That's the word that springs to mind first when I'm asked how I feel about training and playing alongside Mitchell Pearce every week.

I feel privileged that I get the chance to be inspired by the bloke and his passion for the game because it's infectious.

He plays his 300^th top grade game on Sunday against the Tigers. That's a lot of games and a hell of a lot of training sessions to prepare for them.

And yet 'Ju' [Pearce] still bounces into training every time for every session like he's still the 17-year-old debuting all those years ago for the Roosters.

The only difference is he does it now with this aura around him. He treats everyone the same, it doesn't matter how experienced or how young you are. The young guys, particularly the young halves, hang off his every word. And he's always got time for all of them.

What probably helps 'Ju' is the fact he just loves footy so much. He lives and breaths it. He'd talk footy 24/7 if he could. It's why it won't surprise me if he is still playing when he is 40 and smashing all sorts of records in the process.

He's almost 32 now but at training, he is still at the head of the field with everything we do. His fitness levels are freakish and the example he sets everyone in that regard is second to none.

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When I was in negotiations with the Knights a few years back, he was one of the first blokes I called. We'd played Origin together and I really respected him and wanted to hear from him what Newcastle had to offer.

The big thing with him back then was his desire to help lift the club out of the doldrums and win another premiership up here. He really sold me on that. You could hear his passion down the phone line.

Nothing has changed with him in that regard. He still talks about winning comps just about every day. He is just so driven and that's what is so inspiring about him because a premiership is a box I desperately want to tick in Newcastle as well.

Yeah, he has been in some strife off the field and has copped plenty but everyone makes mistakes in their lives. And he has never shied away from anything he has done.

He's faced the music and his resilience and toughness has got him through it and he's bounced back out the other side with plenty of support from the staff and teammates around him.

I can't say one bad word about the bloke, even if he is guilty of screaming a lot on the field. And when I say screaming, I mean screaming. It would be hilarious to have him miked up for a game. I'm not talking screaming at teammates or opposition players, I'm talking just letting out these screams because he is having so much fun out there.

It will be huge on Sunday and it will be extra special for all of us to really play well for 'Ju's' big day.

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