World Cup rugby ace drops in on students
STUDENTS at Hopwood Hall College got to meet twotime Rugby World Cup winner Sonny Bill Williams when he visited their campus recently.
A world famous New Zealand rugby star, of both union and league, ‘SBW’ recently signed for Super League club Toronto Wolfpack to become the highest paid player in the history of the sport.
The Canadian team have been using Hopwood Hall as their training base since the start of 2018 due to their professional facilities.
Williams, 34, recently returned from the Rugby World Cup in Japan, where he played in the All Blacks’ 19-7 semi-final defeat to England, but he was happy to set time aside to meet the pupils.
Kris Robinson, Director for Sport and Uniformed Public Services, said: “The Wolfpack players and staff have been fantastic with our students for what is nearly two years now, they put strong values on developing their performance in communities – not just on the pitch.
“Everything from the small day to day interactions to the light training sessions they’ve included students in have been superb experiences for our students.
“Staff at the College have enjoyed following Toronto since they came to the College and SBW giving up his time to speak to and shake the hand of every rugby academy student is a perfect embodiment of our partnership with them. Needless to say we’re even more excited for the new Super League season.”
Despite flying across numerous continents and having a packed UK schedule, Williams met with the College’s own rugby academy students and signed a shirt or them after getting together with the Toronto team.
Whilst students will get more chances to watch the double World Cup winner train, they made the most of the opportunity to talk about their own clubs, lives and career aspirations with the Kiwi legend.
Kris added that it was a “landmark achievement” for the region to have one of its own colleges host such an ambitious club as the Wolfpack, and that the two organisations had recently extended their contract.
The club will become the first outside of Europe to take part in the Super League and will split their time between Canada and the UK this season.
Williams, a winner of the Rugby World Cup in 2011 and 2015 and a former Heavyweight Boxing Champion of New Zealand, will begin the Super League season in February alongside his new team-mates.
In a video posted to the Wolfpack Twitter page, he said: “As a sportsman trying to achieve something special, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”