When Le Bris took over at Sunderland a year-and-a-half ago, Ballard was unavailable because of injury and a succession of niggling issues in the first half of last season meant the Northern Irishman only started nine of the first 30 games of the Championship campaign.
He was sidelined again towards the end of the season, and while he returned to play a pivotal role in the play-offs, scoring the dramatic extra-time goal against Coventry City that took Sunderland to Wembley, Le Bris never quite felt he was at his physical peak.
A groin injury in the early stages of August’s defeat at Burnley ruled him out again at the start of this season, and had Omar Alderete and Reinildo Mandava not been unavailable at various stages of the last month, he might well have found himself out of the side.
As it is, he has started Sunderland’s last four matches, playing a starring role in Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal with a goal, an assist and a crucial stoppage-time block, and Le Bris is delighted with the physical shape he has returned in since recovering from his most recent setback.
“Last season, he had an injury early in the season, so he struggled to find a good rhythm,” said Le Bris, whose side headed into the international break sitting in fourth position in the Premier League table. “If you miss the pre-season, I think physically it's difficult to find the right connection with your own performance, the squad and so on.
“He showed at the end of the season that he was a really good defender. So, it was mainly a question of form and consistency for him. I think now, he has found the right way.”
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Giving Ballard the best possible chance of remaining fit has involved drawing up an individually-tailored training programme which the 26-year-old is sticking to.
The aim is to make the centre-half more robust, with Ballard’s status as a regular international starter meaning he is subjected to a heavy playing schedule. Northern Ireland face World Cup qualifiers against Slovakia and Luxembourg in the next week.
“With the coaching staff and with all the staff we have around the player, we’re trying to find the right balance,” said Le Bris. “Because it's a specific profile. You can't train Ballard like you train a midfielder or someone like that.
“I hope it will be the case [that he stays fully-fit] for the following stages of the season. At the minute, I think he’s in good shape, so we want to continue like this.”
Le Bris is also hoping to see Ballard continue to develop as a defender as he spends more time playing in the Premier League and training with the team-mates that arrived in the summer.
The former Arsenal trainee has made giant strides since he was allowed to leave the Emirates in the summer of 2022, first successfully establishing himself as a Championship player and then handling the step up to the top-flight.
He has impressed in both boxes this season, defending with wholehearted commitment at one end while offering a huge aerial threat from set-pieces at the other, but Le Bris does not feel he is anywhere close to his peak.
“He’s tall, he’s big, he’s aggressive,” said the Sunderland boss. “And he has good quality. I think he’s talented as a defender, and I hope he’ll continue to grow like that.
“If you experience the Premier League like we are doing now, then I think you can learn every time you play. So, I think that’s the case for him.
“Our team-mates are probably better this season, and our opponents are better this season too. If you are consistent, if you are playing many games, then I think you learn every day.”