First Division table-toppers Shelbourne have announced the appointment of Stephen Henderson as Head of Youth Development with the club.
Henderson, who has managed in the SSE Airtricity League for over 12 years, moves into the role with immediate effect following his resignation as manager of Cobh Ramblers less than two weeks ago.
The 53-year-old Dubliner took the reins at Waterford United after winning the First Division title in his first spell with Ramblers, where he returned to the helm in 2015.
"Stephen will lead and oversee the development of the club's academy structures, drawing on his vast experience in educating and supporting the club's academy players, coaches and managers," reads the official statement on the Shelbourne website.
"Stephen will be tasked with overseeing development and implementation of the Youth Development Programme at Shelbourne.
"This includes overseeing the continued development and growth of the club's highly successful underage teams, from the Under 8 team through to the Under 19 team."
The new backers at Shels are determined to get the north-Dublin club back into the top-flight after five seasons in the First Division and made several statements of intent in the close season.
They signed the likes of Ciaran Kilduff, Luke Byrne, Ryan Brennan and Conan Byrne while new manager Ian Morris brought Dan Byrne and Oscar Brennan with him from Bohemians.
They currently lead the league by four points and Henderson was encouraged by his meeting with the club's CEO.
"After talking with Dave O'Connor and some of the people involved in the academy, it was clear for me to see that Shels are pushing in an exciting direction at senior and academy levels," said Henderson.
"To be part of that process is exciting and I am very grateful to the club for affording me this opportunity.
"Our job at the academy is to ensure we give the young players every opportunity to reach their potential through structured training sessions, lots of encouragement and really good information.
"There are some great coaches at the club and I’m really looking forward to working with them and the players closely over the coming season."
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
