Derry footballer Brendan Rogers says the players must take their share of the blame for poor performances by the county in the championship this year.
After winning Division One, optimism was high for Derry heading into the championship.
However, after defeat to Donegal in the Ulster quarter-final, further defeats followed against Galway and Armagh, as their season ended in the quarter-finals to Kerry.
It also saw Mickey Harte's time in charge come to an end after just one season. For Rogers, he could not put it down to one specific reason, but said all the blame should not be with the management.
"It is very difficult to say what exactly went wrong," he said, citing a mix of injuries, below par performances, and tactical mistakes. "There are so many variables that we encountered.
"It looks like the wheels fell off the wagon and that things fell apart but that wasn't the case. I just think we did a few things wrong at critical times, and we were punished heavily by very good teams and very organised teams.
"I would go as far to say the players are as accountable as management. Everything was in agreement together. It didn’t work out, absolutely we have a lot to learn from that. Ultimately, we did learn from that, it was just too late. After the first few defeats we put in a performance against Mayo, and then we just didn’t back it up against Kerry.
"I am thankful for the time we had, he did help us win a national league. An Ulster team had not won one in maybe over 15 years [Derry in 2008] and it was good to get over that line."
After several names were linked to the manager's job, including former boss Rory Gallagher, Derry appointed Paddy Tally.
Despite months of speculation, Rogers says the players always had faith in the Derry board making the right appointment.
“We trusted the whole executive process that they would find the right guy. The players can just play. We knew that they wouldn’t just run and get anybody, they would get the right fit for the team.
"It is not easy getting an inter-county manager. To get the top managers, they are very difficult to get and very difficult to nail down because they are in such demand.
He hopes that securing Paddy Tally "and especially getting him away from the Limerick area", means the new manager "has seen something in us is very positive as well".
"We have a good man under the helm at the minute. Sometimes these things take time, but we got the right man eventually," said Rogers.
For now, the focus is on hurling for Rogers, as he prepares for an Ulster final with his club Slaughtneil, who face Portaferry on December 1st.
In one of the games of the season, Rogers was key for Slaughtneil as they defeated Antrim side Cushendall after extra-time i the semi-final.
In a game that shows the quality of Ulster hurling, and the revival of the dual player, Rogers says it can be done with the right communication with clubs.
"A big thing is simple communication. Communicating when you can and cannot play, can and can’t train, volume and schedule, the likes. If you get that right, there is absolutely no reason you can’t have more dual players. I think people need to be willing to facilitate it, and not drag the players as much.
"The players will make the right decision when it comes down to it. It is certainly a possibility for a dual player, but I suppose we are very fortunate we have a massively supportive club for it. There is a lot of players doing it, it is quite normal for us. We are just thankful to have a good community around us”
