Bernard Jackman believes the Ulster job would be an attractive prospect for the game's top coaches, with the province set to replace Dan McFarland as head coach.
Ulster Rugby have confirmed that McFarland has departed his position as head coach, in the wake of Sunday's 19-17 defeat to the Ospreys in Swansea.
Ireland U20 head coach Richie Murphy will charge of the side until the end of the season, as the province look to consolidate their place in the top half of the BKT URC, and secure Champions Cup qualification.
And while Murphy could even be a contender to get the job beyond the summer, Jackman believes the 1999 European champions have a lot to offer potential candidates.
"I think it's one of the best jobs in Europe. It really is," Jackman told the RTÉ Rugby podcast.
The province are expected to make significant budget cuts next season, with Billy Burns one of their first team regulars who wasn't offered a contract beyond the end of this season.
In spite of this, Jackman believes the Irish system is one that coaches want to work in, given how stable the coaching jobs are compared to other nations.
He said: "They’ve a massive fanbase, a great stadium. I don’t think the squad is brilliant, but it’s still more than good enough to be top six in the URC.
"They should be able to beat Glasgow and Edinburgh at home, beat the Welsh regions and beat the South African teams at home, I think.
"It’s one of the better jobs, and Ireland is a very attractive place to coach. Look at [Connacht head coach] Pete Wilkins, he’s had five or six years in the Irish system starting off as an assistant coach, becoming head coach. Graham Rowntree came in as assistant [at Munster] and became head coach. Leo [Cullen] is there a long time, and Dan has had six years.
"Head coaches will look at those type of people at Ulster and other provinces and say it’s not as ruthless or as cutthroat as other competitions.
"Richard Cockerill went to Montpellier and was gone two and a half or three months in, that’s the reality of it.
"Some will see this as an opportunity to do what Dan did, which is to pick them back up again, get better results and change the mood in the environment."
McFarland, who previously played and coached with Connacht, while also working with the Ireland U20 team, turned Ulster's fortunes around when he was appointed in 2018, but they've been on a slow decline since the end of the 2021/22 season when they suffered an extra-time defeat to the Stormers in the semi-final of the United Rugby Championship.
And Jackman says while his time at the province is set to end badly, he's left the province in a better place than he found it.
🗣️ "You feel for everyone involved..."
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) February 21, 2024
🏉 Dan McFarland's time at Ulster is ending in disappointment, but @JPCooney213 says the 51-year-old has done a lot for Irish rugby.
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"Six years is actually a long time in pro coaching, and never mind a province like Ulster where there's expectation to win silverware, which is a while since they have," he added.
"I think Dan did a brilliant job steadying the ship. Let’s not forget when he came in it was a pretty bad place, there had been high turnover of coaches, not many people wanted the job but he came in and got stuck into it, and for a long time it looked like they were on the right track.
"Unfortunately over the last year, that home defeat to Connacht in the play-offs last year was a blow, there was a backlash around the 4G pitch by certain fans, I think 10 or more players left last summer, and unfortunately a lot of them were talking of them were talking to journalists off the record to journalists around the vibe and environment. Things haven't really picked up."
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