Peel Thunder's 10th chief executive in the club's mostly barren 17-year history is from Wollongong, has worked in regional soccer for most of the past decade and only got involved in sport because of a midlife crisis.
Bill Kostandas also intended to move to Perth for a lifestyle change after a recent holiday in Mandurah and could barely believe his luck when the Thunder job became available.
Even the task of guiding the WAFL's most vexed organisation through a period when newfound stability has brought greater expectations has provided an opportunity to be relished.
"I'm a Richmond fan," he said. "I'm used to tough times and big challenges."
Kostandas, 48, will start at the Thunder next month after a 25-year career in soccer, banking and sports management.
His most recent jobs have been running soccer in Wollongong and the Northern Territory.
He saw off a shortlist of four other candidates to take charge of a club that is starting to emerge from its bleak first decade.
The Thunder have the WAFL's best facility, an $8 million set-up at Bendigo Bank Stadium, and have taken the first steps towards a full alignment with Fremantle that will see Dockers players and coaches housed at the Mandurah club.
But Peel still owes the WA Football Commission $350,000 from a 2008 bailout to avoid going broke. They have repaid only $50,000.
Kostandas said he was aware of the club's chequered past, which includes a WAFL record 16-year finals drought, but is excited by the prospects in one of Australia's fastest growing regions.
"The main reason for taking on the job is the challenge," he said.
"Peel have a great stadium and a good infrastructure in place and while there is plenty to do to get the business plan up and running, there are nothing but positives about the opportunity.
"I knew about the WAFL because of all the good players who had come out of it and this looked like a really good opportunity."
A Sydney native who played volleyball and soccer but grew to love footy because of Saturday afternoon television coverage, Kostandas said he decided to move into sport a few years ago after a career in banking and sponsorship.
"I had a midlife crisis a few years ago and got out of the corporate world and into sport," he said.
"I have lived and worked in regional areas so I understand how regions work and how the resourcing of regions work."
