Sky’s the limit for high-flying Shelbourne
Reds’ rise can continue, says centre-field enforcer Coyle
WHEN Damien Duff heard Mark Coyle was the Soccer Writers’ Player of the Month winner for February, his one-word reaction was: ‘Wow’.
Fair to say, that probably sums up the way a lot of folk feel about the stirring of Shelbourne.
While it’s early days in the SSE Airtricity League, it’s always better to be on top looking down, than at the bottom looking up, whether that’s on Mother’s Day Weekend or the October Bank Holiday.
Against expectations, Shelbourne are setting the pace on ten points after four games, with Coyle the heart-beat of the engine room, complete with shaven head, beard and armband.
It’s possible to imagine him as a Barbary Coast pirate, bandana on his brow, shiny cutlass to hand.
Coyle hails from Burt in Donegal, close to where Georgie Kelly, a fellow ‘baldy’ and Player of the
“The gaffer knows there’s so much more in the group”
Month too, grew up. While Kelly is a goal machine, Coyle is a defensive midfield shield, for whom goals are a rarity.
On his 50th league appearance for Shels, against Shamrock Rovers last month, he scored only his second league goal. In contrast, he finds yellow cards a lot easier to come by.
In 2022, he shipped five cautions in the league; in 2023, that jumped to 10, and already this season he’s picked up three cards in four games. It’s not ideal as Duff could ill-afford to lose Coyle for a needless suspension.
Holding back in the tackle is not Coyle’s style but finding a balance between what’s fair and what’s foul is crucial as Shels are a better unit with their captain in the cockpit.
Their next test comes tonight against neighbours Bohemians at Dalymount Park, where they have yet to win under Duff and lost 1-0 in the FAI Cup last season.
By coincidence it was the Cup quarter-final tie between the teams at Tolka Park in 2022 which indicated that the Duff project was gathering momentum.
‘It was a great day. A hot day, I remember. We’d prepared well and we were ready for it. It was a good day in the office. It was probably a marker like “Yeah, we’re going in the right direction”,’ recalled Coyle.
While Shels fell at the final hurdle in the Cup final, they’ve continued moving upwards.
They’re not flashy, or free-scoring, and still have their off days but no one can deny they are trending the right way under Duff.
Would Coyle agree that the Shels boss is happy at what he sees? ‘I’d say 100 per cent he’s happy where we are, and he’s told us that, he’s happy with the results. How can you not be?
‘He knows there is so much more in the group and so do we. If you don’t keep driving standard, you’ll never improve.
‘From the start of last year, we’ve probably improved throughout the season, that’s down to the gaffer. He’s our leader. His coaching, his demands. Having that mentality is important. He keeps us grounded.
‘I don’t think we have reached what we can reach, which is exciting as well.’
Shels will need to be on point against a Bohemians team that is aching to improve on sixth-place finishes in 2022 and 2023, and become a force again.
‘For me, it’s one of the most competitive leagues in the world, I know that sounds mad but it Leaving his mark: Coyle with his player of the month award is. You have to be on it every week and that’s why you can’t get too far ahead of yourself or think too far into the future. What matters is the here and now,’ he said. While Coyle is your archetypal team player, he recognises the value of willo-the-wisp winger Will Jarvis, who gives Shels a little stardust in attack. ‘Will is a match winner and has that bit of magic about him,’ said Coyle. If Jarvis can play a part in helping Shels conjure up three points tonight, the Red Brigade will start to believe this could be a special year.