I let Sonny Bill take a free shot at me – this is what happened

For a few seconds, I am flat on the floor of the Opetaia Boxing Club, staring up at the ceiling.

That is what happens when you agree to take a half-cocked punch from Sonny Bill Williams, one of sport’s greatest specimens, straight into the ribs.

‘Good session, bro!’ he beams, as I lay on the deck, eyeline with the SBW initials stitched on to the back of his trainers. Even with sweat blurring my vision, Williams still looks like a man made from granite, chiselled and ready for his heavyweight fight in Sydney next week.

Peeling myself off the ground, in a state of mild shock, we take a breather to talk rugby. What’s caught his eye?

‘Henry Pollock,’ begins the New Zealander, who now calls Sydney home. ‘The guy is a beast. He’d be about 115 kilos (18st 1lb) but he looks quick as hell. Strong, skilful. I like what he’s about.

‘The Lions look great. It’s all coming together. Their squad is full of champions and that’ll be the test for Australia. Coming off the bench, the back end of the game, can they withstand what’s coming off the Lions bench? I really want to say the Wallabies can do it but it’s looking like a tough task.’

Williams was one of the great All Blacks, winning 58 caps from 2010 to 2019. But the 2017 Lions series brings back mixed emotions. We will get to his red card, which made front-page news across New Zealand, but his immediate focus is on the here and now.

Thud. Thud. Thud. At the end of his drills on the punch bag – overseen by coach Tapu Opetaia, father of world champion cruiserweight, Jai – he is joined by former team-mate Benny Robertson, who has a job to do.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Robertson repeatedly punches Williams in the abs to build resistance, explaining how they used to play rugby league together for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs.

Few players crossed rugby codes as successfully as Williams, although breakthrough Wallaby Joseph Sua’ali’i has been a box-office addition to the 15-man code in the last 12 months.

‘I’m really looking forward to the midfield battle in this series,’ says Williams. ‘I think Len Ikitau is a shoo-in for the Wallabies midfield, then there’s Hunter Paisami, so it comes down to where they decide to play Sua’ali’i. He’s a special talent. He’s better than me, doing his thing.

‘The hardest thing I found coming from league was that I was a forward in league and I had to go into the midfield in union. When you’re an outside back, a finisher, with that speed and those attributes, then you can go back and forth. I’d like to see Sua’ali’i out on the wings at the start, utilising his strengths under the high ball.’

It was in union where Williams enjoyed his prime rugby years. He was part of the all-conquering, double World Cup-winning All Blacks team from last decade – a team that became a symbol of sporting dominance, alongside the likes of Real Madrid and the Chicago Bulls.

‘Highs and lows,’ he says, when asked for his memories of the 2017 Lions tour, which ended with him being sent off for a dangerous hit on Anthony Watson.

‘I remember all the stories that came with the Lions. People spending their whole life savings to come over. Rieko Ioane’s mother and father brought in someone that couldn’t afford a hotel. There were some cool stories. It was not only great for the economy and the country but rugby in general. It was massive.

‘When I was actually on the field, we did well. We beat the Lions with the Blues (22-16 at Eden Park), which was awesome, probably one of the high points of my career. In the first Test at Eden Park, we put on a really good show, then obviously the low point was when I got sent off. That was the first red for the All Blacks in about 50 years and we lost the game.

‘I got suspended for four weeks. These days I’d probably get suspended for 14. It was at the start of the game, and we’d trained putting pressure on them from the kicks, because the weather forecast wasn’t the greatest.

‘In my head I’m thinking, “I’m going to smash this guy, I’m going to put pressure on him and get a bit of momentum for my guys”. It was a red card, I just got it wrong.’

National news cameras gathered outside his disciplinary hearing in Wellington but it is now a distant memory. These days, Williams calls Sydney home. His wife is Australian so it is where they decided to settle with their five children.

Sydney is where this year’s Lions series will conclude, on August 2, and is also where Williams will fight Paul Gallen on July 16, bringing back that hit of adrenaline that he used to feel every weekend.

‘In boxing and rugby, if you can keep your wits about you then you’ll be better off,’ he says. ‘You’ve got to stay cool and stay calm. It ain’t easy. You’ve got to focus on your strengths.

‘If my knees were all right, I’d be able to jump back on the rugby field and handle myself because I know all the little subtleties.

‘In the ring, it’s exactly the same, where to put your head, where to step… that comes naturally to guys who have done it all their lives.

‘So for me, boxing is way tougher, I’m pretty content with my life, five kids and what not. Did I really want to get back in the ring? If I did it, I was going to go all in, so that’s why I’m up here on the Gold Coast, away from the family. Two more weeks, I just want to get in there and fight.

‘The only thing I miss about professional sport is that nervous excitement in the sheds (the dressing room). The big events. You hate it but you love it. You get to that point where you climb or fall. That’s where I am right now.’

And that, you suspect, is exactly where the Lions and the Wallabies want to be over the next few weeks.