An incredible achievement: Jim

Jim Magilton said he felt “overwhelmed” in the immediate aftermath of Cliftonville’s European Play-Off Final victory over Coleraine yesterday.

Goals in either half from midfield pair Rory Hale and Axel Piesold stamped the Reds’ passport to the UEFA Conference League in the closing fixture of a gruelling 55-game season that culminated in vital away triumphs over Glentoran and the Bannsiders after the heartbreak of defeat in last week’s Clearer Water Irish Cup Final.

“Today is about the players and it takes courage to come back from losing a Final,” said Magilton.

“You have to dig really deep to win at Glentoran and then come here where there is massive expectations on both Clubs.

“I’m just overwhelmed by it all. I was really emotional after the game because they deserved it.”

Feeling his players were unfairly criticised for their performance in the shootout loss to Dungannon Swifts eight days earlier, Magilton added: “Finals are about winning and they can go either way. You can play poorly and win it.

“I wasn’t too disheartened, I was very determined. I didn’t like the negativity and we galvanised everyone. We said ‘right, let’s go again’ and I knew they had it in them to do that.”

After becoming the first ever Cliftonville Manager to lift silverware and qualify for Europe in both of his first two seasons at the helm, the Reds boss – who also oversaw the first back-to-back away wins in NIFL European Play-Off history – continued: “No team that has finished seventh has ever won the Play-Offs. That is a testament to the character, the resilience, the courage and bravery of that group – that whole set of lads, the whole squad.

“Given that we had the devastating loss of Michael Newberry, to galvanise this group to do what they’ve done, it’s just an incredible achievement.”