After 3 goals in 9 total appearances he moved to his home town club making his Derry debut alongside Tim Dalton, Kevin Brady, Paul Doolin and Noel Larkin at Finn Park in an Ulster Tyre Cup game on 24 July 1988.
He was also crowned Young Player of the Year, finished the season as "Treble" winner with Derry, and was capped by Northern Ireland in an end-of-season friendly with Chile (following in the footsteps of his father, Fay Coyle).
Benfica in a league game at Dundalk in September 1989 Coyle sustained a knee injury which turned out to be a condition called osteochondritis dissecans.
Coyle then turned to a faith-healer, and in combination with heavy knee strapping, started playing again for Brandywell Harps where he was spotted by Omagh Town manager Roy McCreadie.
When McCreadie left new manager Paul Kee signed Coyle for another year but after one league game he was sold to Derry for £10,000 in August 1993, and soon enough was showing the skills and trickery that had brought him such acclaim as a youngster.
Coyle returned to Derry City for a combined fee of £42,000 (that also included Declan Devine), and immediately helped the Candystripes to another League of Ireland title.
He was quoted as saying: "While standing for the English national anthem, a section of the supporters were giving me dogs abuse, calling me a Provo and shouting 'Go back to Derry, you Fenian scum.