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ADAM BLAIR says that while he is taking a back seat in his early days at Wests Tigers, he wants to develop into a leader at the club. And he has named the four fellow players who motivate him through their deeds.
Blair, the New Zealand vice-captain and former Melbourne second-rower who is one of the best buys by any club going into this season, nominated Petero Civoniceva, Paul Gallen, Luke Bailey and Gareth Ellis as his biggest inspirations.
''As leaders, those are the sort of guys I reckon a lot of players would look up to, because you know they are going to go out there and get their job done to a high level, week after week,'' Blair said yesterday.
''Paul Gallen leads from the front - always - and Petero has a massive influence on players with what he does on the field. Other players look up to him and try to be like him. Luke Bailey does so much hard work and Gareth Ellis just keeps going and always gives 100 per cent.''
Civoniceva, Bailey and Gallen have all played plenty of State of Origin and Test football, and Ellis is an English international. Each has accepted the responsibility of showing younger players the way, and Blair wants to do the same.
''I remember when I was a kid coming through, I really wanted someone to look up to and help me out,'' he said. ''If I can do something to lead the young blokes in the right direction, then that will be a big thing with me.
''I'm a pretty quiet bloke and I try to lead by my actions more than anything else. When I'm on the field I try to do something that helps give the team a lift. There are some terrific young forwards coming through at the Tigers and I'm really looking forward to playing with them.''
Coach Tim Sheens said Blair would quickly become a player with an important voice at the club. ''We don't name an official leadership group,'' he said. ''But there are senior players whom I discuss things with whenever it is necessary. Now that Adam is here, if I needed to talk to players he would be included among those. He's the vice-captain of his country, he's a leader.''
Tigers captain Robbie Farah said Blair had shown his leadership qualities in the limited time he had been at the club. Farah also thought Blair could be an even better player at the Tigers than he was at the Storm.
''I've heard him say one of the reasons he came here was because of the style we play,'' he said. ''I think maybe down at Melbourne he didn't get a chance to showcase his talents in attack. Hopefully, we can give him the licence to really damage teams on the edges with the lines he runs, the offloads and footwork.
''You don't want to go backwards as a footy player. The fact he is going to have Benji [Marshall] there, and that combination with Benji on the edge, will definitely be an advantage to him and us.
''I think he has always had those talents, but maybe we haven't seen them as well as he would have liked.''
[Source](http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/blair-shows-makings-of-a-leader-at-new-club-20120209-1rx40.html)
Blair, the New Zealand vice-captain and former Melbourne second-rower who is one of the best buys by any club going into this season, nominated Petero Civoniceva, Paul Gallen, Luke Bailey and Gareth Ellis as his biggest inspirations.
''As leaders, those are the sort of guys I reckon a lot of players would look up to, because you know they are going to go out there and get their job done to a high level, week after week,'' Blair said yesterday.
''Paul Gallen leads from the front - always - and Petero has a massive influence on players with what he does on the field. Other players look up to him and try to be like him. Luke Bailey does so much hard work and Gareth Ellis just keeps going and always gives 100 per cent.''
Civoniceva, Bailey and Gallen have all played plenty of State of Origin and Test football, and Ellis is an English international. Each has accepted the responsibility of showing younger players the way, and Blair wants to do the same.
''I remember when I was a kid coming through, I really wanted someone to look up to and help me out,'' he said. ''If I can do something to lead the young blokes in the right direction, then that will be a big thing with me.
''I'm a pretty quiet bloke and I try to lead by my actions more than anything else. When I'm on the field I try to do something that helps give the team a lift. There are some terrific young forwards coming through at the Tigers and I'm really looking forward to playing with them.''
Coach Tim Sheens said Blair would quickly become a player with an important voice at the club. ''We don't name an official leadership group,'' he said. ''But there are senior players whom I discuss things with whenever it is necessary. Now that Adam is here, if I needed to talk to players he would be included among those. He's the vice-captain of his country, he's a leader.''
Tigers captain Robbie Farah said Blair had shown his leadership qualities in the limited time he had been at the club. Farah also thought Blair could be an even better player at the Tigers than he was at the Storm.
''I've heard him say one of the reasons he came here was because of the style we play,'' he said. ''I think maybe down at Melbourne he didn't get a chance to showcase his talents in attack. Hopefully, we can give him the licence to really damage teams on the edges with the lines he runs, the offloads and footwork.
''You don't want to go backwards as a footy player. The fact he is going to have Benji [Marshall] there, and that combination with Benji on the edge, will definitely be an advantage to him and us.
''I think he has always had those talents, but maybe we haven't seen them as well as he would have liked.''
[Source](http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/blair-shows-makings-of-a-leader-at-new-club-20120209-1rx40.html)
