I owe Ollie Horgan massively for my career - Mark Coyle

Shelbourne captain Mark Coyle says that the success of his career was hugely influenced by his former Finn Harps boss Ollie Horgan.

The Burt native was speaking before Shelbourne’s UEFA Conference League match away to North Macedonian side KF Shkendija, which the hosts won 1-0 thanks to a late Patrick Barrett own goal in added time.

Coyle made his League of Ireland debut under Horgan, who sadly passed away in August, playing first in 2016 and going on to make over 100 appearances under the Galway native.

Coyle won the 2021 Player of the Year award at Finn Harps before moving to the Dublin side, where he captained them to winning the league last year.

Referring to his current boss, Joey O’Brien, Coyle likened him to his former manager at Finn Park: “Every time the gaffer says we’ll have a cut off them, it’s something Ollie always used to say to us. I’d say that’s one of the biggest things I learned from him, how much hard work matters.

“Everyone has seen the video clips of him saying, ‘work, work, work,’ but that was him to the core, the work ethic he put in.

“That rubbed off on us as players, and we wanted to do that for him. I’d say one of the biggest things I learned from him was how important hard work is really in anything you do in life.”

On his departure from the Harps, Coyle added, “I don’t think he was too happy at the start when I left. Of course, he was a great man, a good, honest, authentic man.

“I think as a player that’s all everybody wants, a good, honest manager, and that’s what he was.

“We kept in touch here and there. He was always probably tapping me up to see if I knew a player here or there! They were nearly the reasons why we were chatting.

“When we won the league last year, he was one of the first people to text me. He’s got a good wit about him, his message was funny, but it was also a lovely message to get from someone who played a massive role in me getting into the League of Ireland.

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“He just said, congratulations, don’t enjoy yourself too much, or something along them lines. He enjoyed a pint himself, so I’m sure he knew where we were going!

“He was the one that gave me the first chance, and second chance when I came back from Gaelic.

“He forgave me in a way to bring me back. I have massive respect for him and he was somebody that I owe massively for my career.”