Adam Blair

Adam Ngawati Blair (born 20 March 1986) is a New Zealand rugby league coach and former professional rugby league footballer who played as a forward and in the National Rugby League (NRL), and the New Zealand and the New Zealand Māori international teams.

Blair was a Junior Kiwi in 2002 and 2003.

In Round 4, Blair made his NRL debut for the Melbourne Storm against the Wests Tigers where he played off the interchange bench in the Storms' 30–28 loss at Leichhardt Oval.

He played off the bench in the Storm's 15-8 grand final loss to the Brisbane Broncos.

Blair was awarded the Rookie of the Year for the club, playing in 16 matches during the season.

Blair previously played for the Melbourne Storm between 2006 and 2011, where he won the 2009 NRL Grand Final, which was later stripped due to salary cap breaches, the Wests Tigers between 2012 and 2014, the Brisbane Broncos between 2015 and 2017, and finally the New Zealand Warriors between 2018 and his final season in 2020.

Awarded with selection in the New Zealand national rugby league team 2006 Tri-Nations series squad, Blair made his international debut against Australia, playing off the interchange bench in the 30–18 loss at Mt Smart Stadium on 14 October.

Blair played in all 4 matches of the tournament including the Kiwis 16-12 Tri-Nations Final loss against Australia.

Blair missed most of the 2007 NRL season due to a foot injury which he suffered in the last year's Tri-Nations Final, playing in only 8 matches for the Storm.

On 9 May, Blair played for New Zealand in the historical Centenary Test against Australia in a 28–12 loss.

In the Storm's preliminary finals match against the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, Blair scored his first NRL career try in the 28–0 win at Sydney Football Stadium.

On 5 October, Blair played off the bench in the Storm's 40-0 Grand Final loss to the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles.

He was a member of the New Zealand side that won the 2008 World Cup, and has captained the team and played for the NRL All Stars.

Blair has also been employed by Sky Sport (New Zealand) as a presenter during rugby league shows.

Blair was born in Whangarei, New Zealand, and is of Māori descent.

Blair played his junior football for the Northland Carvers and attended Whangarei Boys' High School before recruited by the Melbourne Storm as a 16-year-old where he moved to Brisbane, Queensland and played for their feeder club the Norths Devils with Greg Inglis while attending Wavell State High School.

He finished the 2008 NRL season with him playing in 27 matches and scoring 1 try.

After the Grand Final, Blair was named in the final 24-man New Zealand squad for the World Cup.

In the match against Papua New Guinea, Blair scored his first international try and was named as the Man-of-the-Match in the 48–6 win at Cbus Super Stadium.

On 23 November, he started at prop and scored a try as New Zealand defeated Australia 34–20 in the Final at Suncorp Stadium.

Blair played in all 6 matches for the Kiwis in the tournament.

On 8 May, Blair played for New Zealand in the 2009 ANZAC Test, where he started at prop in the 38–10 loss.

On 4 October, Blair played in the Storm's 2009 NRL Grand Final against the Parramatta Eels, where he started at second-row and scored the second try of the match and set up Billy Slater's try to lead the team to the 23–16 victory.

He scored 2 tries in 29 matches in 2009.

Blair was also named vice-captain of the Kiwis for the Four Nations and played in all 3 of their matches.

As vice-captain for the Kiwis, Blair was an automatic selection for the NRL All Stars team against the Indigenous All Stars where he started at prop in the 16–12 loss.

On 7 May, he played lock for New Zealand in the 2010 ANZAC Test.

Blair finished the Storm's drama-filled 2010 NRL season with 1 try from 22 matches.

He was chosen in the 23-man New Zealand Four Nations squad.

On 13 November, in New Zealand's Four Nations Final match against Australia, Blair started at prop as the Kiwis won 16-12 after a try to Nathan Fien with 2 minutes to fulltime.

Blair played in 4 matches in the tournament.

In Round 2 against the Gold Coast Titans, Blair played his 100th NRL career match in the Storm's 40–12 win at AAMI Park.

On 6 May, he played for New Zealand in the 2011 ANZAC Test.

On 13 July, it was confirmed that Blair signed a 4-year-deal with the Wests Tigers starting from 2012 worth around $500,000 a season.

In Round 25 against Manly in the match dubbed as the "Battle of Brookvale" after Blair's involvement in a fight with Manly forward Glenn Stewart made headlines around the world.

The incident started with a fight between Manly's Darcy Lussick and Melbourne's Ryan Hinchcliffe, after Hinchcliffe elbowed Lussick as he tackled him.

Other players, including, notably, Stewart and Blair, joined in the melee.

But while the drama should have ended with Stewart and Blair being sin-binned, instead it escalated.

Stewart, sin-binned first, walked off.

Blair, sin-binned second, jogged off.