SIX NATIONS: THE LIAM WILLIAMS INTERVIEW
He is the fans’ favourite who plays with a regard for his own safety that is light years from planet sensible. His fearless streak was evident during his days working 12-hour shifts as a scaffolder above the blast furnace in Port Talbot steelworks. But on a rugby pitch the 25-year-old has much more than just courage in his locker. He also has flair and a burning will to win. Here, he speaks for the first time to the media about his decision to leave the Scarlets and join Saracens and opens up on a range of other topics...
Question: How much have you enjoyed the opening couple of rounds of the Six Nations? Answer: We had a bit of an edgy start against Italy, but we scored some tries after the break and were unlucky not to get the bonus point when I almost got the ball down in the corner at the end.
We were there for about 65 minutes against England, but a rugby match lasts for 80 minutes and the last 15 wasn’t great for us.
But we’ve picked ourselves up and are looking forward to playing Scotland. Q: How did the inquest unfold in camp after the England game? A: We win together and we lose together. Rugby is a team sport and you have to be all in it together — one team, one dream. Q: But was it frustrating that you lost despite playing well for so long? A: It happens that way sometimes in sport. We switched off as a team in those final stages and perhaps didn’t get what we deserved for our earlier efforts. Q: Some players attracted flak after the England game, while others were lauded for their efforts. How do you stay sane in a world where one week you can be everyone’s favourite, the next you can be the worst player on the planet? A: I try to avoid the comments, good or bad. If a player has made a mistake he puts his hand up. Also, the boys in camp have got each other’s backs.
Q: How is it for you on social media? You have more than 62,000 followers on Twitter. Presumably, one or two occasionally come up with the odd comment that’s not exactly positive? A: It’s about half and half, I’d say!
Seriously, everyone’s allowed an opinion. If people want to tweet their views to me, that’s fine. I’m not going to lose sleep if they don’t rate me or think I’ve had a bad game. I don’t read too much into what someone I have never met thinks of me. Q: Are you a bloke who reads newspapers? A: No, I do my reading online. Everything that goes into the newspapers is on the internet, anyway. Q: What did you think of online criticism of Alex Cuthbert after the England game? Was it fair? A: Of course it wasn’t. When we go out on to the pitch we are not just 15 or 23 players. We are 75,000 people.
You could even say we are three million or so people, whatever the population of Wales is.
We are one team, one country. As players we are trying to do the best we can for the whole of Wales, so there’s no way you can stick the blame on one person. So much can happen in a rugby game. The bottom line is we switched off as a team and that cost us. Q: Criticism is the way of the world nowadays — journalists get it as well, you know. Quite a lot of it, actually. A: Everyone has an opinion, but as players, we don’t take the field to lose. We want what the whole of Wales wants, and that is to win every game. Unfortunately against England we didn’t win, but it wasn’t for want of trying. Q: There’s a Lions tour this summer. How much would it mean to you to be selected? A: It would mean a heck of a lot.
I was out in Ibiza with Tom Prydie and Lloyd Williams during the last Lions trip and we were watching Jon Fox (Jonathan Davies), George (North), Pens (Leigh Halfpenny) and all the others on the TV. It’s always been a dream of mine to make a Lions tour.
It would be the pinnacle if I could get there, but I have learned during my career you should never look too far ahead. Sport is about the here and now. The moment you start thinking too much about something a few months down the line, that’s when things can go wrong.
So all I’m concerned about at this point is the Six Nations.
When that’s over, I’ll go back to the Scarlets and try to do a job for them. Q: I don’t think you’ve previously spoken to the press about your move to Saracens in the summer. What clinched the decision for you? A: Saracens are European champions and they were in another final two or three years ago. They’ve been English champions for a couple of years running.
So it was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down.
Hopefully, I’ll go there and be part of a side that wins a couple more trophies.
There’s also the point that I will be living closer to my girlfriend.
It’s a new chapter. I am ready to try something different and I am looking forward to it.
That said, I still have some games left for the Scarlets. We are looking to make the top four in the Pro12 and get
into the play-offs and I want to help them achieve that goal. It would be brilliant if we could win a trophy this season. Q: How much have you enjoyed your time with the Scarlets? A: I’ve really enjoyed it there. Ever since I played for Llanelli on the way through, the fans have been amazing.
Whenever I go to Llanelli or PyS (Parc y Scarlets), people are outstanding with me.
I can’t speak highly enough of the supporters, the staff and the other players.
Q: You’re known as a bit of a fans’ favourite at the Scarlets and in Wales generally and you’ve had a lot of compliments thrown your way over the past year or two. How do you stay grounded when plaudits are coming in?
A: Texts off the boys in Waun (Waunarlwydd) keep me grounded! And my family as well. I walk off the pitch and people tell me straight away if I’ve been any good or not.
But I think I’m a level-headed bloke, anyway.
Where I come from it isn’t the thing to walk around thinking too much of yourself. Q: Are you settled at wing now? A: I prefer to play at 15 but Leigh is doing an immense job and so I’m happy to slot in on the left wing or the right wing — anywhere in the back three. It’s about trying to do a job for the side. Q: I’ve read that you and Leigh are good mates? A: We are good mates. At the weekend his local team, Gorseinon, played my local side, Waunarlwydd, and Waun won with the last kick of the game, from Lee Evans: 25-22 at their place. So I have the bragging rights! Q: How do you see the rest of the tournament going for Wales? A: We have three tough games to play. Scotland beat Ireland, who then thrashed Italy in Rome.
So playing those two won’t be easy. And we round things off with a trip to Paris to take on France, who beat Scotland.
The key is just to take things game by game. It’s still an open championship. England need to lose only once and someone else could nip in.
So we have to get our performances right and make sure we win our next three games. There’s still a chance we could win the championship.