Coyle respects Duff's decision, believes O'Brien right man to lead Shels 

PROUD: Shelbourne captain Mark Coyle is proud of his side after a whirlwind week as he respects Damien Duff's decision to leave and believe Joey O'Brien is the man to lead the side going forward. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile

It’s been a whirlwind couple of days for Shelbourne captain Mark Coyle and his teammates after the shock departure early on Sunday morning of manager Damien Duff, who walked away from Tolka Park after 151 games in charge following defeat to Derry the previous Friday.

The champions didn’t have much time to digest the news as they were on the road less than 24 hours later for their fourth game in 10 days as they were held to a 2-2 draw against Waterford at the RSC in a game that they should’ve won.

After Duff couldn’t even be persuaded by his captain to remain in the managerial hot seat, Coyle believes that interim manager Joey O’Brien is the right person to lead the club forward as he “knows the group inside out and everybody loves him.” Speaking after the game against Waterford, the Shels skipper said: “There’s been a lot of text messages and phone calls about the uncertainty or whatever it may be, but overall, I’m proud about how we’ve dealt with the last few days. It’s not been easy, definitely not, and I was extremely sad to hear it when the gaffer said it.

“But this is football. He has done what’s best for him and we have to do what’s best for us. How we’ve reacted tonight makes me extremely proud of the group and the staff. I think that the most important thing now is that we don’t rest on that.

“We got a reaction and I knew we would because I know the group. I know the players in the group, but we’re also disappointed because we deserved to win the game, and we didn’t. For us it’s about moving on because life goes on.” 

Asked if he had any idea that Duff was going to leave, Coyle said: “I didn’t and that’s the honest truth. How it happened is not ideal, but we have to respect his decision. He has done what’s best for him and we’ve got to respect that.

“At the end of the day, we’re also very grateful for what he did for us. He brought us to places that we didn’t know we could get too so we have to be thankful for that. I also know that we have to move on because football is a fast game.

“What I would say is that I’m very proud of how the staff dealt with it. It was probably tougher for them than it was for us because they were dealing with him day in and day out. For them to be just as shocked as us is definitely harder on them.

“How they’ve dealt with it, how they’ve reacted and how they’ve prepared us for this game – I’d take my hat off to them.” 

Coyle admitted that he had a conversation with his former manager but wouldn’t go into the finer details of that talk. “I have to respect his decision. He just had his mind made up and there was nothing really that I could do about it so there was an aspect of trying to get him to stay.

“Like I said, we know what he has done for us. Not just us as players, but the club in general over the last three and a half years. He is going to be missed, but I’ve got to respect his decision. As soon as that’s done, we have to look after ourselves then. How we played and prepared for this, I’m proud of.” 

Asked whether Joey O'Brien was the man to lead the group forward, Coyle said: “He knows the group inside out and knows what we’ve about. We know him and everybody respects him. Everybody loves him and I think that he is the right man for the job.

“It’s up to him and it’s his career at the end of the day. I’ll respect his decision whatever way he goes. For me, what he has done over the last day and a half or whatever it may be speaks thousands of the man. Whatever he decides, I’ll support.”