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Sonny Bill Williams is battling it out to get up to speed with the New Zealand Sevens
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Williams completed his first three-day New Zealand Sevens camp in Cambridge, New Zealand on Wednesday
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He is training alongside fellow Super Rugby players Ardie Savea, Akira Ioane, Rieko Ioane, Kurt Baker and Ben Lam
Sonny Bill Williams hasn’t wasted any time finding his feet in the shift from Rugby World Cup winner to rugby sevens novice.
Along with Super Rugby players Ardie Savea, Akira and Rieko Ioane plus Ben Lam, Williams attended his first All Blacks sevens training camp this week in Cambridge.
Coach Gordon Tietjens put the team through its paces starting Monday with a beep test, but most eyes have been on Williams and the highly anticipated transition to sevens.
So far, Tietjens has been impressed with Williams, and the two-time Rugby World Cup winner said he’s loving the new set-up.
“The boys are great guys and after being here for a few days I’ve got so much admiration for these guys,” Williams said. “They’ve been doing this for a long time, and it’s not easy work.
“The first day we got in we did a beep test. Usually, in our [Super Rugby] franchises, we do a beep test but there’s not too much after that. But then we came out here for what I think was about an hour of fitness games, and after 20 minutes I couldn’t get out of a jogging pace.
“It was a bit of a wake-up call but in saying that, I know where I’m at and I know where I want to go. I know that comes from a lot of hard work and I’m just lucky enough to be given the opportunity to be around these guys 24/7.”