Ollie Horgan 'hurting' but no complaints as Finn Harps suffer relegation

Finn Harps manager Ollie Horgan says the pain of relegation from the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division is "hurting" him but admitted that his side did not deserve to stay up over the course of the season.

In a battle of the bottom two at Finn Park on Friday night, it was UCD who emerged victorious, securing a place in the relegation play-off by coming from a goal down to defeat Harps 3-1 and ending the home side's four-year stint in the top division.

Horgan has been in charge of Finn Harps since 2013 and is the longest serving of the Premier Division's current managers.

Speaking to RTÉ Sport after the game, the Galway native would not be drawn on his longer-term future at the Donegal club but took pride in the squad's connection with the home support during a difficult season.

"The club is here years before me and it'll be here years after me whenever that may be. Look, I walked away last year and people who I admire within the board asked me to stay and to try and put a team together to try and stay in the division and we fell short of that," he said.

"I knew last year and I said it, if this was about me, I'd have ran a mile. But I didn't. It was about the club and it's a hell of a lot bigger - the club - than me.

"Managers comes and go, board members come and go but supporters stay the same and to be fair to them, tonight they had several opportunities where they could have turned on us over the season and they didn't - and of all years.

"They saw what we try and put into it but I think this year, I have huge pride in them. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to win them over or anything like that, but maybe tonight and all season at home, there's a lot of pride there and a huge connection with them, especially when we