It’s taken 13 years, but Sydney Swans defender Rhyce Shaw can now call himself an AFL premiership player.

The 31-year-old, who made the move from Collingwood to Sydney at the end of 2008, has become a key contributor in the Swans backline and hit a rich vein of form in the 2012 season.

Known for his speedy bursts out of defence, Shaw told sydneyswans.com.au that winning the premiership this season was the ‘best moment of his life’.

How did you sum up your season in 2012?

It was a pretty good year. We started off a bit slow but we got going and the boys obviously finished off pretty well.

Reflecting on the past 12 months, what kind of improvements has the team made?

I think the injection of a few new young players and also the top-ups from other clubs which we continue to do every year has probably been a major factor, and also guys just getting more experience like Jetts and Hanners and Alex Johnson who have really shored up and gone to another level this year.

How have you viewed the form of the backline this year?

We’ve done pretty well. Our back six or seven including Nick (Malceski) is really a tight unit and we play together and probably complement each other a lot in a lot of different areas which is fantastic and is just a great support for each other and it was a great end to the year. The guys really stood up in the Granny and it was fantastic.

As a senior player, how important is it for you to keep improving?

You have to improve each year or you get taken over by younger blokes and I’ve learnt that a lot. If you take one step backwards you’re really taking two or three because guys will just come over the top of you and take your positions. It’s the same with other teams. If we rest on our laurels this year we can go backwards pretty quickly.

I’m really looking forward to next year but am savouring this year really well.

You’ve waited a long time to become a premiership player. Now you’ve done it, how does it feel?

It feels fantastic. I can’t really explain the feeling. It’s been 13 years of hard work for me and a lot of pain and suffering but we eventually got there and I haven’t stopped celebrating.

Do you have a memorable moment from the game?

I’d have to say Dan Hannebery’s mark in the first quarter. It was just something special and I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much courage in my life. For him to take that mark it just showed where we’ve got to get to and we just all followed him and it was just fantastic.

Where were you when the siren went?

I can’t remember. I know I was in the vicinity of Nick Malceski and Jarrad McVeigh but I just remember the last 30 seconds and I was just thinking ‘Come on, blow this bloody siren!’. It happened and it was the best moment of my life.

The off-season is coming up, what are your plans?

Nothing really. This is the first time in a long time that I think I’m just going to sit back and review my own season and just chill out with the family and spend a bit of time with my girlfriend and my dog and just relax.