Captain Dominic McGarr, who is in his eighth season with the club, came off the bench during Coastal’s 4-0 English Cup final victory over Cashmere Technical last Saturday.
Injuries have plagued McGarr’s season, meaning he wasn’t match fit.
He was on the bench and came on for the final two minutes of the clash.
Coastal head coach Robbie Stanton said there was “absolutely” sentimental reasoning behind it.
“We were just happy to get him on, so he can be there at the final whistle for the celebration.”
McGarr wasn’t fit to play a full 90 minutes, but he was happy to step foot on the pitch.
“The job was pretty much done already . . . It’s nice to play a part, even though it was just a few minutes.”
But he’ll take a step back for Coastal’s maiden National League campaign, starting against Wellington Olympic in two weeks.
Injuries have curtailed his season, and wife Fiona is expecting the couple’s first child around the same time.
McGarr said there’s a possibility his football career could be over, thanks to an ongoing problem with his knee.
“The body’s probably not holding up as well as it was a few years ago,” he said.
“The cartilage is worn away quite badly from a lot of football, training and games and that sort of stuff.
“It’s unfortunately not something that can be fixed.”
“Obviously you want to try and play at the highest level you can and enjoy those games and the experience of all the travel and playing against the best players in the country.
“But I’ve had a pretty good run, and you can’t be too upset with what’s happening. Obviously there’s pretty awesome things happening in my life as well.
“All the games locally, I’ll definitely be down and cheering them on.”
Stanton said McGarr’s contribution would be missed.
“If you wanted anyone to go into war with it, it’d be Dom.
“He’s just a really good lad, he’s been a great servant to the club, we’ve been lucky to have him.
“Really just pleased that we could send him off the right way on Saturday.”
They extended their advantage in the second half, MacLennan adding another – again assisted by Steinwascher, who was awarded MOTM and the Steve Sumner Medal for his hand in all four goals.
McGarr said if this was the end, it was the perfect way to finish.
“It’s a really awesome way to go out and it’s nice to just top it off with something like that – being a part of the first men’s team to actually win something at the top level.
“It was great to sign off on a good note, right?”
