In his prime Regan King was a rugby genius, a player who made a game which is often overcomplicated look so simple.
In an age where bigger was better, with more emphasis on winning the contact area, King was a throwback to a bygone era where skill and speed of thought trumped everything else.
When people are asked who is the greatest overseas player ever to play in Welsh rugby, you can bet your bottom dollar King would sit at the top of most lists.
READ MORE: Wales coach to leave in hammer World Cup blow
During his time at the Scarlets he was untouchable on the field, and after one European campaign where the west Walians became the first side to go through the pool stages unbeaten, Sky Sports pundit and England World Cup winner Will Greenwood named the New Zealander in his world XV.
But life wasn't all plain sailing for the fleet-footed centre who was battling a gambling problem behind closed doors.
Speaking from his home in South-West France, King, who has now turned his life around after admitting he hit rock bottom, speaks candidly about his past battle with a gambling addiction, and how he hopes to help others suffering from similar conditions.
"I have to be honest with you it was a tough few years, and I was at rock bottom when I left Welsh rugby back in 2019 because it was public I had a problem with gambling," he admits.
"When I was at the Scarlets I was playing the best rugby of my career and I loved my time there but things could be difficult off the field for me.
"Gambling can be an easy trap to fall into and the problem is unlike other addictions like alcoholism, it isn't obvious looking in from the outside so people around you like your work colleagues may not realise you've got a problem.
"That can make it harder to get help because often you don't realise yourself you've got a problem.
"When you are a young professional sportsman who has come from a poor background, and suddenly you've got all this money in your bank account, it can sometimes be overwhelming, and back then you didn't have as much guidance on how to sensibly spend your money.
"I think for me most of it was down to boredom. Some of the boys would play on their game consoles but I'd put money on things.
"You start small and once you win big you get hooked."
To his credit King came to the realisation he had a problem and like every challenge in his playing career he met it head on.
After leaving Welsh rugby, where he was playing semi-professionally for Neath at the time, King headed for Western Australia.
It was in Perth he turned his life around after undergoing months of therapy and meeting his current partner who helped the former All Blacks centre find his feet again.
"I underwent months of therapy in Perth, and it was the best thing I've ever done," he said.
"I had so much support from my family and friends while I also met my current partner who played a massive role in turning my life around.
"I think there needs to be better support for rugby players who have problems with gambling.
"My advice to anyone who is suffering with an addiction is to talk to someone because talking really does help.
"I know it is a difficult thing to do but there is always help out there.
"I've now completely changed and I'm in a much better place.
"I've moved to France with my partner, who is French, where she works as a chiropractor, and I'm enjoying life again."
Despite the issues he's had to contend with, King looks back on his time in Wales with a real fondness.
After starring for the Waikato Chiefs in the then Super 12 back in 2003 he won his one and only New Zealand cap, ironically against Wales in Cardiff, where he crossed for a try in a man of the match performance.
Injury prevented the talented playmaker from adding to his tally of one cap, and he soon found himself out of his comfort zone in Paris playing for Stade Francais.
"I signed for Stade Francais as a medical joker but for a young man from a rural area in New Zealand I really struggled with life in Paris and especially the language," he said.
"I told my agent to get me out of there and one of the clubs who were interested were the Scarlets.
"I didn't really know much about them but I was friendly with a former All Black named Alistair Scown who had played against Llanelli when they beaten New Zealand in 1972.
"I met Stuart Gallagher and Gareth Jenkins and after one conversation I knew Llanelli were the right club for me.
"Living in a relatively small town where rugby was a way of life really appealed to me and everything just clicked.
"Playing for Gareth Jenkins was a hell of an experience and he's one of the best motivators I've ever come across. Whenever you went onto the field you just wanted to play for him.
"I remember my first training session at the Scarlets was in pre-season and it was a session at a gym in Gorseinon. When I turned up Vernon Cooper and Christ Wyatt were stood outside smoking a cigarrette but Chris still smashed the bleep test.
"The social aspect of playing in Llanelli was great as well and we had some wild nights out let me tell you but it was before social media was such a big thing so you could get away with it."
