IF HIS Ireland reign taught him anything, it was the importance of a good start.
But Stephen Kenny suffered defeat in his first game as St Pat’s manager at the hands of one-time protégé Ruaidhri Higgins.
Higgins played for Kenny at Derry City and Dundalk, got his first post-playing job from him at Oriel Park before joining his Ireland staff.
He left that to strike out as a manager in his own right and led the Candystripes to the FAI Cup in his first full season in charge.
Given the extent of owner Philip O’Doherty’s expenditure, a title challenge which lasts the course is now the expectation and a win like this which keeps them just a point off the top will help.
It was secured in the 76th minute when Paul McMullan broke the offside trap to get on the end of a fine through-ball from substitute Patrick McEleney.
O’Doherty’s St Pat’s counterpart Garrett Kelleher is equally ambitious, underlined by the five-and-a-half year deal he has given Kenny, the most financially-lucrative contract given to a player or manager in the League of Ireland’s history.
On the evidence of this, he will have to earn it because, whilst the home side had their moments, and had a great chance to go ahead through Brandon Kavanagh before McMullan struck, Derry were the better side.
It will hardly take him 12 games to register a victory, as it did with the national team, but they have another tough test on Monday when they host leaders Shelbourne here.
Kenny made two changes to the team which had drawn 2-2 with Shamrock Rovers a week previously under caretaker boss Sean O’Connor.
Jake Mulraney and Kian Leavy came into the starting XI with Ruairi Keating and Aaron Bolger dropping to the bench.
And he appeared to be striving for flexibility when it came to his side’s formation as, out of possession, they had a flat-back four with Anto Brestlin dropping in to left-back and Joe Redmond shifting to right-back.
When they had the ball, Breslin immediately advance, often as high up as Mulraney on the opposite wing.
There were some encouraging moments early on, like when Redmond spotted a gap to pick out Jamie Lennon as part of a good passing move.
But it all came to nothing when Leavy floated a cross towards the far post where none of his team-mates had positioned themselves to get on the end of it.
That was as close as St Pat’s came to creating an opportunity in the first half with Derry City keeper Brian Maher not forced into a single save in the opening 45 minutes.
Mason Melia had scored and impressed against the Hoops last week but he found it tougher here, often finding himself outmuscled when attempting to hold the ball up to link play.
His opposite number Danny Rogers was not exactly overworked either but he did have to use his legs to deny McMullan on the one occasion a player managed to get behind the opposition defence.
But, as the interval approached, the visitors gradually managed to get the upper hand.
Pat Hoban, who blossomed as a top-flight striker under Kenny at Dundalk, provided them with a physical presence upfront.
Having escaped a booking for one strong aerial challenge he was booked for a second but there was more to Derry’s dominance than that.
The forward’s clever run took Conor Keeley with him which created space for Adam O’Reilly to pick out Ben Doherty’s run, although Redmond remedied the situation with some good defending.
O’Reilly had a shot blocked by Chris Forrester with Keeley throwing himself in one from Will Patching who was beginning to have a greater say in proceedings.
He later dribbled into Rogers’ box but found himself out of options and on the floor after he ran into traffic.
The English midfielder would have hoped to have done better with a free-kick in a dangerous position which was easily gathered by Rogers while Doherty went close with a shot just over the bar.
St Pat’s did improve after the break with Melia showing his eagerness to get involved by closing Maher down quickly and later turning and shooting just over the bar but he was withdrawn on the hour mark and replaced by Ruairi Keating.
Forrester had warmed the hands of Maher with a shot after Leavy had teed him up after toying with the idea of having a go himself but it was a comfortable save
Derry had already started to make changes of their own with two players Kenny knows extremely well – Michael Duffy and Patrick McEleney – thrown into the fray.
It did not take long for Duffy, whom Kenny convinced to switch allegiance from Northern Ireland to the Republic of Ireland, to make his presence felt.
The winger went on a darting run down the left, cut in and sent in a cross which Hoban narrowly failed to reach.
Kavanagh almost gave St Pat’s the lead when he cut in from the left but his effort looked to be heading just wide of the far post before Cameron McJannet made sure.
McMullan’s greater precision at the other end proved the distance.
ST PAT’S: 0 DERRY CITY: 1
McMullan 76
SUN STAR MAN: Paul McMullan
ST PAT’S: Roders 7; Redmond 7, Keeley 6 (McLaughlin 85, 4), Turner 6; Mulraney 5, Forrester 5 (Palmer 85, 4), Lennon 7, Breslin 6; B Kavanagh 6 (Bolger 69, 4), Leavy 5 (Nolan 85, 4); Melia 5 (Keating 61, 5).
DERRY CITY: Maher 7; Boyce 7, S McEleney 7, McJannet 7, Coll 7; Diallo 6 (P McEleney 59, 6), O’Reilly 7; McMullan 7 (Kelly 90, 3), Patching 7 (Dummigan 74, 6 ), Doherty 6 (Duffy 59, 6); Hoban 6.
REFEREE: M Houlihan (Dublin) 6