RONAN Boyce says he is ‘buzzing’ after being handed a long-term contract at Derry City on his 20th birthday.
The Ramelton man has penned a new three-and-a-half year deal at the Brandywell.
Boyce only signed his first professional contract in January, but new Candystripes manager Ruaidhri Higgins has tied the defender down with his first piece of business in the role.
“I’m delighted to sign long term with the club and I want to repay their faith in me,” Boyce said.
“I’ve felt good so far but I know as well that I have to get better.
“It’s up to me to kick on now. I have plenty of very good players around me and I’m learning from them every day.
“Ruaidhri has set very high standards since he came in and that’s what we have to aim for. We want to be trying to win things at Derry City but we are aware there is a lot of hard work ahead.”
Boyce has started Derry’s last seven games and scored a vital goal in a 1-1 draw against Drogheda United in April.
Higgins said: “He has been brilliant since I came in the door and indeed in the couple of games before that as well.
“This is something I wanted to do as soon as possible and I’m delighted we’ve come to a long-term agreement with Ronan.
“He’s a dream to work with and sometimes you could give a young player a long-term contract and they could rest on their laurels a bit but that won’t be the case with Ronan- he just doesn’t have that in his make-up,”
Club Chairman Philip O’Doherty said the lengthy contract was in line with the Board’s vision for Derry City.
He said: “We’ve said from the outset that we want to invest in the development of our own talent as well as look to attract quality players to the club.
“Ronan can have a very bright future ahead of him and we are really looking forward to seeing him progress over the next few seasons.”
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