Cameron Bruce and Chris Fagan first crossed paths in 2000 when Bruce joined Melbourne in the 1999 AFL Draft with Pick 64.
The Demons were on the precipice of glory, reaching the AFL Grand Final against Essendon in Bruce's first year, and Fagan's second as an AFL assistant after being plucked from obscurity by the late great Neale Daniher.
At the time, Fagan spent most of his time with Melbourne's reserves, whilst also helping Daniher when required.
Bruce, along with a trio of emerging Demons youngsters, played under Fagan in a bid to push towards the senior side, grouping themselves as "Fagan's Heroes", according to Melbourne great David Neitz.
"I remember when Cameron was a rookie when he first came through the Demons, and there was a little group," Neitz said on SEN.
"Fages at that stage were coaching our twos, and it was Cameron Bruce, Peter Walsh, Daniel Ward and Russel Robertson, and they were playing out at Punt Road Oval, boggy conditions, and they named themselves the Fagan's Heroes. And they went on and had a really good season; they all pushed through to senior footy as a group.
"But the lineage with Chris Fagan goes a long way with all of us, particularly with Brucey. I know Cameron was much liked by Fages. Very astute guy and thoroughly deserves the role."
The pair spent eight years together until Fagan moved to Hawthorn to work alongside Alastair Clarkson. Not long after, Bruce followed, donning the brown and gold in 2011, but also with an eye for coaching.
Yet, Neitz was none the wiser.
"I don't really know," he said.
"He's got a finance background; that was his Uni degree, and he worked a little bit in that space while he was playing footy. He's very much a footy guy. Loves the game and is a good thinker. A very competitive person. I'm not surprised, but I wasn't sure he'd go into coaching, into footy administration or business life."
Bruce, upon his unveiling as Brisbane's new coach, reiterated his ambition for coaching developed over time.
"It actually came about towards the end of my playing career," he said.
"I've got a Bachelor of Commerce, so I was thinking I was heading down that path when I was playing. But I was injured late in my career, and to stay engaged in the program, you need to be doing something other than rehab.
"To do that, I got a taste of the coaching side of things. Fortunately enough, it was at the Hawthorn environment during that successful period. That's where my passion for coaching started, and has really grown ever since over 15 years."
Bruce worked under Fagan after he retired from the AFL, staying with the Hawks as a development coach, where he was quickly promoted.
Neitz also spent time at Waverley working with the club's big forwards, where he noticed a few significant traits of Bruce, which have aided his progress to becoming a senior AFL coach.
"I did a little bit of part-time work with the Hawks and their big boys for a couple of years, and Brucey was the midfield coach through their three-peat," the Demons great said.
"He sees the game really well in the box. He certainly communicated to the players, had their respect and held that really well.
"Not too surprised, after the great stint he's had with Chris up at the Lions, that he's moved into the big job."
Fagan won the top Brisbane role ahead of 2017, and Bruce joined Carlton ahead of 2018.
The pair reunited when Bruce headed to Queensland four seasons later.
So it is only fitting that the highly-regarded assistant succeeds his mentor, progressing from Fagan's Heroes to Fagan's successor.
