KEY POINTS:
It is a much calmer Ma'a Nonu who presents himself these days, not the twitchy agitated soul who used to front at question-and-answer time.
Those days it seemed more question than answer, the midfielder was always on the defensive and you could understand why. He was an All Black but never a permanent fixture as he was shuffled around the backline or used from the bench.
He is guarded as he surveys his 19th test tomorrow against Ireland on his home ground in Wellington, leaning against the wall in the corner of the room just out of the mainstream focus. His caution has to be the result of that small test tally since his debut on the same ground six seasons ago.
But Nonu is back in midfield where he feels his range of skills and speed are best suited at international level. He accepts he can roam around the backline for the Hurricanes, fill in where they think he is most dangerous but for the All Blacks, he likes the midfield just fine.
His only previous start at second five-eighths was against France in Paris in 2006. Last year there were two early substitute appearances, then a blank, not even a trip to the World Cup.
"He has had a long apprenticeship and after that test in Paris we were hopeful for him," backs coach Wayne Smith said. "We like him in midfield, he has worked hard on his passing which was probably the best in the Super 14 and now we want to see that applied.
"We know he can bust the line and make more breaks than anyone in the competition and we think he has got his head around the game, he is not so hyped up which helps his motor skills."
Nonu's midfield meeting with Ireland's new wunderkid, Luke Fitzgerald, was going to be one of the most fascinating aspects of the All Blacks opening test of the season.
Fitzgerald is being spoken of as a better prospect than his captain Brian O'Driscoll, someone with dancing powder in his rugby boots, great instincts, pace and plenty of courage for the defensive duties.
Sadly, an ankle injury continued to bother Fitzgerald and he withdrew yesterday from the test with Paddy Wallace taking his place in a direct swap. Wallace is a skilful but light player who has never played in the No. 12 jersey for Ireland. That change may expose some of the visitors' inside back defence but it will not concern Nonu whose ancestry includes Irish bloodlines from his paternal grandmother.
His elder brother Palepoi plays rugby and bounces nightclubs in Dublin and Nonu said his sporting future could well include time in the Emerald Isle.
"I would be lying if I said I wouldn't go overseas and if I had a preference it would be to the UK because when I have been over there during the end of year tours I have enjoyed the locations and the people there."
While he politely answered the hypothesis, Nonu's concentration is all about tomorrow and dealing with his recall to the side.
"It has been pretty tough coming into the All Black camp again and actually getting another chance. It will be exciting," he said.
Nonu played centre against Ireland in Hamilton two years ago when the hosts needed a late try from Troy Flavell to ease to an uncomfortable 34-23 victory. After that test it was more selection freeze for Nonu who was skinned on defence by the nifty O'Driscoll.
"I think for the last five years of my career I have been chucked around. I've been told to be a winger or then a centre and obviously when I don't play well, everyone tries to pick up on the deficiencies in my game you know.
"For the Hurricanes it has been tough. We have always had a lot of midfielders, like when Tana [Umaga] was there I had to go on the wing and that was never a problem because I had a licence to roam. But getting older it is all about trying to improve and I guess this year when I slotted in at 12 for the Hurricanes it wasn't too bad and it is all about learning. I am not getting any faster. Super 14 is way different from test rugby."
Nonu agreed that he was more relaxed this season.
"It is about chucking away the bad stuff in my game, there is no point in rushing up in defence and someone goes past you and you go and try and tackle them again. That is a late tackle so I will try and remain disciplined and composed.
"I don't want to be so energised doing the wrong stuff at the wrong time. I am just trying to behave."
Much as he admired Umaga's skills and the impact he brought to a game, Nonu felt he suffered because they were too much alike whereas his provincial and now test partnership with Conrad Smith had more balance.
They complement each other and if Nonu ever shirks his work, he receives the acid bark from his centre partner.
Wayne Smith sees Nonu not as a leader but as a player who is always an inspiration. The workload has spread more evenly and that has helped Nonu's game. His natural game was always lethal enough.
"I think he is in a good space. Guys who play with him know the talent he has always had and marvel at the things he can do and love playing alongside him but I think I have enjoyed a level of maturity which has come into his game.
"With experience he has got better and Ma'a can create space."
His original rival Fitzgerald had given himself a strong chance of beating his ankle strain to tangle with the All Blacks for the first time. The 20-year-old is seen as the heir to O'Driscoll and it was the second time in a week that their preferred midfield partnership had been broken.
Last week O'Driscoll had to withdraw on the morning of the Irish game against the Barbarians after the sudden death of a close friend. Now O'Driscoll is back and it is Fitzgerald who has invoked the escape clause. Fitzgerald had played a great deal of rugby in midfield at the famous Blackrock College but had played most of his professional rugby and his four test caps at fullback or on the wing.
The prospect of his future clashes against the All Blacks and the man who would have been opposite him tomorrow is tantalising.
Had he heard of Nonu?
"Yeah. Obviously he is a fantastic player, a physical specimen but I don't know if he is given enough credit for his skills as well. He is a really talented player, he will be a really big challenge for us," Fitzgerald said.
The youngster, whose father Des, played as a prop against New Zealand, admired the rugby the All Blacks played and had studied them as he was growing up in Dublin.
He had tried to emulate the styles of Walter Little and Frank Bunce and admired the work of Smith and before him, Umaga and Daryl Gibson.
"I suppose I would like to see myself as a ball distributor and playmaker, a mix of both, a strike player with his background of wing or fullback but also as someone with the capability of using his hands," he said.
As someone who has a passing resemblance to the great Wallaby Tim Horan, those aspirations may not be too far off if the rave reviews hold some substance.
But New Zealanders' judgment on the Horan lookalike will have to wait, instead Nonu will be in their sights.
