EUGENE FERRY IS back with the Foylesiders after getting a unique opportunity to see how Premier League footballers live.

It was announced earlier today that the goalkeeper has re-signed with Derry City along with striker David McDaid and new signing Dean Jarvis – seven months after departing for the northwest of England.

A long time friend of James McClean, Ferry was invited to move in with the Ireland winger and help him settle into his relatively new surroundings.

His duties included driving McClean, who didn’t have licence at the time, to and from training and although he says he enjoyed the experience, Ferry felt it was the right decision to return home in February.

The 24-year-old has been training with the Candystripes one and off for the past couple of months and is delighted to have agreed a deal.

“I’m glad to be back,” he told TheScore.ie “It was only a matter of time after I moved hime from Sunderland but I had to wait until July 1 to do it.

“I was made official on Wednesday but I’ve been in training with the boys and keeping myself ticking over since near enough the start of the season. I’ve always wanted to come back.

The last two weeks I’ve basically been full-time so it’s good to be back. My sharpness isn’t what it was last season. I know what I want to do in my head but my body just ain’t doing it at the moment.

“I consider Ger (Doherty, first choice goalkeeper) to be the best in the country so he will help me along as well.”

While staying with McClean, Ferry got a rare insight into how players cope with living in the ‘bubble wrap’ their clubs and agents put them in.

“James has a really close family and his agents are on the phone to him every single day” says Ferry reveals. “It is lonely over there. I think it helped him socially as well as on the pitch because he had a wee bit of form.

“He works off that. When he was at Derry he was head and shoulders above everyone else because he had people around him. If he’s feeling well he’ll do the business.

“It opened my eyes to how they live.”

James McClean. Credit: Andrew Matthews/EMPICS Sport

After a fine start to the season, Declan Devine’s men sit just three points off league leaders St Patrick’s Athletic with a game in-hand. Friday night saw them defeat Bohemians 2-1 at the Brandywell and Ferry believes a first Premier Division title since 1997 is a real possibility.

“You can see from the league form that Derry are creeping along nicely and winning by one and two goals. I’ve been to every single home game and have travelled to a good few away ones and watching them, it seems that they’ve improved vastly.

“Last year we were hit by so many injuries but everyone is staying fit at the moment, which is a massive thing.

Look at Rory Patterson. He hasn’t stopped scoring since the start of the season whereas last year he was missing here and there through injury. He proved what he could do in the final and pushed on from there this year.”

Tonight, they face Bohs for the second time in four days in a League Cup quarter-final at Dalymount.

“It’s strange to come up against twice in such a short space of time after the break. We want to do well in the league but we’d like to win the cup as well,” Ferry adds.

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