SHANNON Byrnes says he has “no regrets whatsoever coming to Melbourne” after playing in two premierships for Geelong in 2007 and 2009.

Byrnes, who announced his retirement on Wednesday, said he actually relished the opportunity to play at two AFL clubs – and even endorsed it.

“It’s not the best thing to say, when we’re trying to hang onto players at our own footy club, but I’d almost recommend that players at some stage in their career do change sides, even though I know that goes against everything that clubs want,” he told melbournefc.com.au.

“Although it’s not a bubble at your [first] football club, you tend to get stuck in your ways at your own football club and become comfortable in your environment. So to go to another footy club and meet so many new people – and great people – and see a different way of a football club operating, I couldn’t speak highly enough of the boys and the players I’ve met.

“I’ve got a few lifelong friends out of it as well that I wouldn’t have had, had I not come to the club.”

Although Byrnes only played 23 of his 131 AFL matches with Melbourne, he spoke with genuine warmth about the Demons and said he has a soft spot for his adopted club. 

“To see the history of the Melbourne footy club, I definitely wouldn’t have appreciated, if I’d just stayed at the one club my whole career,” he said.

“Even though they’ve been going through some tough times, it doesn’t mean that the people who are working at that club aren’t doing everything they can to help the fortunes of the club turnaround.

“It’s given me a lot of satisfaction to see that the place is turning around now and is heading in the right direction and I’ll know that I’ll be keeping my eye on the footy club very closely.

“Whatever I choose to do in the future, I’ll be keeping my eye on the rise of the Dees hopefully.”

The only frustration for Byrnes, during his time at the Demons, was battling injuries, particularly in his second year.

“I’m disappointed that I wasn’t able to contribute more. I was hoping to play more games this year and even go on [in 2015], but in the end my body got the better of me,” he said.

“I wanted to be a bigger contributor to the club, but unfortunately you can’t control how your body feels at time – and that’s the way it’s gone. There is no doubt there will be a real soft spot for me for the red and the blue.”

Having started his career as a rookie with the Cats, before making his AFL debut in 2004, Byrnes said it made him appreciate the opportunity even more.

“If anything, it can be a good thing for a young player to earn it from an early age,” he said.

“When you’re on the rookie list, you can’t take anything for granted and you’re on a year to year contract, so you’re fighting tooth and nail for every opportunity that you can get, as opposed to a high draft pick.

“So you learn to make the most of every opportunity that you get, when they come along – and that’s been a bit of a theme throughout my career over 12 years and it’s been a good journey.”

Byrnes said 2009 – when he claimed his second premiership – was his favourite season, as it was the year where “everything started to click”.

“I’d have to say ’09 was my favourite [premiership] to be involved in, as I played the whole season, as opposed to ’07. I was in and out of the side all year. In ’09, I played every game for the year and felt like I gave a decent contribution as well.

“The feeling of being part of it was stronger in the ’09 Grand Final – and that’s not to say that the ’07 Grand Final wasn’t a great time for me as well. Definitely ’09 was my personal favourite to be part of.”

“They’re the highlights, but I look back on my first game as fondly as the flags.” 

With his playing career now over, Byrnes said he was eager to move into coaching – an area he has already started in.  

“I’ve been doing a fair bit of coaching over the last couple of years. I did some coaching with Xavier College last year in an assistant coaching role and this year I’ve been helping out at Oakleigh Chargers, doing some coaching with their forwards,” he said.

“It’s something that I’m really starting to enjoy and the more I do it, the more I realise that it’s something that I want to get involved in. Hopefully, something might come up for me, wherever it might be and I can continue to develop my skills and hopefully I can get involved in some coaching at a club somewhere.”  

But before that happens, he can reflect on his achievements as an AFL player – two premierships, 131 matches and 11 senior seasons at the highest level – plus a host of friendships made.

“You have so many highlights and lowlights throughout your career – it’s hard to pick out just one highlight – but the main thing I’ll take out is the relationships that I’ve had with my teammates over the years,” he said.

“I don’t think anything can really top that. The relationships that you have in an AFL club are like no other relationship you’ll have in your life. You’ll know them better than you know anyone, because you’re with them so often.

“I’m just really thankful for some of the people that I’ve met and be able to play alongside and know that I’ll be mates with them for the rest of my life. You’d hope so anyway.”