The former Irish League star balancing management with playing - and still scoring goals

The 39-year-old enjoyed a career in Northern Ireland’s top-flight at the likes of Ballymena United, Dungannon Swifts and Glenavon, and while he had every intention of calling it a day after picking up a bad injury last season, Costello is still filling an important role in his own squad.

Costello, who has been in his first managerial role at Amateur League outfit Dromara for over 18 months, is showing he hasn’t lost his prowess in front of goal, netting twice during Saturday’s penalty shoot-out Border Cup victory over Shamrock.

There’s no squad member Costello is more ruthless with than himself – he’s very clear there’s a good chance he’ll be dropped for this weekend’s league clash against Ards Rangers despite his heroics.

"I was really ready to retire last year,” he said. “What reversed my decision was when I spoke to players and the demands they were making...I thought 'I can probably do close to what you could'.

"I played a few games in pre-season and in the first game we won 6-2...my two strikers put in a really good shift, but I came on for the last 10 minutes, we threw the ball into the box twice and I scored twice, I didn't have to run at all!

"I had the exact same thing in my career with Glenn Ferguson at Ballymena. Glenn played some in pre-season and in my time he was the best I'd seen. I'm pretty sure he outscored me in pre-season and I thought 'he still has it'...I wind them up and say 'Glenn Ferguson did it to me, so I'm doing it to you!'.

"I'm very critical of myself and I don't like playing too much because it's not my time, it's theirs.

"My mantra is if I get the ball around the box or in certain areas, I still think I can do something, but those guys know they're ahead of me. It would be a really poor scenario if they felt challenged, it's not that at all and they know that.”

Costello is able to benefit at times from a perspective almost no other manager can, getting first-hand experience of the intensity and quality on show, and also still has enough talent at his disposal to make a genuine difference.

His Saturday brace was preceded by a long-range lob in a 6-1 league victory over Kilmore Rec, and he also scored the weekend prior in a cameo off the bench during defeat to Rosario.

“I'm not in any way silly enough to think I'm in my own top-two options of strikers!” he laughed. “I had an injury-hit campaign last season, I tore my hip flexor in December and didn't play again until April.

"I contemplated if that was the time my body was telling me to retire. It was against Kilmore where I scored a goal that was a bit further out, I saw the goalkeeper off his line and lobbed him...I thought 'that's a hell of a goal whether I'm 21, 29 or 39!'.

"You'll never ever replace the feeling of scoring goals, as a striker it's your bread and butter, it's what you play for. I never played with any striker who didn't enjoy scoring goals and it's a great buzz still, absolutely."

Costello has to balance half-time team talks and tactical instruction with his own performance levels, but that’s where a trusted team of backroom staff play a vital role.

While sometimes getting caught up in the heat of battle on a Saturday afternoon, Costello’s lieutenants on the sideline are able to make calls in a more calculated manner – even if that is telling the manager he needs to do more.

"I would rely on them as the first point and would speak to them before going into the changing room to get their opinions,” he added. “I have had really good input from them...there's games where they're saying I'm not up to it, but that's what I need.

"I try and take myself off after half-time when the game isn't suiting me.

"My worst nightmare of playing myself is I don't ever want anybody to think I'm playing because it's my name or reputation...I want a player to say ‘he earned that’.

"On Saturday, I ended up playing 120 minutes with both strikers away. I scored a couple, but with the boys back there's no intention to start this Saturday!"