Slater can bolster Saints

NEW St Kilda leadership coach Billy Slater is confident of being able to make an impact at the Saints despite not having an AFL background.

The NRL and Melbourne Storm legend will begin a parttime role at Saints in the preseason and has not ruled out being involved in game-specific activities either.

“I’ll probably be listening more than talking (at the start), working out what makes the St Kilda Football Club tick and just trying to impart some of the things I’ve picked up over my career,” Slater said.

“The specifics and skills of the game are different but at the end of the day we’re a team trying to strive for one goal and we all want to pull in that one direction, that’s rugby league, that’s AFL, it’s soccer, rugby union, it’s all the same.”