Blair rapt to reach milestone

This year will go down as a year of milestones for Adam Blair, even if it was one during which he admits he didn’t play his best footy.

Earlier this year he played his

300th game in the NRL, becoming the third New Zealander to do so, following Ruben Wiki and Simon Mannering.

Tomorrow, against the Great Britain Lions in Auckland, he’ll play his 50th test for the Kiwis, with only Wiki ahead go him on

55 test caps.

‘‘It’s been a pretty special year. I haven’t really taken it all in I guess,’’ Blair told Stuff.

‘‘I played my 300th game and it was a bit of a struggle to get there and I haven’t really appreciated what I’ve been through and what I’ve done to get to 300 games.

‘‘Then to play 50 test matches for the Kiwis is something really special because there is only one other person who’s done it.

‘‘However, in some ways it means nothing because you’ve got to go out there and perform well and it makes it more of a milestone when you win on special occasions like this.’’

But the 33-year-old Blair could have found himself stuck on 48 test caps. He was overlooked for the mid-season test against Tonga and was initially not selected for the Nines World Cup or the year end tests against the Kangaroos and Lions.

However he earned a recall as an injury replacement firstly for the Nines, then kept his spot in the Kiwis for the tests.

It wasn’t until Blair got close to reaching a half century of test caps that it became something he thought about.

‘‘I probably saw 46 when I got presented a jersey and every time we have a jersey presentation they call out your number and how many tests you’ve played,’’ he said.

‘‘Last year it was at 46 and by then, that’s when I thought I might be able to play 50.

‘‘I was fortunate to be in the squad this year, because of the circumstances of some of the other boys, so in the back of my mind I never thought I was going to be here anyway.

‘‘But I am grateful to get this opportunity and to get in the record books with New Zealand as the second person to play 50 tests for this country.’’

Blair made his Kiwis debut in 2006, the same year he played his first NRL game, for the Storm.

His maiden test cap came in the 30-18 loss to Australia at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland. So a disappointing result, but that didn’t stop it being a big occasion for the then 20-year-old Blair.

‘‘It was a special moment because I was able to play in front of my family and friends,’’ he said.

‘‘I’d only been away from New Zealand for three years, so to be able to come back and have all my friends and family around to watch me against Australia was a special moment that I really enjoyed.’’

While 2019 will be a year Blair will be able to look back fondly on, it has also been a season where he’s come under criticism and it did result in him being dropped from the Warriors’ NRL team early in the season.

When reaching the 300-game milestone he admitted that achieving it did become a burden and affected his performances.

Blair was criticised for saying this, but he says he was just being honest, something he’s always tried to be about himself throughout his career.