ANDY ELLIS is the accidental All Black. He never planned a rugby career, it simply took over his life. Now he finds himself New Zealand's No.1 halfback and he's still wondering how it all happened.
If anything he thought he might make a decent cricketer after making representative age-grade teams. He even managed to link a cricket scholarship in England to a year's break once he left school.
But he also reckoned he'd have to earn a "normal" living. It's why he got through three years of a landscape design degree at Lincoln University before it was left in the slipstream of the rugby career that took off on him. It went from being a weekend release to his day job before he knew it.
"I always played rugby just because I loved it," he says. "I never looked at it as a career option. I went and studied because that [landscaping] was what I was going to do. I just carried on playing rugby at the same time because I enjoyed it. Then before you know it, you are in the NPC [National Provincial Cup] … you play a couple of good games there and you take a step up and then another step up. It all happens pretty quickly."
And that's exactly how it has rapidly evolved for the chirpy 24-year-old.
After forcing his way into the Crusaders in 2006 to share the halfback duties with international Kevin Senio, he supplanted his teammate on the northern end-of-year tour as the bolter in the All Blacks squad.
He spent the next 10 months unwanted by the All Blacks before he came out of nowhere again to nab Piri Weepu's World Cup place.
He was very much the third-choice halfback at the tournament behind Byron Kelleher and Brendon Leonard. Now with Kelleher gone and Leonard's season over with a knee injury, Ellis finds himself flavour of the moment and with a great chance to consolidate his reputation.
He started his fourth consecutive Test in the Tri Nations opener against the Springboks in Wellington last night, coming on top of solid displays against Ireland and England.
Considering he had managed just four Tests over the previous two years (two of them were against Portugal and Romania and he had started on only one occasion) the past month has been breathtaking for him.
"Yeah, it's just been great to play some consistent rugby," he says, believing he is making progress with his play after putting in plenty of work in the summer and then commanding the Crusaders position.
"I've always said that for an inside back game time and experience are invaluable, really. Being out there, being in different scenarios and situations the whole time, making mistakes … it just helps you develop your game week in and week out."
Backs coach Wayne Smith has been delighted with his development.
"He's very bright and very aware on the field," Smith says. "He's tough … he has a good physicality about him. I like the way he organises himself off the field so that on the field he is able to direct the team."
A No.8 until he stopped growing, he switched to halfback to make his high school's first XV.
"It was better to become a halfback than a hooker - I don't think my mum would have liked me hanging out in the front row," Ellis says. "But I think being a No.8 helped my halfback play, especially at the start. I had this mentality of a halfback being an extra loose forward in defence. I've always enjoyed tackling and trying to steal ball and attack the ball."
Inspired by red and black greats Graeme Bachop and Justin Marshall, Ellis continues Canterbury's proud Test run in this key position.
He is a super distributor and his pass is clearly his biggest attribute in his smooth partnership with Dan Carter.
Life's chipper for Ellis at the moment. He married his high school sweetheart Emma in December, he's now an All Blacks regular and as rugby takes a firm grip on his life, he is also reconsidering his long-term future.
"I think I'll go back to it [studies] … It's been kind of strange though, the further into the rugby career I go the more I look back and wonder if [landscaping] will be the career choice for me."