37 Facts About Ali Williams

Alexander James "Ali" Williams was born on 30 April 1981 and is a New Zealand rugby union player who played at lock, spending almost all of his playing career in his homeland.

Ali Williams played for New Zealand's national team, the All Blacks, between 2002 and 2012.

Ali Williams spent what were to have been the final two seasons of his career in France with Toulon, playing there from 2013 to 2015.

On 25 February 2017 Ali Williams was arrested in Paris for allegedly buying cocaine.

Ali Williams did not begin playing rugby until 1998 when, aged 17 during his time in Greenbank house at King's college.

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Ali Williams had already represented Auckland at junior level in soccer, tennis and cricket.

Ali Williams attributed much of his early success to 1st XV coach Mark Kennelly.

Ali Williams began a business studies course at Auckland University of Technology, but after playing club rugby and spending time at the Auckland Rugby Academy, he was selected to make his first class debut for Auckland in a National Provincial Championship match against Taranaki on 24 August 2001.

Ali Williams started in all four matches in the 2003 Tri Nations Series, before being chosen in the All Blacks squad for the 2003 Rugby World Cup.

Ali Williams almost did not make the squad, after suffering a stress fracture of the right foot during the All Blacks training camp in New Plymouth, an injury that required the insertion of a pin, but was included on the strength of his line-out play.

Ali Williams was rested for the first two pool matches, against Italy and Canada, but started in the remaining five games that New Zealand played, scoring his first international try in the final pool game, against Wales, when he jumped above the Welsh wing Shane Williams, to collect a cross-field kick from Carlos Spencer.

At the start of the 2004 season, Ali Williams failed to impress new All Blacks coach Graham Henry.

Also, Henry was looking for locks who could perform well in the tight forward role, whereas the athletic and mobile Ali Williams was viewed as a forward who was happier operating in loose play.

Ali Williams was called into the squad before the Pacific Islands match, as cover for the injured Keith Robinson, but was not used, and he was left out of the squad for the Tri Nations.

Williams was recalled to the squad for the next game, against South Africa, in which he came on as a substitute, and started in the return fixture against Australia, a game which the All Blacks lost and in which Williams was sin-binned after New Zealand were adjudged to have infringed repeatedly.

Ali Williams started in the end-of-tour match against the Barbarians.

Ali Williams started in all three Tests against the Lions, and scored his fourth international try in the final Test, when Dwayne Peel fumbled a grubber kick from Luke McAlister, and Williams pounced on the loose ball in the in-goal area.

Ali Williams started in all four of New Zealand's matches in the 2005 Tri Nations Series and came close to scoring another try in the last game, against Australia, on his home ground, Eden Park, but, after winning the ball at an Australian line-out and making a 20-metre break, his attempted grubber kick was wayward.

Ali Williams did create the second of wing Doug Howlett's three tries in the game when, from within the Australian 22, in front of the posts, he executed a fine cross-field kick that Howlett caught on the far right of Australia's in-goal area for an easy touch-down.

Ali Williams was selected in the squad to face Ireland, but suffered a syndesmosis injury – commonly referred to as a high ankle strain – during a training session.

Ali Williams started in the next two matches, against South Africa in Wellington and Australia in Brisbane, being replaced late in the latter game by Eaton, who replaced him in the starting line-up for the return match against Australia in Auckland.

Ali Williams did not feature in the first game of the All Blacks' year-end tour to Europe, but was one of ten changes to the starting line-up for the second game, against France in Lyon and he started in all three remaining matches, two against France and one against Wales in Cardiff.

Ali Williams was replaced by James Ryan after an hour of the last game, but not before he had demonstrated yet another aspect of his versatility, when he fielded the ball in his own 22 and, with a spiralling kick, cleared it into touch on Wales' 10-metre line, setting up a line-out from which the All Blacks came away with the ball to score their third try of the game.

Ali Williams started in New Zealand's first three games, against Italy, Portugal and Scotland.

In 2007, Ali Williams was one of the 22 players withdrawn from the first half of the Super 14 season to attend a "conditioning camp", as part of the All Blacks' World Cup preparations.

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Ali Williams was duly included in the Crusaders squad when New Zealand's 2008 Super 14 teams were announced, in October 2007.

In July 2013 was announced that Ali Williams signed a one-year contract with the European champion Toulon.

Ali Williams was to serve primarily as media advisor for fellow All Black Dan Carter, who arrived in Paris to play for Racing after the All Blacks' victory in the 2015 Rugby World Cup.

Ali Williams's mother, Helen, was born in Carlisle, England, and her mother, Doreen, comes from Galashiels, Scotland.

Rodney and Helen emigrated to New Zealand after they married, and Ali Williams was born there.

Ali Williams's younger brother, Jay, is a rugby footballer, who played at lock for Auckland and has several caps for London social club Kew Occasionals.

Together with former Blues and All Blacks teammate Doug Howlett, Ali Williams is an official patron of the KidsCan Charitable Trust, a national charity dedicated to the welfare of financially disadvantaged New Zealand children.

In 2010, Ali Williams spoke in a radio advertisement for his bottled water company, making claims about the health benefits of drinking more water.

In December 2011, Ali Williams married his long-time girlfriend Casey Green in Queenstown.

Ali Williams then became a father in April 2013, his wife giving birth to a baby girl, Jessica Harriet.

In February 2017 Ali Williams was arrested in Paris, caught allegedly trying to buy cocaine outside a nightclub.

Ali Williams was with former Wallabies star James O'Connor, who was arrested.