Legendary Sydney Swan Michael O’Loughlin says it’s time for the current AFL ladder-leading team to make their own significant contribution to the club’s history.

One of Sydney’s most loved players and the first at the club to reach the 300-game landmark, O’Loughlin is excited by the 2012 Swans team, which has won eight straight matches.

The skilful forward nicknamed ‘Magic’ was keen to avoid making comparisons with the 2005 premiership-winning and 2006 grand final losing teams he played in.

“The young guys coming in they know about the 05-06 story, it’s their time now,” O’Loughlin said on Tuesday at the launch of his autobiography, Micky O, in Sydney.

“It’s their place to turn it on and really make a significant contribution to this footy club as well.”

O’Loughlin stuck to the Swans’ party line of never looking too far ahead.

“The strength of this footy club is they never get ahead of themselves, it’s always been like that since I arrived,” O’Loughlin said.

“(Sydney coach) John Longmire would be the absolute same and he’s doing a brilliant job.”

No Swan had played more than 260 games before O’Loughlin, who retired after the 2009 season with 303 games against his name.

His great friend and teammate Adam Goodes has since improved that mark to 311 and has given no indication of retiring any time soon.

Another of their contemporaries, hard nut midfielder Jude Bolton, is on 296 and should join the triple century club this season.

Yet another of O’Loughlin’s former teammates, Ryan O’Keefe, will notch his 250th appearance this weekend.

O’Loughlin wasn’t surprised by the longevity of the three players.

“They are the utmost professionals, the way they go about their footy,” O’Loughlin said.

“They are out on the track and are the first in and the last to leave and they do absolutely everything to the letter.”

O’Loughlin paid tribute to the influence on his career of Sydney coaches Ron Barassi, Rodney Eade and Paul Roos.

A match-up nightmare for opposing defenders, O’Loughlin said he loved watching the efforts of Sydney backs Ted Richards, Heath Grundy and Marty Mattner.

He retains involvement in the code as the high performance manager of the AIS AFL program.

“Looking after the best 18-year-olds in the country is one of the best jobs in the land,” he said.