Sonny Bill Williams is not getting too far ahead of himself, at least publicly, shutting down talk of his certain All Blacks call-up for the November tour.
His return to New Zealand rugby, at the Counties Manukau Steelers training base at Drury, was a far cry from the glamour of the NRL, which he left just 10 days ago. The weather was wet and cold, and the surroundings far from salubrious. He was put through his paces by Steelers coach Tana Umaga, who worked with him at Toulon from 2008-10.
"I haven't thought about that, to be honest. It's just step by step with Counties at the moment. If you start thinking about all those things, then things don't fall into place," Williams said of the All Blacks. "I need to earn my stripes here and the respect of the boys."
"First day today, just happy to be here with the boys, learning all the structures. I started to tweak the memory bank. A lot of the plays at Counties are the same as the Chiefs. I'm confident that I'll be able to get the feel back."
The 29-year-old said he followed the Chiefs and All Blacks closely in his 18-month hiatus from rugby, not to mention keeping tabs on the ITM Cup.
"I stay up to date with what's going on. I kept a close eye on how the Counties boys are going."
He looks in good shape, and says he is highly motivated to play some good footy back in his old code.
"You do miss it, and the friendships along the way. It was good to reconnect. It's a whole new challenge and chapter of my life."
Williams said that he was loving working with Umaga again. The pair have a solid rapport, and the former All Blacks great will be able to ensure Williams gets up to speed at the breakdown, where he excelled in his career.
He was uncertain exactly how the Steelers will use him - their side to play Auckland in Pukekohe on Wednesday night is not named until tomorrow afternoon - but it is likely he will come off the bench and then start against the Tasman Makos in Blenheim tomorrow.
