Leigh Montagna is no stranger to leadership appointments. In fact, his inclusion in this year’s eight-man leadership group is the ninth time the veteran has been anointed as an official leader at the Saints.

In Round 1 the dual All Australian will become just the 12th player in St Kilda’s history to reach 250 games when the Saints travel to Adelaide Oval to face Port Adelaide.

For Montagna, his nomination in this year’s leadership group is a reflection of how highly his teammates still view him, and also an opportunity to work closely with the wave of youth sweeping through Seaford at the current time.

“It’s a nice honour, I think it’s now my ninth season in the leadership group. Its nice recognition that my peers still feel I’m one of the leaders of this club,” Montagna told saints.com.au.

“I always look forward to working with the younger guys and working under Nick Riewoldt, so I’m happy to be in it again.

Ahead of his 15th season, Montagna admits he feels as well prepared as ever for the start of another campaign. And given the fact the 32-year-old is coming off a year where he averaged 28.6 possessions across 17 games, perhaps it’s an ominous warning.

“My body feels as good as ever. I’ve got through another full pre-season and I’m fit and well with no injuries. I’m looking forward to getting into games and hopefully another successful season with the team,” he said.

For more than a decade Montagna has carved out a reputation as one of the most consistent game-breaking midfielders in the AFL. But in the back half of 2015, Montagna demonstrated his versatility by going behind the ball with devastating effect. A role we may see him perform more of this season.

“I’ve trained a little bit pre-season with the backs – I enjoy that, it’s a bit different, a bit stimulating to try and learn a new craft down in defence,” he said.

“Whether I play there or not when the season unfolds we’ll see, but at least I’ve been able to train there and I can add that string to my bow. So I’ll hopefully be able to play in all parts of the ground and wherever the coach needs me.”