Rhodri Williams (born 5 May 1993) is a

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

international

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

player. A scrum-half, he plays his club rugby for the

Dragons A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

, having previously played for

Scarlets The Scarlets () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup (which ...

Club career

Williams came through the academy system at

Pro12 The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...

side

and, after starting his career at

Llandovery RFC Llandovery RFC ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Llanymddyfri) is a Welsh rugby union club based in Llandovery, Carmarthenshire, Wales. The club is an inaugural member of the Welsh Rugby Union, currently play in the Welsh Premier Division and is a feeder club f ...

in the

Welsh Premier Division The Welsh Premier Division, () known for sponsorship reasons as the Indigo Group Premiership, (''Uwch Gynghrair grŵp indigo'') is a rugby union league in Wales first implemented by the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) for the 1990–91 season. Compet ...

, he made his senior Scarlets debut in 2011. Although a popular player at the Scarlets, Williams would struggle for starts ahead of scrum-half rivals Gareth Davies and Aled Davies, both players also being ahead of Williams in the Wales pecking order. It was announced on 1 February 2016 that Williams had signed for

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

for the 2016–17 season. Although Bristol were relegated from the English Rugby Premiership at the end of his first season at the club, Williams remained at the club and was a key part of the side's successful campaign to be promoted again in the subsequent season. In December 2017, however, Williams signed for the

ahead of the upcoming 2018–19 season, specifically citing his desire to push for more Wales honours. Since joining the Dragons, he has been an influential figure, captaining the side on numerous occasions.

International career

In January 2013, he was selected in the Wales squad for the

2013 Six Nations Under 20s Championship The 2013 Six Nations Under 20s Championship was a rugby union competition held between February and March 2013. England won the tournament. Final table Results Round one Round two Round three Round four Round five References ...

. Later that year was part of the Wales U20 side which reached the

2013 IRB Junior World Championship The 2013 IRB Junior World Championship was the sixth annual international rugby union competition for Under 20 national teams. The event was organised in France by rugby's governing body, the IRB. A total of twelve nations played in the tournament ...

Final, which the Welsh team lost 15–23 against England. On 22 November 2013, he made his full international debut versus Tonga as a second-half replacement. He was then named in the Wales squad for the

2014 Six Nations Championship The 2014 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2014 RBS 6 Nations because of the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the 15th series of the Six Nations Championship, the annual northern hemisphere rugby union championship. ...

and scored his first international try against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

in what was (as of 2022) his last game for Wales. On 27 May 2018 he played for the

Barbarians A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by some to be les ...

against England at Twickenham. He appeared for the Barbarians again in 2019, coming off the bench to score a try as they lost to England 51–43. Williams earned a recall to the national side in June 2021, when he was selected in the squad for the

2021 July rugby union tests The 2021 mid-year rugby union internationals (also known as the summer internationals in the Northern Hemisphere) were a series of international rugby union matches that are typically played in the Southern Hemisphere during the July international ...

. However, he would not appear in the games against Canada and Argentina due to a shoulder injury. Williams was again called up by Wales in 2022, following injuries in the squad. He was not selected in a match day squad and ultimately did not appear.

International tries

Personal life

Williams is a fluent

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

speaker.bbc.co.uk
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References

External links

Scarlets profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Rhodri Wales international rugby union players Scarlets players Dragons RFC players 1993 births Living people Rugby union players from Swansea Welsh rugby union players Bristol Bears players Rugby union scrum-halves