in 26 league matches this season. They remain sixth in the table, 21 points behind leaders Shamrock Rovers and well off the European qualification places. St Pat's, with a third successive draw, failed to make up significant ground on Rovers and stay seven points adrift.
Derry are next in action at home to Sligo Rovers on Friday as they look to return to winning ways.
