Ata Hingano is determined to build on an impressive World Cup campaign with Tonga ^Featured

Faced with the daunting task of steering Tonga's all-star forward pack around the field during last year's tournament, Hingano stepped up to play a key role in the Mate Ma'a's fairytale run into the semifinals.

It is not easy for a 20-year-old half with just 15 NRL games behind him to tell the likes of Jason Taumalolo and Andrew Fifita what to do.

Ata Hingano gets an early chance to impress in the halves during Saturday's trial against Melbourne.

But Hingano earned the respect of his high-profile teammates by playing with great poise and control, something he has been working overtime to replicate at club level.

Playing with such successful, experienced players taught me that there's no age to leadership," Hingano told Stuff.

"That gave me confidence coming back to the Warriors to hopefully try and self-lead in a way and being in the halves role allows me to do so."

At the same time Hingano was playing for Tonga, the Warriors confirmed the signing of experienced five-eighth Blake Green, leading to speculation the former Junior Kiwi could seek an early release from his contract.

In 13 games deputising for Shaun Johnson and Kieran Foran last year, Hingano improved with every appearance.

There was a school of thought that the club would have been better served by continuing his development in a starting role this season rather than spending a significant chunk of the salary cap on the 31-year-old Green.

Hingano admitted Green's arrival did come as a surprise given the former Junior Kiwi signed a three-year extension midway through last year.

But it didn't take him long to see the upside, with Hingano relishing the chance to learn as much as he can from the 206-game veteran.

"It wasn't as hard as a few articles have said it's been," Hingano said of Green's arrival.

"It did come as a surprise with me just re-signing but the first day I met 'Greeny' he was very approachable and since then, every day after training he's really helped me learn my role in the spine."

Coach Stephen Kearney has seen the benefits of Hingano's World Cup campaign on the training field and was left impressed by his response to the Green signing.

"Any young guy who has an ambition of playing first grade, which he certainly does, it wouldn't have been nice. But he's handled it really well," Kearney said.

"He's said himself he's taken some real learnings out of Blake and what Blake does on the footy field is really beneficial for the young halves that we've got here."

Depth is particularly crucial in the halves and, with an ability to cover hooker, Hingano is sure to feature in the coach's plans this season.

With Green and Johnson both rested from Saturday's opening trial against Melbourne in Rotorua, Hingano has an early chance to show just how much he has learned over the pre-season.

"It's the first game, it's going to be a big blow out and I can't wait," he said.

"Hopefully with all the confidence I've gained I can control the team around the field."

- Stuff