Aaron McEneff signs for Derry City

Twenty-year old Aaron McEneff has penned a deal that will see him be with the Candystripes until the end of the 2016 season.

A local from Derry, McEneff started his career off at Institute Football Club before being snapped up by Tottenham Hotspur on a two-year scholarship deal in 2012. He progressed well enough to earn a one-year professional deal last summer although an injury that saw him out for four months at the start of the U21 Premier League season stunted his progress.

McEneff had been on trial with the likes of Nottingham Forest and Sheffield Wednesday towards the end of last season before he started training with Derry City last week. With Tottenham Hotspur, the underage Northern Ireland international played in various positions, although he was mainly used at right back or centre midfield.

Peter Hutton spoke to derrycityfc.net and was impressed with his signing, saying, ““Aaron ticks all the boxes, he’s a young talented player, who can play in a number of positions and I’m delighted to have got him.” 

While some may view the new arrival as a signing for the future, Hutton believes he can make an instant impact as he said, “If we can get all the paper work in on time then he might be involved in tomorrow night’s squad.”

In what has been a busy transfer window for Derry, McEneff is the fourth signing at the Brandywell along with experienced players Mark Quigley and Conor McCormack and loanee Rob Cornwall from Shamrock Rovers. In terms of denatures, the club have seen Senan Cluclas, Shaun Kelly and Shane McEleney all leave this month while Nathan Boyle has joined Finn Harps on loan.