St Kilda has signed Melbourne Storm great Billy Slater in a leadership role for next season

ST KILDA has secured one of the biggest signatures of the off-season, securing rugby league and Melbourne Storm great Billy Slater in a leadership role for next season.

Billy Slater in action for Melbourne Storm. Picture: Michael Klein

ST KILDA has secured one of the biggest signatures of the off-season.

Rugby league and Melbourne Storm great Billy Slater has joined the Saints in a leadership role for next season.

Slater worked on his leadership under Collingwood premiership captain Nick Maxwell at the Storm and will take a similar position at Moorabbin.

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After retiring from the NRL following Melbourne’s Grand Final defeat, Slater took on a coaching role with the Storm but will now also work part-time with Saints players, coaches and high-performance staff.

The Storm culture is revered in Australian sport and the Saints hope Slater can develop those values at St Kilda.

“Billy’s sporting resume is second to none, and he will add great value to our club,” Saints football manager Simon Lethlean said.

Billy Slater scores a try against Fiji in the Rugby League World Cup.

“He’s been an impressive leader in his own right, but he’s also been a key member of a culture that is highly respected across all sports.

“Over the course of the season, we identified that there was an opportunity to strengthen our leadership and development programs, and we think Billy can play an important role in that.”

Slater finished his career on 319 NRL games, scoring 190 NRL tries, the second most in league history.

The fullback is a one-time Dally M Medallist, two-time Clive Churchill Medallist and one-time Rugby League Golden Boot winner to go with his two NRL premierships, eight State of Origin titles, and two World Cup wins.