A double university degree and a career in rugby - hardly the norm for an All Black front-rower. Anton Oliver, though, is different. Anton Oliver is the thinking man's rugby player. In this biography of the great Otago hooker, Brian Turner explores the life of a professional rugby player from angles previously untouched.

A double university degree and a career in rugby - hardly the norm for an All Black front-rower. Anton Oliver, though, is different. Anton Oliver is the thinking man's rugby player. In this biography of the great Otago hooker, Brian Turner explores the life of a professional rugby player from angles previously untouched. He focuses on the good things to come out of rugby's moneyed age and, as well, looks at the many pitfalls for young sportsmen who are thrust into the limelight and dished out vast and, seemingly, endless sums of money. Turner and Oliver draw fascinating conclusions. As well, the book looks at the highs and lows of Oliver's career - a career that has been as controversial as it has been successful.