Southend United captain Adam Barrett said their relegation from League One was 'extremely hard to take.'
The Blues' 2-2 draw at Oldham consigned them to the bottom tier of the Football League for the first time since 2005.
Barrett told BBC Essex: "From where we've worked so hard to be and now be back to square one is very hard to take it's been extremely difficult.
"I'm sad for the supporters and everyone involved with the football club and I'm devastated with it all."
Barrett has been at the heart of the Blues' defence throughout the club's rise to the Championship and their subsequent fall back to League Two.
The 30-year-old pointed to a number of reasons for this season's league position.
"Too much has gone on this year," he said.
"You can start with the team and the chops and changes, plus we haven't been able to field the bench for half the season.
"For myself with the partners at the back, you're looking at God knows how many centre-half partners. There's just been no consistency, no continuity there.
"Then on top of that there's obviously been the well documented events going on off the field and, as I've said before, it's been the most stressful and most difficult period I've ever known."
