Long before the final siren blew on Michael O'Loughlin's illustrious 303-game AFL career, the Indigenous star was plotting his business career after football.
Used to being a leader on the field, O'Loughlin has started CMC Indigenous Services, a commercial cleaning and property company which he will manage, but on Friday night he returned to the SCG to present the Goodes-O'Loughlin medal after the Sydney Swans played North Melbourne to kick off the AFL's Indigenous round.
The weekend will be headlined by Saturday night's Dreamtime clash at the MCG between Essendon and Richmond and specially designed jumpers worn by each club.
Booing was black and white
Magic or Micky O, as he's affectionately nicknamed, said the "booing" controversy which marred Goodes playing career last year showed there was still a lot of work to be done on racism.
"We just have to keep chipping away, going to schools and educating young people and older people, that's the number one thing. Adam has been a strong advocate and had a huge last few months in his career and some of it was pretty sad but he has come out the other side as a really strong individual and hopefully educated a lot of Australians about racism and how that's not tolerated and we are trying to stamp that out," he told The Australian Financial Review on Friday.
O'Loughlin said he had always planned for a career in business even while he was mesmerising crowds with his 521 career goals.
"You play the game and depending how long your career goes with injuries and health you can have a really successful career but sometimes that doesn't happen and you've got to have a plan B and certainly football doesn't last forever, and I always knew that was the direction I was going to head," he said.
"The message is really simple, if you work hard, roll up your sleeves, do the right things and surround yourselves with good people, generally you will be OK. You are going to hit some hurdles, not only in football and business but life in general and it is how you respond to that which is really important, I think I've learnt some really valuable lessons over 16 years with the Swans."
Goodes for politics?
O'Loughlin said outgoing Northern Territory senator Nova Peris has left a gap in politics that people would love to see Goodes fill but personally, he was committed to business over politics.
"Not from my end I don't want to enter politics and Adam ... my gut feel is he won't go into that space but he might change his mind down the track. He's got a hundred things he is doing. He is a pretty busy man and certainly if he wanted to do it there would be no shortage of people wanting him to do it."
