Third time's a charm for Eileen Gleeson.
The new Republic of Ireland head coach faced the press on Tuesday morning and revealed she'd previously applied for the top job twice before.
First Colin Bell got the nod in 2017; then Vera Pauw came on the scene two years later. But finally Gleeson's moment has arrived after she made the decision in October to throw her hat in the ring for the role permanently, having taken the reins on an interim basis in the wake of Pauw's departure at the end of August.
The FAI have decided Gleeson is the right person at the right time to take an ambitious team to the next level. Following a three-month search, director of football Marc Canham described the Dubliner as being the "outstanding and preferred candidate"; a unifying figure who is willing to buy into the association's grander vision for the international game from underage level right through to the senior side.
It's a crowning achievement for Gleeson, who's been at the coalface of the women's game for decades.
"This is not a new phenomenon that I've wanted to be the head coach of Ireland," said the Dubliner, whose contract runs up to the end of Euro 2025.
"I applied for the two previous roles and was unsuccessful, so this is an actual evolution.
"At first I was very much tied to the head of women’s football role... and then, as I said, I started to change my mind. I started more enjoying the role, I felt comfortable in it, so I expressed an interest in the process.
"If you're asking for a critical, specific time where I changed my mind, it was standing in the rain in Albania! I mean, who wouldn’t want to be there? Look, it’s nice to have positive feedback from players but as an influence or a decision making factor, it’s not what would have tipped me towards applying for the role."
Pauw's split with the FAI was a messy one. The Dutchwoman had strong views on how to approach certain elements of the job, specifically strength and conditioning and training work loads. Those views did not always chime with Canham's, who wants to establish what he calls "a green line" of consistency from the Under-15s up to senior level.
"Ultimately Eileen was successful in the process because she has a vision that aligns with ours as an association," he said, stressing that - with the help of a recruitment agency - the FAI "scoured the world in terms of that talent". A long list of 42 candidates was whittled down to 12, and then finally two.
"She also has a vision that's aligned with our pathway and everything we want to achieve over the next few years around football pathways and player pathways, and importantly having a golden thread, a 'green line’ which we’re going to call it, through our Under-15s all the way to our senior team.
"What we were looking for in the head coach is very inclusive, collaborative leader, has a clear vision, and we believe Eileen has all of those attributes."
The future makeup of Gleeson's backroom team is still unclear. Emma Byrne, Colin Healy and goalkeeper coach Richie Fitzgibbon supported her throughout the successful UEFA Nations League campaign, but no decisions have been made on that front yet.
Those appointments will be highly important in a framework that requires democratic and collective thinking. At the top of today's press conference, Canham made of point of stressing: "Eileen is our head coach and is not our manager, and there's a subtle but important difference, which reflects a modern approach to modern football and global trends".
Being willing and able to delegate certain tasks requires a level of buy-in that Gleeson is comfortable with.
"Marc mentioned earlier about being aligned around leadership approaches, it is that approach in leading an inter-disciplinary team of experts, and using a leadership style that promotes shared expertise," she added.
"And bringing in experts and allowing them to have the autonomy to perform their role while seeing how that aligns to all our principles. It is still the leading role, but overseeing that inter-disciplinary team and promoting that inter-disciplinary approach and shared leadership with excellent team staff who work with the players and maximise their potential."
"I get to lead out this wonderful team and hopefully continue to drive their potential and consistently qualify for major tournaments."
Ireland will have their next camp in February, with friendly opposition to be confirmed in the new year. The draw for the Euro 2025 qualifiers takes place in March, and a month later, it's full steam ahead as Gleeson begins the task of leading a team that's already broken new ground into more unchartred territory: Ireland have never reached the Women's European Championships.
Meanwhile the FAI will get to work immediately on finding Gleeson's replacement as the head of women's and girls' football.
"Could you be any prouder to represent your country, to have responsibility to maximise your potential of this current team, to be able to transition young talent through, to put an emphasis on homegrown talent and still be able to work with Marc and develop those pathways?" added the boss.
"It is still very much integrated in the development of women's football, except I get to lead out this wonderful team and hopefully continue to drive their potential and consistently qualify for major tournaments."
Watch Tony O'Donoghue's in-depth interview with Eileen Gleeson below
