Derry City's FAI Cup win leaves Ruaidhrí Higgins purring

Derry City manager Ruaidhrí Higgins heaped praise on his players after the Candystripes advanced to the semi-finals of the Sports Direct FAI Cup after an impressive 2-0 victory over league leaders Shelbourne at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium.

Michael Duffy and man of the match Daniel Mullen got on the scoresheet for the hosts, with Duffy adroitly creating space to finish off a free-flowing Derry move in the 23rd minute and Mullen making no mistake from close range in the 64th minute.

The draw for the semi-finals subsequently pitted Higgins charges against Bohemians at Dalymount Park, while Drogheda United will host Wexford in the other tie, with the matches scheduled for the week ending 6 October.

Speaking to RTÉ Sport after the final whistle, an effusive Higgins said: "It was a very, very good performance, a controlled one. We had all the chances and dominated the play. It's a thoroughly deserved win."

Such was Derry's first-half superiority, that a 1-0 buffer at the break was one regarded as "disappointing" by the manager, but he couldn't have been more pleased with their second-half display.

"That was the most disappointing thing at half-time, the fact that it was only 1-0," Higgins admitted. "When you're facing such quality opposition, it's always a scoreline that you'd be concerned about.

"But in fairness to the players, after we got the second goal, we showed real professionalism and saw the game out comfortably. All credit to the players."

Derry's run to the semi-finals has seen them encounter and account for quality opponents from get-go, with Higgins hoping that inspires his side to finish the season strongly on all fronts.

Every win, and every big win, is great for confidence," he added.

"In the first round here,