As he was being dressed in the Ceann Comhairle's robes in February 2020, having been elected to the chair for a second time, Seán Ó Fearghaíl commented to the Dáil how he "always had problems" putting it on.
Mr Ó Fearghaíl regaled the House with a story of how the robe had, in the previous year, been the subject of a Freedom of Information request from a newspaper who wanted to know how much it had cost, and how much had been spent on dry cleaning it:
"We discovered it was here so long that nobody knew what it had cost, and it had never been cleaned," he said to laughter, breaking the ice of the 33rd Dáil.
As he seeks to be the bearer of that robe for a third Dáil term (with the reassurance that it has since been washed) Mr Ó Fearghaíl will be hoping that his popularity, and the genial manner he brought to the role will be enough to see him elected in a secret ballot.
However, now his candidacy, which took everyone by surprise earlier this week, is dividing opinion within his own Fianna Fáil party.
In an interview with the Irish Times earlier this year, he said he would not be seeking another term and said he hoped a woman or younger person would get the job.
Indeed, Mr Ó Fearghaíl was not even certain then if would come back to the Dáil, saying he would decide closer to the election "whether I want to go home and count my cattle and grow my chrysanthemums or whether I want to continue a job of public representation".
And so, as soon as all the votes were counted last week, the other potential contenders went about the business of gauging support from other parties, independents, and within Fianna Fáil, to run for the position of chair.
But they were caught off guard when, on Wednesday, news began to trickle out that Ó Fearghaíl was seeking the seven signatures needed for nomination.
"There was a bit of a reaction within the party that he would say he wasn’t seeking it, allowing others to go about their work, and then steal a march on them like that," said one Fianna Fáil TD.
Colleagues said Mr Ó Fearghaíl decided to seek the nomination after being approached by numerous TDs who thought he would be the best candidate in the interest of "continuity" and "stability".
There also seems to be a suggestion that he would do it for half of this Dáil’s term - in other words the next two and a half years - before leaving the role to someone else (who would then be assured automatic re-election).
There are many reasons to believe why the Ceann Comhairle’s approach of getting out of the traps first could leave others in the shade.
The Fianna Fáil politician has done the job with success before.
He is popular and well liked.
Mr Ó Fearghaíl has also done a lot of work around security and safety of public representatives, in light of growing abuse against them online, threats to them at public protests and in some cases intimidation at their homes.
He also steered the Dáil through the turbulent times of Covid-19 when it had to move to a new home in Dublin's Convention Centre to allow for social distancing.
Significantly, as one Fianna Fáil TD points out "he has looked after Independents".
Many non-party and smaller party TDs have seen their presence in the Dáil enhanced during his time as chair (in some cases much to the envy of Government backbenchers).
However, some TDs are questioning whether he should be given another term.
"He isn’t owed anything now. He’s had a good ten years, on a ministerial salary, his pension will have maxed-out by now. And the time comes when enough is enough," noted one Fianna Fáil colleague.
The position commands a total salary of €175,699 - the same as that of a cabinet minister.
The holder has the service of a full-time driver, funded by the State.
The Ceann Comhairle also occupies a large office in the Oireachtas complex, and the role involves official engagements, functions and foreign travel.
There was a convention in the past when the job would be given to a member of the opposition.
However, that was when it was a government.
Now it is decided by secret ballot.
The preferred candidate is likely to be decided by Fianna Fáil - as the biggest party.
It is still unclear if the choice will be supported by Fine Gael, or if that party will put its own candidate forward - but, with 38 seats, it would seem unlikely.
Fianna Fáil is likely to want to hold onto it, after all, this is a prized position not to be relinquished easily.
The holder is guaranteed re-election meaning their party starts with a head start of one - not to be sniffed at in this era of tight margins between the main parties.
John McGuinness - the former high profile chair of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) confirmed to RTÉ News that he has also been seeking nominations.
His constituency of Carlow-Kilkenny elected three Fianna Fáil TDs - with him topping the poll.
Mr McGuinness is unlikely to have the backing of the party hierarchy of whom he was critical of in the past but would be well received among opposition TDs from his time as PAC chair.
There is also a focus on Donegal TD Pat 'The Cope’ Gallagher, who has won back the seat he lost in Donegal in 2020.
He previously served as Leas-Cheann Comhairle.
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The TD for Cork North-West, Michael Moynihan, is also believed to be a strong contender.
He has been interested in the role in the past and Fianna Fáil performed strongly in his Cork North-West constituency, taking two out of three seats.
Nominations will close on Monday 17 December - the day before the 34th Dáil sits for the first time.
The first item on the agenda will be the election of Ceann Comhairle.
Will Seán Ó Fearghaíl be having problems with the robe again? Or will he be sending it off to the cleaners for yet another term?
