Dervan enjoyed a club career with Tynagh that yielded much success. After joining the club's senior team in his late teens, he won five county championship medals in 1920, 1922, 1923, 1925, and 1928.
After being selected for the Galway senior team in 1922, he won a Connacht medal in his debut championship. He won his sole All-Ireland medal in 1923 after Galway's defeat of Limerick in the final. Dervan was a runner-up in three subsequent All-Ireland finals and two National Hurling League finals and retired from inter-county hurling in 1928.
As the top corner-back of his era, Dervan was included on the Ireland team at the Tailteann Games in 1924 and 1928, for which he was awarded gold medals.
In retirement from playing, Dervan came to be regarded as one of Galway's greatest ever players. He was named in the left corner-back position on the Galway Team of the Millennium. Dervan died after a short illness on 3 April 1981.
