Collingwood AFL premiership player and prominent player manager Craig Kelly is returning to the Magpies as their chief executive.
The 55-year-old replaces Mark Anderson, who left the role late last year, in a major coup for the club.
Kelly was a member of the club's revered 1990 team that ended their "Colliwobbles" era by winning the Magpies' first premiership since 1958.
After retirement, he built a player management and sports marketing empire at ESP, now known as TLA.
Kelly, who was chief executive at TLA, will step down from all executive and board roles at the company.
One son Will plays for Collingwood, while Jake is on Essendon's list.
"Collingwood means a lot to many people, including my family, and I feel privileged to be able to lead our club as it continues to progress," Kelly said in a statement.
"I am incredibly honoured to be provided with the opportunity to return to the Pies and give back to the Collingwood community.
"The club has continued to grow and expand over the years and I am excited to steer that growth while supporting and developing the talent of our people, both on and off the field.
"There is momentum at Collingwood, and I look forward to building relationships across the club and working alongside the board, staff, coaches and athletes as we enter the next phase."
Kelly returns to Collingwood in the wake of their stunning season under debut coach Craig McRae, who led them to a one-point preliminary final loss against Sydney.
Recruited from SANFL club Norwood, Kelly was a hard-nosed defender who played 122 games for Magpies between 1989-96.
The same year he retired from the AFL, Kelly co-founded ESP and quickly established himself as one of the AFL's top player agents.
Collingwood football boss Graham Wright had been interim chief executive after Anderson left, with Kelly to start on February 20.
"Craig Kelly is an extremely well-rounded professional and a highly-respected person within the football community who has the ideal skillset to be the CEO of our great club," president Jeff Browne said.
"Craig understands better than most the requirements of a strong and successful football club.
"His three decades of vast experience in managing AFL and key sporting talent, driving a high-performance environment and delivering successful results, was a key factor in his appointment."
