The former Panthers and Gold Coast Titans workhorse finds himself in the the rare situation of inheriting a premiership winning side from former captain-coach Nathan Fien after the Butchers were unable to reach an agreement with the Kiwi International to coach again in 2015.

Fien’s departure - described as amicable by both parties - so soon after delivering the 2014 title surprised many in the league and Swain is aware it’s a hard act to follow.

‘‘I guess the only way is down,’’ Swain joked.

‘‘It’s a unique situation there’s not many blokes who have to come in and live up to that so the pressure is on a little bit.

‘‘They obviously had a great year last year and things went fantastic for them. They only dropped three games all year and they were ones they probably could have got away with.

‘‘I’m good mates with [Butchers centre] Damien Blanch and he gave the place a massive rap so I’m really excited to get down there.’’

Swain described the chance to notch another premiership with Waterhouse- 12 years after their 2003 triumph with the Panthers - as ‘‘unbelievable.’’

‘‘It [2003] feels like a lifetime ago but it also feels like last week sometimes,’’ he said.

‘‘It’s one of those surreal experiences you can’t compare to anything else.

‘‘Just to run around together again is a really exciting thing. The situation suited House down to the ground. 

‘‘He still wants to play a high level of footy but he’s looking to transition into life after professional rugby league. He’s always wanted to live down that way anyway so the stars just aligned for us.’’

On face value Swain - who made an NRL career of out-working much bigger rivals - is a perfect fit for the Butchers who showed the same quality en route to their 2014 premiership.

Swain and Waterhouse - boasting 298 NRL games between them - will provide the perfect replacement up front for the retired Jamie Feeney and grand final man of the match Mick Blackwell. But Swain will need to find some class in the backs with 2014 Paul McGregor Medal recipient Sam Clune joining Fien in departing the club after signing with Queensland Cup side Mackay Cutters for 2015. 

Swain said he hopes to add some more big names to the roster before season kickoff.

‘‘We’re still looking to add to the roster,’’ he said. 

‘‘Nothing’s set in stone but hopefully we’ve still got another pretty big name to come.’’