It came as a surprise to many outside of Mangoplah-Cookardinia United-Eastlakes when Cunningham was voted in as the Goannas' new president last October.

Like most his age, Cunningham admits he was one of the boys, who loved a beer and a good time.

But for those inside the club at MCUE, the appointment was the completion of an impressive transformation from a young bloke who had only arrived at the club midway through 2018.

Cunningham was quick to get involved. He joined the Goannas' committee for 2019 and also accepted the job as reserve grade coach.

Less than 12 months later, he was approached to replace Graeme Killalea as MCUE president.

"It came up towards the end of the year, we knew that Killa (Graeme Killalea) wasn't going to take on the presidency again," Cunningham explained.

"Someone threw up the idea to me and suggested that you'd do an ok job at it. At first I sort of laughed it off, but as the year progressed and as I gained some more experience from coaching and the committee, I actually felt like responsibility definitely makes me a better person."

Cunningham has always enjoyed trying to make a difference but it was what the role could do for him personally that was just as attractive.

"It's just my personality, I love helping people and having a positive impact on people's lives," he said.

"So, definitely a component of it was, personally, it makes me a better person. That may come across as selfish but that was definitely a factor in making the decision.

"It wasn't a decision I took lightly either. It's a big ask and I thought about it, and thought about it, and I just thought why not? What a great opportunity to try and have a positive impact on the club.

"There's so many members within the club and it ranges from 17 to 80 or whatever. Boys, girls, and I thought what a great opportunity to try and have a positive impact.

"That was pretty much the main reason for taking it on."

Cunningham has now removed himself from being 'one of the boys' as he steps up to lead the club. Again, he says it is a transition that has been made easier by last year's decision to take on senior roles.

"My first year there I was just one of the boys. I love a beer and a good time," he said.

"When I took on the ressies coaching and joined the committee, I really grew up a lot more and matured in that short amount of time, in that football season, and really decided that I've got to pull my head in and do the right thing and lead by example, otherwise if I'm not leading by example then why am I in a position or role of leadership, I shouldn't be there.

"As much as I probably wouldn't have seen it, as an 18-year-old I wouldn't have mapped out my future as being a president at 24, that's for sure, but the transition it has been tough but I think last year was a great stepping stone and I think I can step it up again this year."

Cunningham said the playing group, his mates, have accepted his move to responsibility.

"The boys have been fine with it," he said.

"I suppose from an outsider's perspective it would definitely come as a surprise with a 24-year-old taking on the presidency but certainly within the footy club, I don't think it came as much of a surprise."

He also added that while he is president, it is very much a team effort from a committee that he has a lot of time for.

"It may seem it got pushed on me, and we might have an inexperienced committee and this and that, and people start talking but at the end of the day I've got a great committee with their own experiences," he said.

"I've got a few successful building owners, real estate managers, local farmers, club hall of famer and then I've got a couple of people with youth that connect to the playing groups of the netball and football.

"We've definitely got a great balance of youth and experience on our committee so I'm pretty comfortable with the fact I'm only 24 and taking on the role."

Cunningham could not have seen coming what he has had to deal with in his first six months as president. But despite the uncertainty surrounding the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he is happy with how he is settling into his position.

"So far, I think it's the sort of year, it's not really the typical year, but I've found it fine so far," he said.

"Obviously some things I question myself on, am I doing the right thing here but I've put a good support structure around me and I've got blokes like Dave Griffin, he's my direct mentor, he's an ex-president, and I also bounce ideas off Phil Davis and Graeme Killalea, who are both ex-presidents as well, and also Rowie.

"When I need that support I've got it right there.

"I know it's definitely not going to run as smoothly as it probably has been and there is definitely things that are more difficult than others but at the end of the day, I'm a pretty honest bloke and if I know I've made a dumb decision and gone about it the wrong way, I'm honest with myself and I know next time I'll go about it in a different way."

Cunningham said he has been humbled by the support from the football community since he took on the job.

"It's amazing the support I've already received since taking the job on. I was really surprised by the outside support you get," he said.

"The first person I talked to as the president of Mango was Jason Hamblin, the president of Ganmain. We were discussing something about the season and he said to me if you're ever unsure about something don't ever hesitate to give me a call, I'll help you out.

"I just believe that attitude is so important for the future sustainability of country footy. Sure, once you cross the white line, it's on but off the field you need to be supporting one another because at the end of the day, it's just a game of footy."

Cunningham said one lesson he has already learnt is that most footballers have no idea how much work goes into running a club.

He believes most footballers would be guilty of not appreciating how much work a committee does to allow them to play each week.

"Absolutely. It's definitely opened my eyes up," he said.

"Obviously it was my first year on the committee last year but from a player's perspective you just don't appreciate how much volunteers actually do.

"I remember I was saying to Mum and Dad, I'd receive the odd email here and there but then in the first few weeks of joining the committee, I had 1000s of emails and I was like, what have I got myself into? But you definitely have to have a love for it, joining a committee, it's not for everyone but you certainly appreciate the volunteer and you've only got to put in a few hours a week, and it may be daunting to some but at the end of the day, if we didn't have footy, we'd have boring lives. That's how I view it."

So after starting out his career at Turvey Park, where he was a junior, then spending three seasons at Marrar, where he shone in their 2017 premiership campaign, how does Cunningham find himself as president of a club he had little to with up until two seasons ago?

"It's always something people bring up and have a joke about," Cunningham said with a laugh.

" You've played at all these clubs and now you're president of this. I just say, do you think I'd take on the job as president if I wasn't passionate about the club? And obviously Turvey junior, yep, and I'm proud of that. And Marrar, I loved my years at Marrar and obviously won a premiership, but I'm definitely bleeding blue and gold."

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