“The good thing is people can have hard conversations with each other and know that we’re all aiming towards the same thing - winning games and winning the premiership.”

Former Rebels skipper Wells is in his first year at the Force and teams up with his leadership group for something of a ‘good cop, bad cop’ routine.

“I tend to be more of the hardline (critic), because that’s how I review my own self,” he said.

“(Finding a balance) is also about having a mix of personalities in the leadership group

“You’ve got the guys more attuned to that nice, warm shoulder for guys to lean on and help out. I definitely think someone like Bryce Hegarty is a good cop.

“And it’s also (about) not consistently beating someone over the head with a stick.

“It’s knowing when to give a carrot, incentivise people, and then knowing, ‘OK, now we’ve been a bit too nice, it’s time for some hard truths’.

“It’s a fine balance.”

The Blues have had a topsy-turvy start to the season, opening their campaign with a 60-20 win over the Highlanders, losing to the Brumbies 25-20 and beating the Hurricanes 25-19, before losing 34-28 to the Crusaders last week.

AAP