Bryan Williams (rugby union)

Sir Bryan George Williams KNZM MBE (born 3 October 1950) is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer and former coach of the Samoan national rugby team.

For other people with the same name, see Bryan Williams (disambiguation).

Sir Bryan Williams
KNZM MBE
Williams in 2018
Birth nameBryan George Williams
Date of birth (1950-10-03) 3 October 1950
Place of birthAuckland, New Zealand
Height1.79 m (5 ft 10+1⁄2 in)
Weight89 kg (14 st 0 lb)
SchoolMount Albert Grammar School
Notable relative(s)Gavin Williams (son)
Paul Williams (son)
Rugby union career
Position(s) Three-quarter
Amateur team(s)
Years Team Apps (Points)
1968–1982 Ponsonby ()
Provincial / State sides
Years Team Apps (Points)
1969–1982 Auckland 132 ()
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
1970–1978 New Zealand 38 (68)
Coaching career
Years Team
1999
2000–2001		 Samoa
Hurricanes (assistant coach)

Playing career

Williams was born in Auckland, New Zealand in 1950. His father was Samoan, and his mother a Rarotongan of Samoan descent.[1] His family lived in Ponsonby, and he was educated at Mt Albert Grammar School, where he started his rugby career.[2] He became an All Black in 1970 as a wing and distinguished himself in the 1970 South African Rugby Tour where he was a sensation, scoring 14 tries in his 13 appearances and in the international series he scored in each of the first and fourth Tests. This was during apartheid, so with his parentage he was only able to tour after honorary white status was granted.[3][4]

Williams' international rugby career lasted from 1970 to 1978 in which he played 113 matches (including 38 international Tests) and scored 66 tries in all matches as an All Black (ten tries in Tests), which was a record until beaten by John Kirwan.

Retirement

After he retired from rugby, he coached a number of club sides in New Zealand. During the 1990s onwards, he has been the national rugby coach for Samoa. He is married and has two sons Gavin and Paul, who also play rugby union: Gavin plays internationally for Samoa and plays club for French side US Dax; and his other son Paul played for the Auckland Super Rugby side the Blues before playing for Sale in the English Premiership and debuting for Samoa in 2010. Williams now coaches at the Ponsonby Rugby Club and the Mt Albert Grammar School Rugby Academy.

Williams was appointed President of the NZRU in 2011.[5]

Honours

In the 1983 Queen's Birthday Honours, Williams was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), for services to rugby.[6] In the 2013 Queen's Birthday Honours, Williams was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM), also for services to rugby.[7] He was promoted to Knight Companion of the same order in the 2018 New Year Honours (KNZM), for services to rugby.[8] In August of that year, he was announced as a member of the 2018 induction class of the World Rugby Hall of Fame, officially being inducted at the Hall of Fame's physical location in Rugby on 12 September.[9]

References
  1. Cleaver, Dylan (1 August 2011). "B.G Williams – 'Beegee' our first Samoan superstar". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
  2. Dunsford, Deborah (2016). Mt Albert Then and Now: a History of Mt Albert, Morningside, Kingsland, St Lukes, Sandringham and Owairaka. Auckland: Mount Albert Historical Society. p. 150. ISBN 978-0-473-36016-0. OCLC 964695277. Wikidata Q117189974.
  3. Reid, Neil (9 May 2010). "Bee Gee: I never felt I was an honorary white". Sunday News. Archived from the original on 10 May 2010. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
  4. Brown, Michael (18 April 2010). "Rugby: Once was hatred". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
  5. "Home".
  6. "No. 49376". The London Gazette (2nd supplement). 11 June 1983. p. 34.
  7. "Queen's Birthday honours list 2013". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 3 June 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
  8. "New Year honours list 2018". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 30 December 2017. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  9. "Five new inductees to the World Rugby Hall of Fame presented by Tudor" (Press release). World Rugby. 10 August 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
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