BERNIE Vince says Melbourne's appointment of Simon Goodwin as Paul Roos' successor will help the Demons continue to rebuild their culture as they emerge from a dark period.
Goodwin was appointed last week on a five-year contract that will see him act as Roos' senior assistant until the end of 2016 before he takes over the main job.
Vince, who considers the former Adelaide captain as a mentor from their time spent together at West Lakes, says Goodwin will bring plenty to the club in terms of bringing the group together.
"He's really big on the culture thing and I think he's spoken a little bit about that in the media but at Adelaide, he was almost like a coach in his last couple of years," Vince told AFL.com.au on Wednesday.
"He was obviously captain but he was treated as a coach, teaching the young guys out there.
"He's a great teacher and loves working with young kids coming through.
"In saying that, the biggest thing he'll bring is a real culture to the group and get everyone nice and close.
"We started with the Leading Teams stuff this year and 'Goody' loved that sort of stuff so I think that's what he'll bring and hopefully a winning culture, which is what we're after."
Another positive of Goodwin's appointment is the assurance it gives the players after a season of not knowing who will succeed Roos.
Roos took on the job 12 months ago and always said he was not prepared to fill the role for an extended period.
Vince said it was beneficial to know who would step up in the next few years and was glad the Demons managed to secure their man despite the sacking of Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson the day before.
"It's good to know who's going to be in the position because it was sort of up in the air a little bit until the announcement," he said.
"To have someone of his quality will be great.
"For him to get the job was awesome because he's pretty highly sought after, especially with the announcement of Brenton getting asked to move on, I think the Crows were pretty keen on him.
"I thought we might have lost him at the last hour but it's fantastic news and not just for us players but for our whole footy club, supporters, members – there's a real direction of where we want to go now and who's taking on the job after Roosy."
Vince underwent minor surgery on his left shoulder two weeks ago and isn't expected to be involved in full contract training until after Christmas.
But he is expected to be running when the Demons commence their pre-season.
"I start running six weeks after the operation and it's already been two weeks and I probably would have only started a week or so before that anyway," he said.
"I'll be nice and fit because I'm only going to be able to run for awhile.
"I'll be fit or worn out – I don't know what will come first."
