Lily Agg's arrival into the SSE Airtricity Women's Premier Division as the new Athlone Town manager is an exciting moment for the league, according to Shelbourne's Rachel Graham.
The rumour mill had linked the Republic of Ireland international with the vacancy at the reigning double winners after she was spotted in the stands at a recent game.
That speculation proved to be true as the 32-year-old was confirmed as Athlone boss last Thursday on a two-and-a-half year contract.
As recently as March, Agg had been named in the Ireland squad but an achilles rupture ruled her out of action shortly after she had overcome the devastation of an ACL injury.
A statement in the wake of that latter setback revealed the sense of anguish she was feeling.
She was subsequently released by her parent club Birmingham City at the end of this season.
But her exploits as a player, including being part of the Irish squad at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup means she will command instant respect in the Athlone dressing room.
"I think when a player has been there and done it, you have to kind of listen to what they say," former Ireland international Graham said on this week's RTÉ Soccer Podcast.
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"They know what they're talking about. And even on the flip side, she knows what it takes to be a top player.
"So she can give advice to players on rest, recovery, getting the right food in, how you prepare yourself best for a game, how you recover best from a game. She's played at a top level for a long time now.
"It's two different skills, but there are definitely transferable skills between playing and coaching and managing and just having that understanding of players.
"But look, I think it's great for the league, to be honest. I think it's great to see someone with such a high calibre, although she's not been in the last couple of (Ireland) squads, but you would say a recent international, current international only given her injuries.
"So to have someone with that profile in the league is huge.
"I know people have said (she has) a lack of experience in managing, which look, is fair, (but) I'd imagine she'd get a lot of guidance when she goes in there, probably mentored until the end of the season and then maybe go off on her own and then fully manage by herself.
"But I've seen managers with pages and pages of experience and it doesn't work out. So it doesn't necessarily always equal that you're going to do a great job when you've loads of experience.
"She definitely deserves a chance. Everyone deserves a chance, but I definitely think she does obviously deserve a bit of luck.
"She's had such awful luck with her injuries in the last couple of years, so (she) definitely deserves a bit of a break.
"I think it's a great face to have around the league. It brings attention to the league, which is definitely something that we need. It brings a bit of a high-profile player into the league again, which brings eyes into the league. It's going to be brilliant."
Athlone were knocked out of the All-Island Cup on Saturday but like the rest of the league they are now going into the mid-season break.
When they return, Athlone will be looking to bounce back from their defeat to leaders Galway United in their recent top-of-the-table clash as the midlanders aim to win a third title in a row.
"I think she's coming in after the break. I don't think she's in just yet," Graham said of the challenge ahead for Agg.
"So they've been actually knocked out of the All-Island now, which gives her an extra week, which obviously it's not great, but in one way you could look at as a silver lining.
"She gets an extra week to work with the team. I think it's exciting. I think it's a good name to have around the league and look, we'll see how she does."
