Sonny Bill Williams missed All Blacks training to witness, from afar, the proudest moment of his life.
Williams' wife Alana gave birth to their first child, a daughter, and Williams was able to follow the moment via a computer screen at the team's Cardiff hotel.
The 29-year-old tweeted his joy at about midday Cardiff time, with the mid-morning birth taking place while the team trained nearby.
"The proudest moment of my life #alhumdulliah"," he told his 404,000 followers, accompanied by a photo of his daughter's toes.
It is the second daughter born to an All Blacks tourist this month.
Prop Charlie Faumuina's wife Rachelle gave birth to their second child late last week while the team were in Scotland.
Like Faumuina, Williams decided not to return home to be present for the occasion.
Assistant coach Ian Foster says the team had rallied around both players to support them in what could have been a stressful period.
"It's been a week of celebration for the All Blacks," Foster said.
"It's a massive time and a special time for them as a couple, and Sonny was involved in whatever way he could be this morning."
The former NRL star is expected to add to his 22 caps against Wales on Saturday after playing in all three tour Tests to date.
Foster says Williams' absence from training won't count against him at the selection table.
"It's not a major and in fact it's quite exciting," he said.
"It's first things first and as an All Blacks family we like to celebrate these sort of events."
