By his own admission, Dylan Walker is the joker in the NZ Warriors pack, but coach Andrew Webster hopes that will translate to a strong leadership presence, come Saturday's clash against the Dolphins.
As Webster significantly shuffles his deck for the final regular season encounter, away to the NRL's newest club, Walker will assume the club captaincy for the first time.
He will step into the shoes of the injured Tohu Harris as skipper, as well as slotting in at lock, with the Warriors given the freedom to rotate, after securing a top-four spot last week.
A revelation off the interchange bench this season, Walker will make just his fifth start - the first four came at five-eighth with Te Maire Martin and Luke Metcalf unavailable through injury.
While the upcoming clash will be new in terms of leading the Warriors, as well as a rare start, Walker is taking it all in his stride.
"I think any player would say it's a privilege and honour to captain a club," he said. "It's pretty exciting.
"It probably hasn't hit me as much yet, but I'm excited to go out to the field this weekend and win a football game."
With so many stars rested, Walker stands out as the most experienced member of the starting 13. Regulars Shaun Johnson, Wayde Egan, Addin Fonua-Blake and Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad have all been rested, replaced by Ronald Volkman, Freddy Lussick, Bunty Afoa and Taine Tuaupiki respectively.
Aside from his abilities on the field, Webster outlines that there's no doubts over naming the 200-game veteran as a first-time captain.
"Dyl's got the best balance I've seen between having fun and when to be serious," said Webster.
"He loves rugby league, he can talk about it, he can give you detail. He's a real educator, and thinks about it deeply.
"He can also break the ice with a joke or have fun. He leads by his actions as well, he's a good player.
"I think he's the perfect leader for us this week."
That sense of fun is reflected by Walker himself, but make no mistake, when kickoff arrives, he knows exactly where his priorities will be.
"I'm a bit of a joker," he added. "I love to enjoy my time and put in a bit of banter with the boys.
"I don't take anything too seriously, but when footy rolls around, I switch on. Other than that, I'm pretty easy going.
"There won't be too much [different] there, to be honest."
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