221. ADAM BLAIR
On 3 October 2017, it was announced that
Blair signed 3-year deal worth about $2.4 million with the New Zealand Warriors starting in 2018.
In Round 1, 2018
Blair made his Warriors debut.
After playing 65 games for the Warriors and 331 NRL altogether
Blair announced his retirement at the end of the
2020 NRL season.
Blair has done a lot of media work for Sky TV and Maori TV in the years since his retirement and has been an ambassador for the Warriors as well as helping coach the Warriors development teams.
In August 2022 the Warriors announced Adam
Blair as the clubs SG Ball coach for the 2023 season...
Adam Blair to coach Warriors' SG Ball team
17:17, Aug 17 2022
CAMERON SPENCER/GETTY IMAGES
Adam
Blair will take charge of the Warriors’ under-19 team next season.
Former Kiwis and NRL premiership winners Adam
Blair and Slade Griffin have been named as head coaches of the Warriors’ two flagship pathways teams which will re-enter the New South Wales Cup and SG Ball Cup competitions next year.
In confirming the return to the competitions after a Covid-enforced absence over the last three seasons, Warriors CEO Cameron George said current NRL assistant coach Griffin will guide the New South Wales Cup side while
Blair will step into the SG Ball Cup role after working as a coach in the club’s Future Warriors programme.
“In Slade and Adam we have two talented emerging coaches who have already made a huge contribution to the club,” George said.
“With the Warriors at last coming home after being in Australia for the past three seasons, they’re an ideal fit as we look to re-launch these pathways teams and revive the model we had pre-Covid to support our NRL side.
“Through their time with us, Slade and Adam have a real understanding and knowledge of what the Warriors stand for and what we are striving to achieve in developing our players for both the present and the future.
The club’s first foray into the renowned SG Ball Cup in
2020 began impressively but the competition was cancelled in March along with the New South Wales Cup.
While there have been challenges since
2020, George says the club has still made significant progress in development.
He points to the large number of players coming through the club’s programme. Several contracted juniors have been based in Australia where they have been playing for feeder the Redcliffe Dolphins in Queensland competitions. More than 80 players are coming through the club’s Future Warriors programme.
“We have made a greater investment into this area than ever before over the last few years despite Covid’s impact and our investment will step up significantly in the coming years,” George said.
“Despite operating in a difficult climate with no competitions at our disposal, Athens Henare, Tony Iro and Grant Pocklington have been doing a fantastic job with our development.
“They’ve come up with a number of innovative ways to give our young players experience.”
These included running a preseason programme from November through to February, entering a side in the World Schools Rugby Sevens, running coaching and player development days throughout the country, supporting the Auckland Rugby League’s Dean Bell Cup (under-18) and
Shaun Johnson Shield (under-16) competitions, having players involved in an under-16 and under-18 North Island tour and putting on a South Island coaching and player development day.
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The Warriors have announced two former Kiwis will play a big role in developing the next group of players at the club.
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