I was told I'd never play again . .

When Liam Coyle burst onto the League of Ireland football scene in 1986 a new star was born.

In his debut game for Derry City, he came on as a second half substitute and scored a Brandywell hat trick against Cobh Ramblers, the former club of Manchester United's Roy Keane.

Three years after his debut, Coyle was a member of Derry City's historic league, Cup and League Cup treble winning side managed by Jim Mc Laughlin.

Derry got a plum draw in the European Cup that year, against Portuguese giants Benfica. Eusebio approached manager Mc Laughlin and asked if Coyle could come over to the Stadium of Light for trials. Four days later, Coyle sustained an injury to his left knee in a game against Dundalk at Oriel Park. Medical experts told him he would never play football again.

"I was devastated. One day Benfica were expressing a strong interest in me. A few days later I was told my career was over", said Coyle.

"Basically the X-Rays showed that I had a hole in my left knee and medical opinion was that the hole would gradually increase in size. Various consultants told me to stop playing immediately otherwise I would end up crippled in a wheelchair sooner rather than later.

"I was being told that my career was over when I thought it was just starting to take off. I didn't play for two years then I decided that if the hole was going to get bigger whether I played or not, I might as well play. There was no point in sitting ar ound waiting for it to happen", said Coyle.

"I started back with Omagh Town in the Irish League in 1992 and the following year I re-joined Derry City. Then in 1995 I was transferred for pounds 35,000 to Glentoran. I soon realised that I had made a big mistake. Glentoran suspended me when I refused to travel for training sessions.

"Things then settled down a bit and I won the Irish Cup with the Glens that season but I never settled and I came back to Derry in 1996 for a fee of pounds 30,000.

"Initially a lot of Derry fans didn't accept me. It was one of the toughest times of my career but gradually the past was forgotten", he said.

The comeback was completed in style last Saturday when Coyle laid on Derry's second goal against St Pat's to clinch the championship for Derry for the first time in eight years. His role as a goal maker and provider has been crucial this season.

"I was never the fastest of players and my strapped knee slows me down a bit so I now have to pace myself better.

"I am better at setting up goals, although I've managed to score tenthis season despite missing the first eight weekswhen I broke my left arm in our first League game.

"It's all about pacing youself these days. It's hard to believe that at 28 I'm one of the veterans of the side.

"When I look back on the League campaign this season I've no doubt that the turning point came in October. We had just suffered back-to- back defeats against UCD and Cork City.

"In our next game we trailed Shelbourne 2-0 in Dublin but we came back to draw 2-2 and I scored the equaliser - my first League goal of the season.

"It was then I realised that we had a team with both the ability and the spirit to win the championship," said Coyle.

Three people, he said, played a vital role in his career as a footballer.

"The first is my father, Fay. He played for Derry in the 60s. He scored more goals than me and won four Northern Ireland caps.

"He never pushed me, he just let my career develop naturally.

"I have seen parents watching their kids playing football and the pressure they put on their children is just too much. Thankfully that never happened to me.

"The other big influences on my career were former Derry manager Jim McLaughlin and the present manager Felix Healy. They are two of a kind. They both taught me that football is about people and not about personal glory," he said.

Meanwhile City continue their glory quest when they meet rivals Shelbourne in the FAI Cup final at Dalymount Park in Dublin on Sunday, May 4.

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