AFL football operations boss Steve Hocking has been appointed Geelong CEO.
It can be revealed Hocking will go back to the future to replace Brian Cook, who in December will step down from the role he has served since 1999.
Hocking was the Cats’ football manager and served a variety of roles with the club for a decade before being appointed the AFL’s head of football operations in 2017, replacing Simon Lethlean.
Hocking played 199 games for Geelong between 1984-1994, including the 1989 and 1994 grand finals.
Cook, 65, confirmed in February that 2021 would be his final year. He will depart as the longest-serving CEO in the AFL.
The Cats engaged global leadership advisory firm, Egon Zehnder, to find his replacement.
Hocking has earned a reputation as an agent of change during his stint at league headquarters, with a variety of rule adjustments and amendments throughout his tenure.
He takes charge of the books at a Geelong Football Club that is as well-placed financially as any club in the competition.
Cook’s departure follows that of president Colin Carter, who stepped down as president at the end of 2020 and was replaced by Medibank CEO and club board member Craig Drummond.