Ali Pour throws full support behind 'man for the job' Declan Devine in Glentoran's Irish League mission

Devine was appointed as Warren Feeney’s successor in 2024 and has recorded consecutive third-placed league finishes across his two seasons in charge of the Glens.

Having missed out on second during the 2024/25 campaign following a draw with Larne on the final day, the East Belfast club suffered a similar fate this term, losing 6-2 to Coleraine in a shoot-out for automatic European football.

Glentoran entered the season’s last weekend with a chance of ending their 17-year Gibson Cup wait – Larne ultimately sealed a third title with an emphatic 8-0 triumph over Dungannon Swifts.

Devine has rebuilt his Glens squad across recent windows with the likes of Pat Hoban, who topped the Premiership’s goalscoring charts, Aaron McEneff and Josh Daniels arriving.

Glentoran won six more matches and collected 16 more points this term compared to 12 months ago, and while admitting the final outcome was “disappointing”, Pour is adamant Devine remains the right man to lead them forward.

"Decky was brought in because that's what we needed - we needed a highly-qualified, experienced professional to rebuild the team for us,” he told the News Letter. “He has done an amazing job.

"When Decky came in, he had to rebuild and restructure the whole squad - that has all been done now, the heavy lifting has been done.

"Now it's about fine tuning...the core is very strong and a few changes here and there will help us strengthen again.

"I'm very happy with how he has performed so far and we're backing him for years to come, I'm sure of it.

"Look how close we came this season, that was all Decky. It was his team, his strategy. We'll be going for it again next season...he's the man for the job for sure."

Glentoran will be playing in Europe this summer for the first time since 2023 with their Premiership finish sealing passage to Conference League qualifying after second-placed Coleraine won the Irish Cup.

Pour doesn’t feel it’s cause for celebration with the achievement deemed a bare minimum – but knows the positive financial impact which can come with European success.

"I'm relieved,” he added. “Of course I'm happy, but for a club of our size, Europe should be a given as far as I'm concerned, we should be in Europe every year.

"I'm not really celebrating being in Europe, I would celebrate winning in Europe - we should be winning and progressing in Europe. That's what I'm hoping for.

"There's a lot of money to be made in Europe and we need to increase revenue in Europe, you can do very well with a few good results.”