Reformed Sydney Roosters bad boy Mitchell Pearce is now an NRL role model, according to former club star and mentor Craig Wing.
It's a year to the day the Roosters were rocked by footage of the their star disgracing himself on Australia Day, resulting in a stripping of the co-captaincy and an eight-game ban.
However the man who helped Pearce come through the ranks believes the Roosters No.7 has learnt from his ordeal and is now the leader the club needs him to be.
"I took him under my wing from the get-go, and he was a bit of a larrikin back then. That's what we love about Australians," Wing told AAP.
"But I've caught up with him recently and he's a man now. It really just gave him a perspective on what his rugby league career was, what it meant to him and the impact he had on others.
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"Although he's going to have the stigma of that incident live with him for the rest of his life, I think it's really changed him as a man for the better.
"When I talk to him, he just seems so much more level-headed, a much better role model."
The Roosters have reportedly moved to ensure there is no repeat of last year's scandal, which began with a club-sanctioned boat cruise, by scheduling a training session on Friday.
Wing, who is adamant Pearce was unfairly dealt with for his Australia Day drama, said it was a smart move by coach Trent Robinson and his staff.
"I know Robbo, and everything he does is for a purpose. It's a good idea," he said.
After retiring from the game in 2009 to embark on a rugby union career in Japan, Wing returned to Australia and was on Wednesday announced as an NRL ambassador.
The former Australian and NSW State of Origin star said he was looking forward to helping educate players in making better decisions off the field, like Pearce's Australia Day drama.
"I was listening to Trent Robinson talk the other day and he brought up a really good point - it's not about saying to players that you can't do this or can't do that," Wing said.
"Robbo said that the roles have now changed for the clubs and the management. It's more about educating the players to be better men, so that they make better decisions.
"Instead of putting a boundary around them, it's about educating them so that they no longer want to do certain kind of things that's going to put them in harm's way."
