KEY POINTS:
Ali Williams, atypical? Maybe, though all generalisations are false - including this one.
Perhaps more non-conformist or free-spirited but the All Black lock does carry his convictions strongly. And he can play.
Williams heads into his 45th test on Monday against Scotland after performances in the All Blacks' first two World Cup games which have seen him awarded the yellow jersey - the equivalent of the cycling tour leader's kit in the Tour de France - as the best-performed tight forward.
Recent cycling winners like Floyd Landis and Lance Armstrong have not had widespread acclaim because their triumphs were polluted by allegations about substance abuse.
Williams has had his troubles this season, with a broken jaw and a fallout with the Blues, but if he remains in yellow jersey nick and can help claim the Webb Ellis Cup, his indiscretions will fade.
The 26-year-old will be the linchpin All Black lock from next season if he is not that already.
He will be the standard-bearer because Chris Jack is off to Saracens while there has been a strong belief that Keith Robinson will quit after the World Cup.
Others like James Ryan, Jason Eaton and Troy Flavell will be pushing for inclusion but it is Williams who has to be the yardstick.
His move to the Crusaders through a provincial shift to Tasman should only enhance the lock's calibre.
If he can absorb the team strength and unity as others like Ron Cribb, Ross Filipo and Rico Gear have after moving there, Williams will be even more valuable to the national side.
He will have some strong tutelage, from coach Robbie Deans to his good mates Richie McCaw and Daniel Carter, but perhaps his biggest influence will be Reuben Thorne.
They team up together on Monday, the tall lineout leaper with a huge range of ball skills and the toiler, the grafter, the former skipper who has a relentless approach to his game.
Three years ago they were locks in the All Blacks' final tour game against the Barbarians.
That was a doddle and while Monday's test may have a similar scoreline, Williams and Thorne have to give themselves and their rivals a serious grilling.
His admiration for Thorne is unrestricted.
"He does the stuff that the cameras and the writers and the other people don't see. He is one of those guys that just buries his head in there and does the shitwork," Williams said.
"It is not glorified or anything, he doesn't want to be glorified ... He is one of those guys that every team needs and this week it will be good to have him there, charging round and giving everything."
Thorne was quiet off and on the field. That was his style.
"He is more an action sort of a guy and for a lot of us that is the way we are now, actions speak louder than words.
"He is one of those follow-me guys, there is no need to talk and I love playing alongside him. You look up and see the energy on his face and he is ready to go to war for the team and that is great."
Williams was not surprised but could not understand how much flak the former All Black captain received.
"If you were playing alongside these guys you wouldn't write half the stuff you write, it is just how it is. We go to war with these guys, we know them inside out. We don't have any negative points to say about any of our teammates so I am not shocked by any of it to be honest."
Williams thinks he has been travelling at about 65-70 per cent of his best, much like the rest of the squad. He is also in no doubt he can lift to be near his optimum from the quarter-finals.
"I would like to see myself playing close to the best rugby I have ever played by the end of this tournament," he said.
There will be others in the All Black squad who have similar convictions but few who are willing to share those beliefs with anyone other than family, close friends and the coaches. Williams though stares you down and commits himself with an uncommon All Black utterance.
It was time to get physical against the Scots and to beat a side you have to take out their strength and that was the focus for the All Blacks.
This test would be better for the forwards than the loose games against Italy and Portugal. Williams would prepare no differently.
"I have had a few incidents in my life which makes me realise the importance of every moment," he said. "You know, with my father's injury [rendered a tetraplegic in an accident] and things like that, you have to treasure every moment as it comes and every opportunity you get. The black jersey is just the same because who knows - next week you might not be able to play or have the chance so every game you prepare the same."
The bigger the challenge or the better the opposition, the more the All Blacks were able to show their all-round strengths.
Williams felt great after a second enforced reconditioning schedule when he broke his jaw trying to tackle French folk-hero Sebastien Chabal. Now he had to work on game specifics, sharpening his attitude and getting the detail right at cleanouts, lineout and in defence.
Focus and adrenalin would do wonders for the lock who said he could easily raise his game that extra 30 per cent by the playoffs.
The All Blacks were at a physical level they had never been at before, protected from the weekly grind which sapped vital energy needed at the very zenith of the sport.
"But as you have probably all heard we are looking for that ultimate game, like a surfer looking for the ultimate wave. The reality of it ever happening is very slim but the closer you can get to that ultimate performance is huge."
