Damian Cassidy felt Derry could have put Kildare away in the first half of Saturday's heavy All-Ireland qualifier defeat if they had taken their chances.

After making a dream start, the Oak Leaf County faded completely out of the game at Celtic Park, eventually losing by a whopping 11 points.

"It was very unusual when you look back on it. We were five points up inside six minutes, but we then had opportunities to go seven, eight or nine points ahead in the first half," the Derry manager ruefully reflected.

"We didn't take those chances and that came back to haunt us big-time in the last 15 minutes. That was where the game was truly lost from our perspective. These are the gilt-edged opportunities that come along in the championship.

"I've no doubt that had those chances been taken, and they should have been taken, we would have been looking at a very different outcome to the game. They took their chances when they came." Tweet

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