RECONSTRUCTING SONNY
A supreme athlete with experience in both codes, Sonny Bill Williams will have to tweak his training to adapt to the demands of rugby when he returns from the NRL.
physically at least, Williams should have no issues moving back.
“He is lucky as he has a metamorphic body type [ he gains bulk easily]. To make the transition between different codes, genetics plays a part.
“As he was brought up playing rugby, he has a natural athleticism, plus he has gone to league, rugby, league and now back to rugby – this will all help.”
Tom Tombleson, the New South Wales Waratahs’ strength coach agrees.
“Someone’s athletic background prior to joining a sport is a good indicator of how successful they could be,” he says. “Most of the guys who come from rugby league would have a good engine, can run, step and are strong in contact. The ones that are really successful are good all- round athletes – generally tall, lean, strong and can play in different positions.”
From a training perspective, rugby and league are fairly similar. In rugby, it is about strength, power, endurance and stamina. Particularly with forwards, building all- round strength is a core focus. Training is usually a mixture of free weights, jumps and Olympic weightlifting. Scrum practice is a big focus and maximum impact needs to be created on those limited runs.
In league, it is about leg drive, winning the collisions, power and strength – but programmes are tailored depending on how many minutes players play. A rugby league fullback will do lots of explosive movements like jumping, whereas forwards’ training is split up into full game and bench players.
Interchange players in league can afford to be bulked up as they have an impact role. Usually, the other forwards will do deadlifts, explosive exercises and more footwork drills. Athletes need to be agile as well as strong in league.
Work rates are quite different though. In the NRL and for the Kiwis, Williams makes on average 110 running metres, 26 tackles per game and plays close to 80 minutes. Playing in the forwards, he has to do lots of tackling, ball carries and running. Lots of contact.
In Williams’ 19 tests with the All Blacks, he averaged 57 minutes per game, 37 running metres, eight carries and four tackles. In Super Rugby it was slightly higher: closer to 78 minutes a match, covering 54 metres, 10 carries and seven tackles. His role as a second- five is completely different and is more tactical – more about passing and kicking. Less tackling. Selective running. Organising. Low contact.
These statistics are staggering – Williams makes, on average, four times as many tackles and double the metres with ball in hand in league than in rugby. He was spot on when he said he was “kicking stones” in the backs when playing rugby. It is a vast difference. Williams reinforced his view to The
Guardian last year: “League is much more demanding physically. But, mentally, rugby is more testing. I had to help the No 10. He’s calling the game and you have to look for space and defensive weaknesses. You’re always thinking. But in league I play in the forwards and love it.”
Tombleson has seen Israel Folau make the transition from AFL to rugby and has a simple view on how players can cross codes successfully.
“Coming back into rugby, for a player going from any code, it is about handling the training first – then excelling in a position. Modern day rugby is so demanding, players are involved with so many different things. Players need to develop a slow cruising speed, as the threat of counter attacking is much more prevalent in rugby.”
The unknown with Williams will be how quickly he can change his league physique in time for rugby.
Williams has spent two years building up his body to adapt to the rigours of a long NRL season. Moving from rugby, boxing then league would seem a fairly simple transition from an outsiders’ point of view, but it took a long time for the former All Black to get his body right according to Sydney Roosters’ strength coach Keegan Smith.
“When Sonny came to the Roosters from rugby in Japan he wasn’t in the best state for hard [ rugby league] training. He was preparing for a boxing fight and had been doing 10km runs each day. In Japan, they focused on long distance running and stamina. He also injured his pectoral muscle, so was working on repairing that too.
“So we focused on building up his leg strength, which didn’t get much focus in rugby and upped his power and strength to win those big collisions. From a conditioning perspective we improved his glutes, hamstrings and lower back strength to give him more leg drive power. As he would be playing in the forwards, he needed to be solid and strong in contact.”
Williams has already started to incorporate more speed and long distance running in his programme to help his physical preparation back into rugby.
League is much more demanding physically. But, mentally, rugby is more testing. I had to help the No 10. He’s calling the game and you have to look for space and defensive weaknesses. You’re always thinking. But in league I play in the forwards and love it.’ Sonny Bill Williams
He certainly seems to take care of his body to give himself the best chance of performing in whatever code he is playing, which will give Chiefs and All Black fans great hope of a quick turnaround.
England and South Sydney Rabbitohs’ star Sam Burgess is another who will be going through the same transition after announcing his move to rugby at the end of this year.
He also plays in the second row and is earmarked to play in the centres in rugby. A dynamic, agile and powerful athlete with the skills of a back, Burgess could be the X- factor player England need in time for the World Cup in 2015.
He too has probably started to make the training adjustments to move across to rugby. A number of coaches agree that he would be considered athletic enough to make at least a good fist of rugby – whether he can learn the game quickly enough is another story.
But back to Williams. Chiefs technical adviser Wayne Smith, the man responsible for recruiting Williams to
New Zealand for the All Blacks 2011 World Cup campaign, said the dual international had purchased a NormaTec machine after joining the Super Rugby franchise last year to aid recovery in his legs after training and games.
Williams’ boxing trainer Mick Akkawy also marvelled at his dedication to getting his body in the best shape possible for all his sporting endeavours.
“If you want to see someone who is disciplined there is no better example. Everything that goes into his body is good for his body so he takes account of everything. He writes things down so he is very organised. He works out what he has got to do in preparation for when he is going to play or fight.”
At the time of going to print it wasn’t clear exactly how long Williams would have between the potential end of his stint with the Roosters and the All Blacks’ test against the USA on November 2. If the Roosters made the final, then Williams would have less than four weeks to get himself ready for that tour if selected.
Would that be enough time? Could he really finish playing league in early October and line up for the All Blacks less than four weeks later?
He won’t be too far off. And while All Black coach Steve Hansen has said it will be a case of wait and see – Williams is the sort of athlete who is almost impossible to resist.