On Wednesday, it was announced that AFL Hall of Fame member, Matthew Pavlich, has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of the Sydney Swans.

Pavlich addressed the media, alongside Sydney Swans Chairman, Andrew Pridham.

On his new appointment

"Just wonderfully excited about this opportunity, a huge honour and an amazing thrill to be thrust into this. When I was approached, I was really excited to go through the process and also very excited to take this on. I feel like I got drafted 25 years ago, I've been preparing for something like this by virtue of playing for a long time, going to university, going into business, transitioning into that as well as media and so whilst it's a big role. It's quite humbling, I feel really ready and prepared for this as well as I can be, knowing that there's a lot to learn as Tom transitions over to the AFL and I transition in but really confident and lucky to have Tom lead the club over the last decade or so and really excited to meet everyone and get to work."

On how prepared he feels for the role

"I guess people see me on the telly quite a bit and think that that's what I've been doing but realistically for a decade I've been starting, growing and scaling and running businesses and been at the forefront of that so jack of all trades, master of none with regard to everything that is about starting a business and scaling a business so I feel comfortable enough as I can be. There'll be plenty of unknowns about this role, there'll be plenty of things that I'll have to listen and learn from and I said to the staff earlier, the IP, the expertise and the knowledge that is in that room, I'm just going to have to absorb. I also said seek first to understand then be understood is going to be a part of this next process with them and that's the beauty of a footy club, that's the beauty of the people that we have here at the Swans is that the culture is strong, there's great stability and strength off the field and we're hoping to quickly get back that on-field success as well."

On how he will adjust to New South Wales

"I appreciate the question, I think it's an obvious question as well and something on my radar straight away is to exactly do that, ingratiate myself with the team here but also the broader community, the corporate community, our fans, our members, I get to know them, get to understand what their purpose is, what they hope the club aspires to, but ultimately you know it's about getting the runs on the board and getting to work, I'm generally quite decisive and action orientated so while I'll take the views of the people that I was talking about before, the IP, the knowledge that sits within the club, we'll just get to work and get to meet everyone.

On whether he has any apprehension about taking the role

"It's humbling and it's exciting and it's an honour that I absolutely understand and knowing how well Tom has gone in the role, knowing how well Andrew Ireland went in the role prior to that, it's something that I know it's a huge task but I'm certainly up for it."

On the differences of AFL in Sydney and Perth

"Well I can empathise that coming from two non-Victorian states in South Australia and WA that we share that in common which I think is a good start but obviously no, the game here has to continue to grow and I look forward to getting stuck into that. I think that's the great opportunity, Sydney's a great club, it's got a great brand here, you know record membership, huge fans flock to the game week in week out, even this year when it's been a bit of a struggle with injury and form but we've got to keep growing the game here in Sydney and in our northern states full stop so something that I'm looking forward to beginning."

On the club's movements in the off-season

"I haven't specifically had that chance to get my feet under the desk and have those conversations as yet but what I would hope is that we aspire to get the best people in our footy club whether that's players and or staff. All I know is you get good humans who've got great character and great competence and then you just let them get to work whether that's on-field or off-field so I hope those murmurs are true."

On his on-field rivalry with Dean Cox in his playing days

"Coxy and I we have similar noses which is a good start. No, look I had a great rival with Coxy and West Coast on the field. I've always admired how he went about it and I loved playing against him and I've admired how he's made some harder choices probably by coming here to Sydney, staying with Sydney and then transitioning into the role at what was a pretty late time pace in terms of when he got the coach's role so I can't wait to get stuck in and it's nice to have a bit of a flavour of the West here in Sydney."

On how important the Coach-CEO relationship is

"As a chair-CEO relationship, as a CEO-coach relationship and so on and so forth, it's going to be crucial, absolutely crucial to the team's success. You know I'm here to support Dean, I'm here to support the broader football department to get the best out of them so they can go and do whatever they need to do to be successful on the field so yeah hugely important to keep fostering that relationship and start working together."

On what attracted him to the job

"Big brand, big city, successful club, great culture and a professional adventure for me and step up for me which not only am I ready for but our families as well."

On moving his family to Sydney

"Yeah, we've got here so a 12-year-old, 10-year-old and eight-year-old so they'll get through the school year. Obviously, there's the transition with Tom and I'll be here back and forth a little bit. I've got a bit to sort out as well with some business and media stuff which I thank them for. It's been one, it's been great to work with great people in navigating that exit and doing that really well and doing it well which is quite unusual because we've been able to keep it pretty tight which I think I'm very thankful for not only the people of the club but the people I've been working with over the last 10 years. So the kids will finish school and then yeah get across but it might take a little while to convince them who they're going to support. We'll get them across the line."