About three hours into the FAI board of directors meeting on Tuesday night, Eileen Gleeson took leave of her adjoining office in Abbotstown.
The head of women and girls’ football was about to ascend to her dream job of managing the Republic of Ireland. It may only be an interim position for two matches, but history will record Gleeson as the gaffer for the first ever women’s international at the Aviva stadium, against Northern Ireland on September 23rd.
Once the decision was made not to extend Vera Pauw’s contract for a further two years, after she reportedly lost the support of her players during last month’s World Cup in Australia, the FAI made the logical decision to hand Gleeson the reins for the Nations League ties in September.
Ireland also travel to Budapest to face Hungary on September 26th.
The 60-year-old Dutch coach had sought a two-year extension to manage Ireland up to the 2025 European Championships in Switzerland but the 11-strong board, made up of seven men and four women, decided to start a fresh recruitment process.
What happens next is anyone’s guess as the association’s CEO Jonathan Hill is keeping his cards close to his chest.
A bookmaker punctured the seriousness of this situation yesterday by publishing odds on Pauw’s permanent successor. Gleeson comes in at a respectable 9/1 while the currently unemployed Ryan Tubridy is 100/1. Luis Rubiales is another long shot at 500/1.
Gleeson, who has a Uefa Pro Licence, does have a rare opportunity to claim the job on a permanent level but her true value within the FAI is seen as leading the development of the women’s game.
She did serve as Pauw’s assistant manager for two years before becoming head coach at Glasgow City. But the Dubliner parted ways with Glasgow last year, citing other work commitments, before being named the FAI head of women’s football, a wide-ranging role where she answers directly to director of football Marc Canham.
Neither Gleeson, Canham or FAI CEO Jonathan Hill have been available for comment, and social media commentary rushed to fill the vacuum, accusing senior Irish players of ousting Pauw.
In reality, the decision was reached by a chain of events that began when Hill broke off contract negotiations with Pauw’s representative Ciarán Medlar before The Athletic published a 7,000 word report into the Dutch coach’s controversial 2018 season at Houston Dash.
Hill intends to explain all to the media in mid-September after the men’s international window is concluded.
On Tuesday Canham presented a detailed report to the board on the entire World Cup campaign. This revealed, via staff and player interviews, that Pauw sought to control almost every facet of preparation, with a style of management that eventually began to stymie progress. This approach contributed significantly to her not being offered a two-year extension.
The FAI concluded that a modern international manager should not control all aspects of camp life, from the warm-up to training to the medical department to diet, and especially Pauw’s strict adherence to football periodisation and her overemphasis on the team operating a defensive shape that felt increasingly outdated during the tournament.
By December, Canham is set to publish a report that explains how the FAI will create direct pathways for talented female footballers from under-15s up to the senior ranks.
For now though, Gleeson is in charge. Her journey is genuinely impressive, as she went from playing for the Blacklions in the Civil Service League to managing her country via stints coaching at Peamount United and UCD Waves.
After Gleeson’s Republic of Ireland face Northern Ireland they travel to Budapest to play Hungary three days later. If they top their Nations League B group, that also contains Albania, they will earn a play-off to qualify for Euro 2025. Their sixth and final match is at Windsor Park on December 5th.
