Mentor Justin Hodges sparked Ben Barba's decision to join Brisbane Broncos WHEN Ben Barba decided six months ago he wanted to wear a Brisbane Broncos jersey, the major reason was a man now more important than ever  Justin Hodges. It can be revealed that a desire to be mentored by the State of Origin veteran and Indigenous leader meant Barba never entertained joining a club other than Brisbane. Hodges has been a sounding board and inspiration for Barba in recent times. Their friendship dates back several years, forged in All Stars camps and when Barba joined the Maroons as 18th man. With his life again in turmoil following the emergence of photos showing an alleged victim with a busted mouth, Barba will truly need Hodges" advice. Bulldogs superstar Ben Barba. Barba's alleged assault of a female in February is to be formally investigated by the NRL Integrity Unit. Barba was always going to follow his two children to southeast Queensland where they will live with his former partner Ainslie Currie. Yet he never contemplated playing for the Gold Coast Titans. The Broncos have a proud history of bringing the best out of indigenous athletes, from Steve Renouf to Gordon Tallis and now captain Sam Thaiday. Barba, who has not received an extra cent to come to Brisbane, is privately concerned Broncos fans will not warm to him because of the circumstances of his arrival. The truth is, he has long desired to wear the Broncos' jersey. Broncos chief executive Paul White confirmed Barba's friendship with Hodges was a major lure for the 23-year-old. "Justin's the one that really helped get Ben here," White said. Indigenous All Stars teammates Ben Barba and Justin Hodges celebrate. Picture: Peter Wallis He has quite a few friends here but Justin's the main one. Justin will be a help to Ben. Josh Hoffman has been friends with him for a long time too and they both grew up in Mackay. We are a family based club and that means honest council and tough conversation. We back ourselves to manage those (off-field) parts of Ben's life. I'm looking forward to what he can offer the community here as a proud young indigenous man and I believe he has the potential to be an Indigenous leader. Hodges has battled a series of personal demons to emerge as great ambassador for rugby league and his people. In 2010 he struggled with depression following a season-ending achilles injury. He was also engulfed in a series of personal issues a decade ago when he skipped training sessions while playing for the Sydney Roosters. Barba last week confirmed the long-gestating rumours of being offside with Canterbury Bulldogs teammates were true. "Hopefully in the next few weeks we can, if there was a problem, get it out in the open," he told Fox Sports. The situation is a bit funny. I told them time would heal (things). Hopefully it does and we can move on. Barba will walk into the Broncos" Fulcher Rd base without those issues as the team is genuinely excited at the prospect of fielding the game-breaking fullback.