HALLAM Amos will lead Newport Gwent Dragons for the first time in Treviso tonight and he is the perfect fit as captain.

I'll be sat at home after missing training earlier this week with a bit of a bug whilst vice-captains Rhys Thomas and Nick Crosswell aren't in the XV this time.

That means Hallam skippers the side and I know that he will take it in his stride – he is one of the calmest players that I have seen.

Nothing fazes Hallam, whether it's starting for Wales against world champions New Zealand at Eden Park or running out first at the Stadio Monigo.

He will lead by example but also speaks well and it was also nice to read in the Argus that he said he is happy to commit to the Dragons; if he wasn't happy here then I don't think he would have accepted Kingsley's offer of the captaincy.

It's frustrating to miss out this weekend but in 11 seasons as a professional rugby player this is only my third or fourth 'sickie'.

Twice before I've felt like I was on my deathbed with tonsillitis and this time was a combination of a battered body and a bit of illness thrown in.

I had to miss training and we need to be fully-prepared this week so it was only right that I sit it out, while the coaches are also keen to manage the squad better this season.

It's a case of being proactive rather than reactive; it's a long season and we all need to have consistency of performances rather than peaks and troughs.

In 2013/14 I started all our league games and played 26 times in total but I could feel my performances slipping a bit towards the end. That wasn't down to a lack of effort, I was just knackered.

In the modern game to play every game at a high level does take it out of you and Kingsley and his coaches know that they need to rest and rotate to keep everyone fresh and motivated.

That also means that players are coming in keen to take their opportunity and it's a delicate balancing act for the management to try and keep everyone happy.

Players that come in need to know that they will get rewarded if they take their chance.

Certain individuals certainly did that against Munster last weekend and it was an encouraging performance, even if we didn't quite get the win that we wanted.

There had to be a reaction to our under-par display against Zebre and there was, our attitude was excellent and our intent to play was there to see.

But for a training ground move that they executed perfectly we would've won the game but Munster are a quality side and take their chances, something we have not quite done enough on a regular basis.

Munster are not the team of old but have the winning mentality and ground out the win, even if I thought we did enough to win it at the end.

The performance was good and the attitude of the boys was outstanding; now we need to demand that every week delivering consistently and it starts with the boys in Italy tonight.

It's always a tough game in Treviso but I'm confident if we stick to the game plan and have the same intent we will get the job done and head into next Friday's home game with a strong Glasgow side on the back of a win.

Off the field it was great to be invited to go to Heolddu Comprehensive School for their awards evening on Wednesday night for a little talk and to present awards.

Life Education Wales, the company I run with my friend and business partner Richard Davenport, did some workshops there last year and it was nice to be able to return and see some of the school's achievers getting the success after the hard work they put in.

Our mantra is 'Dare to Dream' and it's great to see so many pupils certainly doing that at Heolddu.