The 30-year-old brings a wealth of experience certain to help the Demons’ young developing squad.

Melbourne general manager of football Josh Mahoney said Lewis brought leadership qualities and an elite AFL mindset.

“Clearly he is an elite AFL player and his footballing resume speaks for itself, but we also see Jordan as a leader who can play a major role in the development and mentoring of our younger players both on and off the field,” he said.

“We know we are still a very young team. We are projecting to have half of our best 22 under the age of 23 next season and that’s why bringing in a player of Jordan’s experience and calibre was important to us.”

Lewis paid tribute to Hawthorn and said the talent on Melbourne’s list drew him to joining the club.

“I looked at every Club in the competition and after going through every list, Melbourne was the one that stood out – if I wasn’t going to be at Hawthorn. It was clear to me that I wanted to play for the Melbourne Football Club,” he said.