Long before the letters S, B and W came to mean something other than a theme for Sesame Street, there was Kevin Skinner.
A fearsome prop from the old school, the 20-test All Black is still revered in rugby circles after coming out of retirement for two tests in 1956 and dealing to Springbok props Chris Koch and Jaap Bekker.
In the days when men were men and the All Black jersey hung a little looser, they didn't come much tougher than Skinner, who, in 1947, was crowned the heavyweight boxing champ of New Zealand while juggling his playing commitments for Otago.
Fast forward 65 years and another All Black – he of those now-famous initials – is hoping to follow in Skinner's giant footsteps when he steps into the ring on February 8 to take on giant American Clarence Tillman III for the New Zealand heavyweight title.
If Sonny Bill Williams wins, he will be the first All Black since Skinner to claim the belt.
That's no easy feat and so on Wednesday morning, Williams, who was told of the legendary Skinner by former Wallabies captain Sir Nicholas Shehadie, decided to call in on the man himself at his home in West Auckland for some advice.
"When I told him [Sir Nicholas] I was going to fight for the [NZ title] belt, he started telling me some stories about Kevin Skinner," Williams told the Sunday Star-Times.
"He was telling me how he [dealt to] a couple of Springboks players and ... how he was feared without being a dirty player.
"I grew up on rugby league so I didn't really know too much about Kevin Skinner. But from what people have been telling me, he was a well-respected man within the game.
"When I heard that he was a boxer as well, I was desperate to meet him."
The visit was supposed to be a fleeting one but Williams was so captivated by Skinner and his wife Laurie that he ended up staying all morning.
"It was choice, man, unreal," Williams said. "He's a lovely bloke and so was his wife; she was a character.
"We had a really good yarn, a laugh and we ended up staying for a couple of hours.
"We talked about life, boxing, rugby, everything. He told me at the start when I played for the All Blacks he was a bit iffy about my style of play. But he told me he quickly came around, and that was so cool to hear him say that." Although at 84 Skinner might be past his prime, Williams said the All Black legend was still a tough character.
"You could tell he's been around, man," Williams said.
"It would be such an honour to follow in his footsteps, especially after meeting the bloke. I feel like now I've got even more drive inside to do this."
Whatever it was that Skinner told Williams on Wednesday, it appears to have had the desired effect of firing-up the All Black midfielder.
His sparring session on Friday evening in Auckland with Commonwealth Games superheavyweight boxer Joseph Parker was interrupted in the second round for Parker to have a profusely bleeding nose tended to.
"The training's been tough," Williams said. "Clarence Tillman, he's a big man. [The bout's] for the belt and it's daunting but also exciting. But I wouldn't have it any other way."
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/other-sports/6295070/Sonny-Bill-Williams-meets-his-match-in-Skinner
