But while he said the soon to be former Premier, who announced on Monday that he would be resigning from the role and as member for Bass later this week, will be missed, his absence won't stall any momentum heading towards August when AFL presidents will vote on a proposal for a Tasmanian AFL team.

"From a taskforce point of view, we were disappointed, as he [Gutwein] was terrific with his support of a Tassie team, an initiative that he inherited from Will Hodgman, and has done a terrific job in carrying that mantle and being involved in key times and providing support to us as a taskforce,'' former Penguin premiership player O'Brien said.

"We will miss that, of course, but we have a job to do as a taskforce and we are getting on to do that, and the important thing from our point of view is that the push for an AFL team for Tasmania is something that is supported by all sides of politics, and that has been a strong message from the beginning.

"That should take away a level of worry that people might have, and the other thing as well is that the taskforce itself is still in place with the people involved since day one that have the relationships with those within the AFL that are involved in the final stages of this push."

O'Brien said those behind the team push remained "well placed" thanks to its "robust" business plan, with work taking place with key AFL executives around the "final bits of information that they need and the support and advice that we can provide for the final push".

"Our job doesn't change and we are hopeful the support we receive from the new Premier will be as solid as it was from Peter,'' O'Brien said.

"He was instrumental in navigating some of those pinch points if you like, and the one that is talked about the most is when he advised he would hold back the money for North [Melbourne] and Hawthorn until such time that the dates for a team were clear, the sort of call he was entitled to make as Premier as he was representing the interests of Tasmanians.

"His involvement at key points and the strong relationship and respect between he and [AFL chief executive] Gil McLachlan was important, but those relationships do go deep within the taskforce.

"Peter's role at key times as the Premier was important, but there will be more key times going forward that will rely on the new Premier to speak on behalf of the government."

Gutwein's work in helping ensure Tasmania has a presence in the NBL was also acknowledged on Tuesday, with Tasmania JackJumpers owner Larry Kestleman saying that the club wouldn't be in existence if it wasn't for "Peter's vision, support and passion."

JackJumpers chairwoman Keryn Nylander said Gutwein had been a champion of Tasmanian sport and sportspeople.