“I can’t wait to work closely with staff and players across both the men’s and women’s programs, as we continue to build on the strong foundations the club has already laid,” Wagner said.

“The club is in great shape both on and off the field, and from our discussions so far, there is a real hunger to continue to develop and improve further.

“I am excited to hit the ground running and join the red and blue at what is in an exciting time for the Melbourne Football Club.”

Wagner had played a key role at the Magpies in development of the club’s high-performance training facilities and AFLW program and had recently been in charge of strategic projects.

Demons’ chief executive Gary Pert, who knew Wagner from their time together at Collingwood, said the appointment would ensure the Demons were well-placed in their quest for back-to-back men’s premierships.

“This is an exciting appointment for the club given the amount of experience that Marcus has already had overseeing a professional football program during a successful period for the Pies,” Pert said.

“Marcus is a high-quality person with great values, who will work alongside Alan Richardson in his role as general manager, football performance. Marcus is a great cultural fit for our club and will challenge us, improve us and assist us in building and maintaining the strength of both our AFL and AFLW programs.”

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Skipper Max Gawn has already made it clear the Demons are intent on securing successive premierships, particularly as this year’s flag – which ended a 57-year drought – was won in Perth away from their faithful fans at the MCG. The Demons are still hoping to celebrate their premiership with fans at the MCG before Christmas.

The AFLW Demons are ramping up their pre-season training ahead of the expected start of the new season in January, while several men’s players made an informal return to training on Monday. Jack Viney, Christian Petracca and Tom McDonald were among those who completed running and ball work at Gosch’s Paddock despite being only three weeks into their official off-season.

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