Christian Lio-Willie is a qualified dentist, but he'll be hoping the only smiles he sees at the end of Saturday night's first test against France will be that of his teammates. The 26-year-old graduated from Otago University Dental School in 2023, a rare tertiary feat for a modern professional rugby player, and one that he's balanced with a rapid rise to test status.
"I just sort of numbed out. Don't even know [who] the second half of the team was," said Lio-Willie about finding out he had been selected for the match at a sold out Forsyth Barr Stadium.
"Obviously been the roller coaster of emotions. And just feeling just proud and humbled in the journey that got me here."
While Lio-Willie has undoubtedly impressed many over the last couple of seasons, he was been boosted along for the last part of that journey. He wasn't even named in Scott Robertson's initial squad, however, was brought in as injury cover immediately. Now he will be pulling on the number eight jersey, part of an intriguing first lineup of the All Black season.
Christian Lio-Willie scores during the Super Rugby Pacific match, Crusaders v Reds, Apollo Projects Stadium, Christchurch. Photo: Iain McGregor/ActionPress
Lio-Willie joins Ardie Savea and Tupou Vaa'i in a surprising loose forward trio. The common feeling was that he would enter the test arena via the bench, if at all this week, but the move is a real show of confidence by coach Scott Robertson.
"I think as a loose forward group, we've been pretty real connected and there's a lot of trust between us. Not only just to help each other out but trusting that the other man in the group is going to do his job," said Lio-Willie.
The trio are up against a French loose forward group that only has 11 test caps between them - with 10 of those belonging to Mickaël Guillard. Lio-Willie said that experience of being around Ardie Savea has been pivotal in his development as a player.
"I think that's the sort of confidence that I take, being a newcomer into it. Just the likes of Ardie, he's someone I've always watched and looked up to. The amount of trust he's had in me now, just not having to nitpick what I do. But always being there, that I can lean on, to help me get better in my role."
Of course, all eyes will be on Lio-Willie when he runs out as an All Black on Saturday night. Despite the All Blacks' large advantage, there will still be massive scrutiny on the way the team performs no matter what the winning margin.
"I know if I get caught up in the moment, I won't be present," he said.
"So for me, it's just nailing the job and knowing that, just trusting in my skill set and trusting in the game that I want to play. I know that it is another game for me that I have to step up to with the black jersey. But just the spectacle of it, I sort of take away from it - we've got a lot of messages and stuff coming from around, from so many people."