King was one of the few players who people would pay to watch with his magical style of play getting the crowd onto their feet.
The Scarlets built a team around King, and even though they may not have had the forwards to physically go toe to toe with the bigger packs in Europe, they always had a chance with the New Zealander weaving his magic in midfield.
Put simply, he made the impossible seem possible.
"When I grew up in New Zealand all I played was touch rugby," said King.
"I was never the type of player to look for contact, I tried to avoid it and I placed a lot of emphasis on developing my passing game.
"I got a lot more pleasure from putting players into space than scoring tries myself.
"Gareth Jenkins, and then Phil Davies after him, gave us the freedom to play and when you had Dwayne Peel and Stephen Jones running the show it made life so much easier for me."
The highest point of King's career at the Scarlets undoubtedly came in the 2006/07 season where the Welsh region swept all before them in the pool stages of the Heineken Cup, beating Munster in the quarter-finals at an emotionally charged Stradey Park, before getting edged out at the semi-final stage by Leicester Tigers.
In fact King played a starring role in one of the greatest games in European rugby history when the Scarlets overturned a 21-point half-time deficit against French giants Toulouse to triumph 41-34 at the Stade Ernest-Wallon.
King virtually dragged the Scarlets back into the game single-handedly, having a hand in three scores, with a scintillating 50-metre break setting up Nathan Thomas' winning try.
"That season was magical, and I probably enjoyed my rugby more than at any other point in my career," he recalls.
"The rugby we played was amazing and we all bought into it. That game in Toulouse was something else.
"I remember even though we were trailing quite heavily at half-time we still believed we could do it, and because it was so fast and loose it gave us a chance.
"Alix Popham got us going with an outrageous chip ahead which wouldn't have come off nine times out of 10 but thankfully this time the ball popped up into his hands for Darren Daniel to score.
"When Barry Davies scored we knew we were going to win. During the last play the scores were level and I could see Stephen Jones dropping back into the pocket for a drop goal from halfway.
"I dropped further back just in case there was a charge down but Stephen passed the ball to me. I could always see a few phases ahead and spotted the gap so decided to take them on and it paid off.
"That win was massive because Toulouse were a real powerhouse at the time, and nobody won on their own patch.
"The quarter-final performance against Munster at Stradey Park was arguably even better. They were the defending champions and we tore them to bits, and there may as well have been 70,000 people at Stradey that day because the atmosphere was that electric.
"We couldn't quite finish the job and went out in the semi-finals to Leicester. The following seasons were really difficult because Phil Davies, our coach at the time, got sacked and the financial difficulties at the club meant we couldn't build on our success."
Having made such an impact in Welsh rugby, it led many journalists and supporters to ask the inevitable question; what if he hadn't been capped that one time by New Zealand, would he have played for Wales?
"To be honest mate winning that one All Blacks cap meant the world to me," he said.
"I love Wales and I loved my time living there but my goal growing up was to play for New Zealand and I achieved that.
"I don't have any regrets because if I'd stayed in New Zealand I wouldn't have had the amazing experiences I had playing in Wales and in France with Stade Francais and Clermont."
So, what next for the 42-year-old?
"I'm really keen to go into coaching at professional level," he said.
"I'm currently coaching the juniors at a small club in France and loving that. All my troubles are behind me and I think I've still got a lot to offer.
"During my second stint with the Scarlets I had talks with Wayne Pivac about becoming a skills coach but it never materialised.
"I did a lot of work with Foxy (Jonathan Davies) helping him with his skills when I was at the Scarlets, and I knew from a young age he was going to be a superstar.
"I've got a few irons in the fire here in France but It doesn't have to be in the Top 14 or PRO D2, I'm open to opportunities anywhere.
"The game is too focussed on physicality and I think I can bring a point of different as a coach with regards working on the attacking side of things, and with individual players on their skills.
"I'd like to help teams play smarter and exploit space to make extra yards instead of taking contact for the sake of it which often means an opportunity out wide is missed."
Given King's track record as a player, a club could do a lot worse than getting the former All Black on their books.
READ MORE:
