Former Dublin footballer Paul Curran was reflective but optimistic about the future of Dublin football after Jim Gavin's resignation.
Gavin announced his departure from the role on Saturday morning via a brief statement online.
Speaking to John Duggan on Saturday's Off the Ball, Curran had nothing but praise for Gavin, who he won an All-Ireland with as a player in 1995.
He said it may be a surprise to some but he's hopeful about Dublin's future and appointing a successor.
"It is a bit of a shock but I think when you dig into it and think about it, it's probably a good time to go.
"There's not a whole lot more that he can achieve, the five-in-a-row is achieved, six All-Ireland's on his watch.
"Almost an unblemished record in his time as manager. He'll obviously be missed and it'll be difficult to step into his shoes, it's been a remarkable few years under Jim.
"There's an awful lot of different qualities that he brings. You can see him n match days he's very calm, he doesn't let things ruffle him and he's obviously very well organised as well.
"There's a lot that he brings to it, obviously the quality of players we have at the moment, he's been able to get them to play to their top levels on a consistent basis."
Dessie Farrell, who was also a member of the successful 1995 squad, has emerged as the front-runner to replace Gavin.
He managed the Dublin minors to an All-Ireland title in 2012 and he succeeded Gavin as Dublin u-21 manager, guiding them to two All-Ireland titles in 2014 and 2017.
Curran feels Farrell would be a good fit for the massive role.
"There's still a group of players there that can be successful, it'll be a difficult job for whoever steps in there but they're All-Ireland champions, there's a lot of young players in there.
"Dessie is probably front-runner. His record with the county at minor and u-21 has been excellent over the years. He won All-Ireland's at both codes, I think he'd be the natural man to come in.
"That's something for the county board to think about but Dessie is the front-runner.
"A new manager coming in with new ideas, it mightn't necessarily hurt us. It's a surprise and it's a difficult one to take but as Jim says life and football go on.
"He'll hand the reigns over to somebody else and the structures are in place. The team is there and there's young fellas coming through."
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