Three days out from the 2019 All-Ireland final, Dublin footballer Carla Rowe's attention was temporarily shifted from taking on Galway in Croke Park to the AFLW.
An approach was made, with the offer of a two-week trial to gauge her interest and adaptability.
At the time there were no Irish players Down Under, with team-mates Sinead Goldrick and Niamh McEvoy yet to make the switch.
Rowe’s decision to return to college and burning ambition to achieve all she could in Ireland – at the time she had just one of her five All-Ireland medals – meant the overture was rejected with no regrets, but the landscape has changed significantly since then.
Last year there were 33 Irish players spread across 13 clubs, with another two, Armagh’s Aimee Mackin (Melbourne) and Laois’ Erone Fitzpatrick (Carlton) on the inactive list after suffering ACL injuries.
Next year that figure will rise to 45, while the earlier start to the season - Round 1 is set for 11 August – means that juggling both codes will become increasingly difficult.
"It was a no for me (in 2018) but I can understand and see why players are going over there," says Rowe.
"It was fine when it was county season and Australia had their season, but now the AFLW have the numbers and backing and can now move the season.
"That will make our players make choices and that is not nice for players. We have Jennifer Dunne over there (Brisbane Lions) and we will wait and give time but you don’t want someone to make a choice, they don’t want to make a choice but that is what it is coming down to."
In December it was confirmed that Kerry’s All-Ireland winner Kayleigh Cronin, player of the match in victory over Galway last September, will link up with Adelaide Crows.
The All-Star defender from Dr Crokes is firmly in the Kingdom camp as they prepare for their opening league fixture against Armagh on 25 January, but when she departs for Australia is unknow.
Kingdom team-mate Síofra O'Shea admits it is a huge opportunity for those offered deals to sample a more professional sporting environment.
"She's training just like the rest of us and putting her whole life into Kerry ladies football at the moment, so that's all we can ask of her," she says.
"Whatever happens down the line, then obviously we wish her the best in Australia. I think she'll be massively suited to it as she's an unbelievable athlete. It's a great opportunity."
Galway have surprisingly been largely unaffected by the switches. Mairéad Seoighe and Áine McDonagh have spent time in Australia, but Player of the Year Nicola Ward insists that the ambition to win ultimate honours with your county is a huge deterrent to trying pastures new.
"The main driver for me would be winning a senior final," she says. "I think a lot of girls are in the same boat and feel there's unfinished business there before they think of doing anything else.
"I know I'd be disappointed if a top player was taken from my team, but I think it's a great opportunity for the girls over in the AFLW to get a different perspective."
The obvious issue with the increasing number of players leaving Gaelic games is the impact on the quality of the game. More often than not it is the most talented players, or those with significant potential, that are being snapped up by suitors.
"You would be foolish to say that you are not worried because at this point, the AFLW have so many players and so much backing," Rowe adds.
"It is the top players on every single team that are going over. We just don’t want that. We don’t want it in senior, intermediate or in junior.
"I don’t know what the solution is to that challenge but maybe it is something we need to have a conversation around to lessen the impact.
"We don’t want the standard after so many years of work, dropping."
