Top Cavaliers figure Dannie Carstens got her man.
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Dan the man, that is.
That only happened after Dan Roden was coaxed to coach his daughter's team at St Helens, a location Cavaliers has a vested interest in.
The relative netball novice, who had a basketball background, later asked the Cavs coach to play his mentor.
"So she sat on the bench and at the end of it, I asked what have you got for me and she turned and said, 'I've got a role for you'," Roden said.
Roden is not the first man to coach the elite state level. Jon Fletcher went two better.
Not only did he lead the Tasmanian Magpies in 2017, but was the trailblazer in the former national league for Hunter Jaegars back in 2006.
But Rodan nearly fell into the new job after Carstens invited him to head up the club's development program.
"All our family are just netball tragics," Rodan said.
"My wife played netball all her life and you get dragged along playing mixed netball."
Carstens stepped down as Cavs open coach last season despite boosting the side up from outside the finals to making the preliminary final.
She anointed the man that sat next to her to take over.
"When I took the assistant role, she had a succession plan in mind," Roden said.
"The focus for her in particular was to take on a club coaching role, so she could not only coach the players but also coach the coaches."
Roden jokes a little bit that she told him to put his "big boy pants on and step up".
Carstens had to step down the 19-and-unders following premiership-winning coach Nicole Williams deciding against returning this year.
"It was probably brought forward a little bit," he said.
"I guess we had originally planned to have one more year and then probably take on the role of head coach. The hand was forced a bit."
But that does not mean Roden is not prepared either.
Far from it for the man biding his time in the wings.
The Cavaliers will play to not only their strengths, but that of the coach.
"The process will stay the same, but obviously, as a new coach you try and put your mark on it," Roden said.
"There are things that are unique to you as a coach that you learn from being for a coach for many years."
There's a feeling he can even take the Cavaliers one step further by his methods.
The changes up front do include signing a taller Mel Philpott close to goal.
Carstens called on Kate Gibson and Deanna Wadley to provide a mobile - but smaller - rotating goal circle.
But the hard-nosed defence and the abundance of midcourt options will stay the same despite the loss of both Tessa and Lydia Coote.
Cavaliers can test that at the weekend against the Northern Hawks, Devon and the state 19-and-unders at the new preseason carnival.
"I certainly think there is a lot to like about our game style," Roden said.
"In 2017, we finished outside the finals; last year we went to the preliminary final.
"We're pretty confident the style of netball we're playing is pretty good quality, can get us into the finals and hopefully can get us further than last year. In order to do that, you've just got to tweak a few things each year."
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