Adam Blair has been given the honour of captaining the Kiwis at this year's Rugby League World Cup, something he never thought would happen.
The prop has previously been a co-captain along with Issac Luke during the 2015 tour of England, but after Jesse Bromwich was not considered due to off-field issues, Blair was given full reins - something he will cherish for a long time.
The 31-year-old, who made his Kiwis debut back in 2006, is one of four players who were a part of the squad that shocked the Rugby League world winning the 2008 World Cup.
But five years later he missed out on selection after a poor run of form and has had to work his way back up to the top.
It has been a rocky road for Blair who has cherished every single one of his 41 Tests.
"Every time you get to wear the jersey, it is an honour and a privilege and it is never guaranteed," explained Blair.
"It has been a cool little journey. I have enjoyed most of it on my way through - I have had ups and downs, been out of the Kiwis couple of times, been back in it.
'I know how people feel when you lose out on selection and how disappointed when you don't get picked but I guess that has all matured me into the person I am today.
"I always thought I'd play for my country but to be able to lead the Kiwis into a World Cup on home soil is obviously a massive honour and privilege."
Part of maturing into the player he is today has been understanding more about the Code of Conduct the players must sign before the tournament.
Blair admitted when he was younger he never read it, but he now has an understanding of how important it is and is trying to inspire the younger players in the squad to try avoiding the mistakes he made when he first entered camp.
"You do sign a code of conduct every year and there are lots of them, the NRL has one, the World Cup has one, we have one so there is a lot of information to read.
"I'll be honest as a kid coming through I wouldn't have read them because there's too much paperwork and it just doesn't excite me or I never paid too much attention to it.
"I think young people are still the same and unless you sit down with the group and go through it as a team you don't take too much notice of it but with everything that has gone one with New Zealand Rugby League previously it was important we sat down as a group and went through it together.
"The rules are there because most of time people want to break those rules. I guess it is important that we don't see them as rules we see them as I guess our values to what we want to achieve and the legacy we leave in this jersey."
Blair will lead a squad of 24-players at the World Cup, which features five uncapped, including Nelson Asofa-Solomona … a player Blair is excited to play with.
"He has had a great year in Melbourne and he has developed into a footballer. He is young, 120 and something kilos, can play footy, has skills.
"I've been around for a while and to watch the Kiwis boys develop through the NRL is exciting for us and to be able to play alongside some of them who are just 21 is exciting."
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