The Brisbane Broncos have backed Adam Blair to succeed in his new role as captain of the Kiwis, with both coach Wayne Bennett and teammate Benji Marshall delivering glowing endorsements of the forward's leadership skills.
In the wake of former New Zealand captain Jesse Bromwich being stood down for the end-of-year World Cup following an off-field incident after this year's Anzac Test, Kiwis coach David Kidwell announced last Sunday that Blair would assume the role.
When asked about Blair's credentials as a captain, Bennett said the 31-year-old would make an ideal skipper for the national team.
"He is a very stable bloke, extremely responsible and always plays well himself which is a pretty big part in your captain," Bennett said.
"He has a great rapport with the players. Certainly he has meant a lot to the Broncos, I can tell you that.
"Adam Blair; pretty outstanding bloke."
Blair has prior experience leading the Kiwis, having been the co-captain with Issac Luke during New Zealand's 2015 tour of England, while he also led the Broncos in last week's 28-10 loss to the Warriors in Auckland.
According to Marshall, himself a former Kiwis skipper, Blair has evolved as a leader in recent years.
"You saw [against the Warriors] what he can do as captain, he leads by his actions and I think I saw a bit of a difference in Adam out there. I thought his whole chat when were down, and looked down and out, was quite confident and gave the boys a lot of help," Marshall told NRL.com.
"He shows great leadership on the field and I think he would be a great Kiwi captain."
In 12 NRL Telstra Premiership matches this year Blair averages 93 metres and 24 tackles, and his influence has helped Brisbane to become one of the competition's most efficient forward packs.
