All Blacks rookie Tamaiti Williams and his partner Alice Weir are the parents of a baby girl born more than three months early.  

Kaea Kate Williams was born 12 days ago at 27 weeks gestation and weighing “only... 1.4 pounds [0.63kg]”, wrote Williams and Weir under a photo of their new daughter they posted to Instagram late last week.  

“We welcomed our little princess Kaea Kate Williams on 07/04/24″, the Crusaders tighthead prop and his partner wrote, accompanied by a love heart emoji.  

“Alice and baby are doing really well! But we have a long road ahead!”  

The black-and-white image shows Williams, 24, touching his new daughter inside her incubator. The newborn’s fingers sit on the middle joint of her dad’s right index finger as the All Blacks’ left hand rests across her tiny body. 

“We appreciate all the prayers, love and support,” the couple wrote on the joint post, which received 4632 likes and more than 270 comments. 

The Herald asked Williams via his Crusaders Super Rugby Pacific franchise if he wanted to comment further about Kaea’s arrival. 

“Tams is keen to hold off for a couple of weeks before talking publicly about it”, a Crusaders’ spokesman said. 

“As you can imagine it’s a tender time for him and his family.” 

Several All Blacks were among those posting words of support to Whāngārei-born Williams and Weir following their announcement on Instagram. 

Ardie Savea offered his best wishes. “Congrats usoo - prayers and love fams”, wrote Savea, the All Blacks’ 70th test captain. 

Whangārei-born Tamaiti Williams made his international test debut for the All Blacks in 2023 against South Africa. Photo / Photosport 

Dalton Papali’i and Sevu Reece also left heartfelt messages for their All Blacks teammate. 

“Congrats my brother! Sending all love”, wrote Papali’i, while Sevu Reece offered “blessings and prayers to you and the girls”. 

A pregnancy term is normally about 40 weeks. A baby born before the 37th week of gestation is known as a premature or preterm baby. 

In New Zealand, about 7 to 10 per cent of babies are born prematurely. They are among an estimated 15 million babies born prematurely around the globe each year, according to the World Health Organisation. 

Premature babies usually spend longer in hospital after birth, cared for by specialists in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU). New Zealand has more than 24 NICU units in hospitals around the country. 

The youngest age at which babies can be looked after is about 23 weeks’ gestation. 

Cherie Howie is an Auckland-based reporter who joined the Herald in 2011. She has been a journalist for more than 20 years and specialises in general news and features. 

This article was originally published by the NZ Herald here.