FORMER Antrim manager Brian Coyle said that the Saffron fans can only be pleased about the season despite last weekend’s 13-point defeat to Armagh in the Ulster SFC.

“They have achieved what most people in Antrim have expected of them. They got out of Division Four and got into a higher level of football. Most people that I talk to are over the moon about it.”

Antrim lost to Armagh last weekend. They had been competing well in the first half but the Orchard county pulled away in the second half. Coyle’s disappointment about the result came for a different reason than the scoreline.

“I am disappointed that Antrim aren’t going to get a Qualifier game. Antrim in the Qualifiers would have been drawn against teams that went out in the first round. They would have come up against teams that are similar to themselves. I am talking about teams like Roscommon, Longford, Sligo, Leitrim and Louth even. We would have got a game that would have been meaningful for us. Maybe we would not have progressed but it would have helped us. I am genuinely disappointed by that.”

With regards personnel, one performance stood out for Coyle.

“I was over the moon for Niall McKeever. Sometimes Niall didn’t get the press that he should have got. He has always had great potential for Antrim but didn’t realise it. This year he turned up and delivered the type of football that I thought he could.

“Other players also came to the fore, Odhran Eastwood, Paddy McBride, who are good, young players who have a long way to go.”

DELIVERED… Niall McKeever (pictured) played well against Armagh according to Brian Coyle