Lance 'Buddy' Franklin was officially unveiled as a Swan at a jam-packed press conference at the SCG and it was immediately clear this was no ordinary moment.
"It's clearly one of the biggest signings the club has had," Swans chief executive Andrew Ireland declared as Franklin instantly put his name alongside Tony Lockett, Barry Hall and Warwick Capper.
All three former key forwards gave the Swans a significant boost on and off the field during their time at the club and from the early indications, Franklin might just take all of that to a whole new level.
Capper personified the 80s, with his blond mullet and flashy marks, while Lockett broke the game's all-time goalscoring record as a Swan, but neither was able to win a premiership.
'Instant success' the lure that got Buddy to Swans
Hall captained the club to its breakthrough 2005 flag, but his sometimes-scary demeanour and repeated trips to the AFL Tribunal didn't always endear him to the club's young fans.
But the 26-year-old Franklin carries the good looks, the style and the all-important trait of winning that means he could usurp them all during his long nine-year deal with the Swans.
A huge group of giggling children waited outside the SCG offices for a glimpse of their new hero, something this reporter has never seen in two decades following and covering the club.
Franklin duly arrived and signed a flood of red and white merchandise, which surely must have been unusual for a man who was revered in Hawthorn yellow and brown for almost a decade.
"It feels a little bit different," he said when asked about donning the Swans' colours for the first time.
"I think Pickers (his manager Liam Pickering) said it brings out my tattoos a little bit. It looks good."
Then followed a press conference that sat alongside Jude Bolton's retirement and the announcement of Hall's sacking by Paul Roos back in 2009 as among the best attended and most eagerly anticipated in recent memory.
Hall captained the club to its breakthrough 2005 flag, but his sometimes-scary demeanour and repeated trips to the AFL Tribunal didn't always endear him to the club's young fans.
But the 26-year-old Franklin carries the good looks, the style and the all-important trait of winning that means he could usurp them all during his long nine-year deal with the Swans.
A huge group of giggling children waited outside the SCG offices for a glimpse of their new hero, something this reporter has never seen in two decades following and covering the club.
Franklin duly arrived and signed a flood of red and white merchandise, which surely must have been unusual for a man who was revered in Hawthorn yellow and brown for almost a decade.
"It feels a little bit different," he said when asked about donning the Swans' colours for the first time.
"I think Pickers (his manager Liam Pickering) said it brings out my tattoos a little bit. It looks good."
Then followed a press conference that sat alongside Jude Bolton's retirement and the announcement of Hall's sacking by Paul Roos back in 2009 as among the best attended and most eagerly anticipated in recent memory.
Buddy can play till he's 35: Swans
Not always renowned for his ease in front of the camera, Franklin regularly cracked jokes and traded barbs with reporters and even his new coach, John Longmire.
Stating his confidence he would play out the entire nine-year deal, Franklin noted he just hopes by the end of it he's not too grey and "not that bald, either" as he looked over at Longmire's thinning hairline.
He playfully took a swipe at new teammate Adam Goodes, saying "he's 33, but probably looks about 37 or 38" and also enjoyed some banter with a television reporter who insisted he had spotted Franklin driving past the SCG when news of the deal was first breaking.
"Were you the one driving the Hilux saying it was me?" Franklin asked.
"(You were saying) 'Buddy's here, Buddy's here'. No I wasn't, I was in Melbourne.
"It definitely wasn't me."
Not always renowned for his ease in front of the camera, Franklin regularly cracked jokes and traded barbs with reporters and even his new coach, John Longmire.
Stating his confidence he would play out the entire nine-year deal, Franklin noted he just hopes by the end of it he's not too grey and "not that bald, either" as he looked over at Longmire's thinning hairline.
He playfully took a swipe at new teammate Adam Goodes, saying "he's 33, but probably looks about 37 or 38" and also enjoyed some banter with a television reporter who insisted he had spotted Franklin driving past the SCG when news of the deal was first breaking.
"Were you the one driving the Hilux saying it was me?" Franklin asked.
"(You were saying) 'Buddy's here, Buddy's here'. No I wasn't, I was in Melbourne.
"It definitely wasn't me."
Buddy welcomes new test
Franklin also suggested that Jordan Lockyer, who currently wears the No.23, might need to start looking for a new number.
"The guy is on holidays I think," he said.
"We'll just have to wait for the young fella to come back, then I think he's going to move on to 58 or something."
Yet there were also some serious, and at times awkward, moments as he began life as a Swan.
He seemed to pause at times as he uttered the words "this football club, the Sydney Swans", getting his head around his new home.
Franklin clearly hoped there would be no hard feelings from Hawthorn supporters, likely a forlorn wish.
He also said it would be "a weird feeling obviously" when he plays against his old side for the first time and denied he had misled Greater Western Sydney, the club that thought it was Franklin's destination.
There was also one question regarding fellow Sydneysider Kurtley Beale, his good friend and a Wallabies representative who has had plenty of off-field problems.
Franklin handled that by saying he thought he'd "fit in here perfectly" with the Swans' renowned culture and standards.
The two-time Coleman medallist also talked repeatedly about his desire to win "a few premierships" with his new club.
That sort of talk is generally drummed out of Swans representatives at a club that likes to keep the proverbial lid firmly shut tight over expectations or hype.
But hype will be an unavoidable companion from here on out with a player boasting the star power of Franklin coming on board.
For a man that played the first of his 182 games to date at the SCG against the Swans in round one, 2005, his career is about to come full circle.
"I remember lining up here in round one in my debut season and Goodesy playing on me," he said.
"Now I get the chance to actually play alongside him.
"I can't wait to get out there."
Twitter: @AFL_JD
Franklin also suggested that Jordan Lockyer, who currently wears the No.23, might need to start looking for a new number.
"The guy is on holidays I think," he said.
"We'll just have to wait for the young fella to come back, then I think he's going to move on to 58 or something."
Yet there were also some serious, and at times awkward, moments as he began life as a Swan.
He seemed to pause at times as he uttered the words "this football club, the Sydney Swans", getting his head around his new home.
Franklin clearly hoped there would be no hard feelings from Hawthorn supporters, likely a forlorn wish.
He also said it would be "a weird feeling obviously" when he plays against his old side for the first time and denied he had misled Greater Western Sydney, the club that thought it was Franklin's destination.
There was also one question regarding fellow Sydneysider Kurtley Beale, his good friend and a Wallabies representative who has had plenty of off-field problems.
Franklin handled that by saying he thought he'd "fit in here perfectly" with the Swans' renowned culture and standards.
The two-time Coleman medallist also talked repeatedly about his desire to win "a few premierships" with his new club.
That sort of talk is generally drummed out of Swans representatives at a club that likes to keep the proverbial lid firmly shut tight over expectations or hype.
But hype will be an unavoidable companion from here on out with a player boasting the star power of Franklin coming on board.
For a man that played the first of his 182 games to date at the SCG against the Swans in round one, 2005, his career is about to come full circle.
"I remember lining up here in round one in my debut season and Goodesy playing on me," he said.
"Now I get the chance to actually play alongside him.
"I can't wait to get out there."
Twitter: @AFL_JD
