In their drawn game with Fermanagh the Oak Leafers had to wait until the last minute of the first half before they scored but at Dean McGlinchey Park yesterday they got off to a superb start with four unanswered points inside nine minutes.

With the advantage of a strong wind Eoghan Brown, Seamus Bradley (2) and Chrissy McKaigue got Derry off to the perfect start, their direct football paying dividends against the students.

UUJ manager Adrian McGuckin said after the match that he feared the worst after that start, a replica of the game against Donegal.

He said: "There was no heart and no spirit in them against Donegal but there was a changed attitude in them today. Once they went for points down they got stuck in."

That they did, thanks in no small measure to the tenacious play of wing back Kieran Nolan from the Fightings Cocks club in Carlow, the power of James Colgan and Packie Downey in the middle and the sublime free-taking of Ciaran Donnelly.

By the 25th minute the sides were level, Donnelly with 0-03 from frees and Danny Mulholland. However Seamus Bradley, Joe Diver and Paul Bradley from a free gave Derry a 0-07 to 0-04 interval lead.

The referee had perplexed the spectators by his willingness to ignore 'yellow' card offences in the first half, although he did eventually add to his dozen 'black' cards.

By the fifth minute of the second half Stefan Forker, James Colgan and Mulholland had tied the scores at 0-07 each, four magnificent pointed frees by Donnelly between the 12th and 17th minute giving UUJ a cushion they maintained to the end.

Derry: M O'Kane; B McAlary, Patsy Bradley, T Walls; P Cartin, M McBride, A McAlynn; JDiver, N Bradley; B Mullan, Paul Bradley, C McKaigue; S Bradley, P Young, E Brown. Subs: S M Lockhart for Tony Walls (H-T), E Lynn for A McAlynn (H-T), D McBride for N Bradley (41 mins), B McGuigan for J Diver (45 mins), G McShane for P Young (58 mins), Niall Bradley for Patsy Bradley (59 mins).

UUJ: T Harney; G Haughey, C Murney, A Girvan; C Nolan, D Hughes, B Boggs; P Downey, J Colgan; T McCann, S Forker, C Donnelly; D Mulholland, N McKeever, C Cavanagh. D McDermott for G Haughey (H-T), C Galligan for C Nolan (42 mins) - P Hughes for N McKeever (53 mins), K Anderson for C Cavanagh (61 min).

Referee: R O'Donnell (Donegal)