All Blacks prop Tamaiti Williams has revealed how what he thought was a typical sore back left him in ‘crippling’ pain so bad that he didn’t want his one-year-old daughter to see him in agony.
Williams, 25, is currently recovering in hospital with a serious spinal infection and will miss the rest of the Super Rugby Pacific season.
The Crusaders confirmed on Monday that the prop has discitis, an infection in one of the discs in his spine.
Speaking from his hospital bed, Williams said he thought the initial pain was typical of a rugby union prop and put it down to wear and tear.
‘I thought not much of it. As a prop, you get a sore back every now and then,’ Williams told Stuff.
Williams, who has played 27 Tests for the famed All Blacks, decided to ride out the pain.
Top prop Tamaiti Williams is recovering in hospital from a serious infection that left him in crippling pain
Williams has played 27 Tests for the All Blacks
Williams paid tribute to his wife Alice and daughter Kaea (pictured together) as he recovers from the infection that has ended his season
‘Me being me, I was thinking it would be all good. Let the painkillers do the work,’ he said.
But it soon became clear that something more sinister was occurring after the pain became ‘crippling’.
Williams said his discomfort went ‘through the roof’ and he was struggling to sleep. The pain became too much to bear.
‘I couldn’t sit down anywhere. I tried to walk around. I was doing everything I could,’ he said.
He eventually went to hospital after pleas from his wife, Alice.
He said he didn’t want his one-year-old daughter, Kaea, ‘to see me in so much pain’.
‘I didn’t want to go back. Me being me, I was worried there could be something more than a sprained back,’ Williams said.
‘I was screaming. Ten out of 10 pain.’
The prop said it was tough to see his one-year-old daughter watch him recover in hospital
Williams may miss Test matches against South Africa in June
The 140kg prop credited his family for insisting he get help but it won’t be enough to get him back on the rugby pitch this season.
He is even in doubt for the July Tests and the tour to South Africa in June and July.
He said from his hospital bed that rugby was the furthest thing from his mind.
‘Health comes first,’ Williams said.
‘There will be ups and downs, but it’s a hurdle along the way. We’ll keep pushing to get back healthy and start again.’
Williams said watching his daughter try and grasp the situation was tough to deal with.
‘She’s been confused. “Why is dad not at home? Why can’t dad take me to the park or the pool?”,’ he said. ‘She doesn’t really like hospitals. She pops in twice a day to say hello.’
Williams also paid tribute to his wife, whom he described as his ‘rock’.
The prop has made 59 appearances for the Crusaders since his debut in 2021 and was part of the side that won the Super Rugby title in 2025.
He made his Test debut in 2023 and has been a regular for the All Blacks since.
The Crusaders play Fijian Drua on Friday night and currently sit in sixth place on the Super Rugby ladder with a 3-3 record.
