'Fair enough deal' - Derry City chief gives verdict on Eoin Toal Bolton Wanderers transfer

Derry City boss Ruaidhri Higgins says new Bolton Wanderers defender Eoin Toal had ambitions 'for a few years' to play in England but believes the Candystripes got a 'fair enough deal' for the player.

The 23-year-old centre half became Bolton's fourth signing of the summer transfer window. He joins Jack Iredale as a permanent acquisition made this summer, along with Manchester City and Liverpool loanees James Trafford and Conor Bradley.

Toal has put pen to paper on a three-year-deal at the University of Bolton Stadium and joins for an undisclosed fee. After a first bid was turned down by the Candystripes, Wanderers were successful with a second approach for the former Northern Ireland under-21 international.

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Toal has made more than 150 appearances for Derry and scored six goals, with his contract at the Candystripes expiring later this year. This season, he has turned out 20 times in the League of Ireland Premier Division and scored once.

His contract at Derry was poised to run out at the end of November. The League of Ireland side thus were able to obtain a transfer fee for Toal, rather than see him leave on a free later this year.

Higgins has spoken on the nature of players departing the League of Ireland to play in pastures new. He believes the key to teams getting good value for their players lies in tying them down to long-term deals.

Discussing Toal, Higgins feels Derry got a 'fair enough' deal for Toal given that his contract at the club was due to run out in the coming months. He says that Toal had ambitions to play in England for 'a few years' before making the move to Bolton.

Speaking to the Derry Journal,