The highs and lows of Sydney Swans Chairman Richard Colless’ 20-year tenure at the club were discussed on FOX Footy’s On the Couch program this week.

Colless, who announced his resignation from the top job at the beginning of the 2013 season, discussed the rise of the Swans from a lowly ineffective club to one of the competition’s most respected and successful organisations.

The competition's longest serving Chairman highlighted the importance of a number of individuals throughout his tenure including coach Ron Barassi, Brownlow Medallist Paul Kelly and goal kicking legend Tony Lockett.

But it was the appointment of Paul Roos and Andrew Ireland at the end of the 2002 season that Colless deemed the most significant for the Swans.

“It wasn’t until 2002 when we really faced oblivion and the place was demoralised and heading back to where it had started that we actually sat down and started thinking about something more formal and structured,” Ireland said.

“Later in the year Paul (Roos) took over as coach and Andrew Ireland came in as head of football and those were absolutely fundamental decisions.

“From that, we developed a template for how you put a squad together, how you develop it and how it should be coached.”

Colless also identified triple-Brownlow Medallist and South Melbourne legend Bob Skilton as another important person involved in lifting the Swans into a successful AFL club.

“I think the other name that should be mentioned is Skilton,” he said.

“The fact that Bob bought into the Sydney move had a profound impact on the support from down (in Melbourne), which is just magnificent.”

The wide-ranging interview also included the Chairman’s thoughts on equalisation in the AFL, the Essendon drug saga and his tumultuous relationship with Collingwood president Eddie McGuire.

Watch the full interview with Sydney Swans Chairman Richard Colless in the media player above