Pat McShane jokingly admitted he left Jim Ervin hanging on the phone as he pondered what Ballymena United's new manager was calling him about.
Ervin recruited former Linfield teammate McShane for his coaching staff after being appointed new Sky Blues boss last week.
McShane says it took a quick conversation with his wife before picking up the call.
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"When Jim contacted me last week I was taken aback a little bit. I actually looked at my phone and it came up 'Jimbo', and I was saying 'there's no way he is going to ask me'," McShane told Belfast Live.
"My wife is from Ballymena, so I looked at her and said 'Jim is ringing me' and she said 'what do you think he wants?'.
"So I answered it and Jim asked me, and I was lost for words. I had actually promised another club I would join them, so I had to sort that out first.
"Jim told me his plans, and how Stefan (Seaton) and Cliff (Ferguson) were coming on board. And the stature of this club was a big draw."
Ervin and McShane have a close bond, stemming from their playing days at Linfield.
McShane remembers when a young Ervin took his first tentative steps into Windsor Park after joining the club.
"The first night at Linfield training all those years ago, I saw Jim coming down. He was a young lad, and I remembered how I felt when I first joined the club," McShane said.
"I went over to him in the corner of the pitch and said 'right son, you are coming with me'. I took him under my wing and we bonded from day one.
"The two of us looked after each other, on and off the pitch."
Ervin says McShane was 'like a brother' to him during their time at Linfield, and that bond has grown over the years.
Ballymena's new manager said: "Pat I know so well from my time at Linfield. When I signed for the Blues Pat was the first person I saw when I walked into the changing room.
"I spent seven years with him at Linfield and sat beside him in the dressing room, and he became like a brother to me. He just looked after me.
"At that time at Linfield, we always looked out for each other, and Pat did that. He helped me become the player I became, and I hope I passed those traits onto the younger players after me.
"Pat then coached at Distillery and Donegal Celtic, and then went into youth football and has been coaching at Dungannon Swifts. He had other opportunities, but when I contacted Pat he saw this as a massive opportunity.
"The standards Pat, and the other guys, set, is what I want at this club. They are very high, and they are demanding standards.
"I am delighted Pat accepted, because he could have taken another road. he is very focused and raring to go."
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