New recruit Ryan Bastinac has revealed he is excited to work alongside his childhood idol, Lions champion and Assistant Coach Simon Black.

The 24-year-old who completed his first training session in Lions colours on Wednesday morning recalled approaching Black in his mid-teens asking for advice.

“'Blacky' was my idol growing up. He probably doesn't remember but I spoke to him when I was younger for some advice, I had question marks over my pace,” Bastinac told media following the session.

“I absolutely loved him and it's going to be awesome to work with him. He was a superstar of a player, so I'll be picking his brain as much as possible.”

Luckily for Bastinac, Black did remember the phone call and said he had been an admirer of the ex-Roo for many years.

“He's a quality midfielder,” Black said.

“I've been a big fan of Ryan and how he's gone about his footy over a long period.

“I played on Ryan before, when he was in the early stages of his career and I was well and truly coming towards the end.

“He challenged me through his running capability, he's a real competitor, and (with) ball in hand, really dangerous.”