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

Playing career

Williams was born in Auckland, New Zealand in 1950. His father was Samoan, and his mother a Rarotongan of Samoan descent. He was educated at Mt Albert Grammar School, where he started his rugby career. 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. 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 John Kirwan may refer to: * John Óge Kirwan (fl. 1530–1531), mayor of Galway * Sir John Kirwan (1650–1721), Irish entrepreneur * John Kirwan (cricketer) (1816–1899), English cricketer * John Kirwan (politician) (1869–1949), Australian ...

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 Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

side the

Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

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.

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. In the

2013 Queen's Birthday Honours The 2013 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of t ...

, Williams was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM), also for services to rugby. He was promoted to Knight Companion of the same order in the

2018 New Year Honours The 2018 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebratio ...

(KNZM), for services to rugby. 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.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Bryan 1950 births Living people New Zealand rugby union players New Zealand rugby union coaches New Zealand sportspeople of Cook Island descent New Zealand sportspeople of Samoan descent Auckland rugby union players New Zealand international rugby union players People educated at Mount Albert Grammar School Rugby union players from Auckland Ponsonby RFC players Knights Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit New Zealand Members of the Order of the British Empire World Rugby Hall of Fame inductees Rugby union wings Rugby players and officials awarded knighthoods