Ryan Dale Williams (born 28 October 1993) is an Australian professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who plays as a winger for

Indian Super League The Indian Super League (ISL) is a professional association football league in India and the highest level of the Indian football league system. Administered by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and its commercial partner Football Sport ...

club

Bengaluru Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

Early life

Born in

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, Williams' mother Audrey, was born in an

Anglo-Indian Anglo-Indian people are a distinct minority group, minority community of mixed-race British and Indian ancestry. During the colonial period, their ancestry was defined as British paternal and Indian maternal heritage; post-independence, "Angl ...

family from

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

, India and his father was born in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, England. His maternal grandfather Lincoln "Linky" Grostate played for

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

in the

Santosh Trophy The National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy, or simply Santosh Trophy, is an inter-state national football competition contested by the state associations and government institutions under the All India Football Federation (AIFF), th ...

in the 1950s. Williams was brought up in a footballing family, with both older brother

Rhys Rhys or Rhŷs is a popular Welsh language, Welsh given name (usually male) that is famous in Welsh history and is also used as a surname. It originates from Deheubarth, an old region of South West Wales, with famous kings such as Rhys ap Tewdwr. ...

and twin brother Aryn having been professional footballers. The brothers all started their careers at

ECU Joondalup Perth RedStar Football Club is an Australian association football, soccer club from Joondalup, Western Australia currently playing in the National Premier Leagues Western Australia and National Premier Leagues WA Women.They are often a very tale ...

before moving to England.

Club career

Portsmouth

Williams joined

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

in July 2010, signing a scholarship with the clubs' academy side. There were initial issues concerning international clearance, with the FFA (Football Federation Australia) failing to release vital paperwork to allow Williams to play, but this was eventually resolved on 12 November. He played his first match for Portsmouth on 6 August 2010, in a friendly against Farnborough. His first competitive academy match for Portsmouth was a 4–1 loss to Chelsea. Williams was promoted to training with

Steve Cotterill Stephen John Cotterill (born 20 July 1964) is an English coach and former player who is currently the manager of National League side Forest Green Rovers. Cotterill, a striker, had a nine-year career as a footballer playing for Burton Albio ...

's first-team upon returning for the 2011–12 season. This cumulated with Williams' making his first appearance with the first-team in a 4–0 win over Havant & Waterlooville, in which he produced a lively display, contributing an assist. He went on to feature against Chelsea and travelled to the US with the first-team. Cotterill indicated that he was ready to promote Williams to the Portsmouth first-team squad, and Williams was selected to be on the bench for the

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

match against

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

with the 17 jersey. He made his professional debut in the opening-day match against Middlesbrough, on 6 August 2011, after he came off the bench to replace Hermann Hreiðarsson in the 63rd minute, playing against his older brother

, who scored in the match.

Fulham

On 31 January 2012, Fulham announced the transfer deadline day signing of Williams from

for an undisclosed fee, having impressed during a reserve game against

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

the previous night. On 13 May 2014, following the relegation of Fulham and his conclusion to his loan spell, Williams signed a new two-year contract with the club. Williams signed for Gillingham in League Two on a one-month loan deal on 14 February 2013 but failed to make an appearance for the Kent club before being recalled by Fulham. On 3 August 2013, Williams joined

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club () is a professional association football, football club based in Oxford, England. The club compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football league system, English football. Founded as Headingto ...

on loan until 1 January 2014, and made his debut against

Fratton Park Fratton Park is a association football, football ground in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, and is the home of Portsmouth F.C., Portsmouth Football Club. Fratton Park's location on Portsea Island is unique in English professional football, as it ...

. He scored his first senior goal on 28 September 2013 in a League Two win over

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. They were founded in 190 ...

. On 19 December 2013, Fulham agreed to extend his loan deal until the end of the season. After making 35 appearances and scoring six times, Williams made his final appearance for the club against relegation battlers

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the c ...

. Williams scored his seventh goal of the season to give his team the lead. However, towards the end of the first half he was sent off for kicking Ricky Ravenhill. Northampton Town subsequently took the lead and went on to win 3–1, which led to Northampton Town surviving relegation and Oxford United missing out of the play-offs. After being included in two matches for Fulham at the start of the 2014–15 season, Williams joined Barnsley on an initial one-month loan on 2 October 2014. Williams made his Barnsley debut ten days later on 12 October 2014, in a 3–1 win over

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The club competes in , the third tier of English football, and is managed by Graham Alexander. The club was founded in 1903 and ...

. Having made seven appearances, Williams' loan spell was extended until 1 January 2015. However, Williams' first team appearances were soon reduced due to his international commitments and he suffered a groin injury before returned to his parent club.

Barnsley

On 26 July 2015, Williams re-joined

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...

, but this time on a permanent basis for an undisclosed fee. His first and what turned out to be only goal for Barnsley was a late winner in a 4–3 win at

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...

Rotherham United

On 20 June 2017, Williams moved across South Yorkshire to join

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional association football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. The team plays in EFL League One, the third tier of English football, after suffering relegation fr ...

on a two-year deal. On 30 May 2019 it was announced that he would leave at the end of the season, upon expiry of his contract.

Return to Portsmouth

On 26 June 2019, Williams re-signed for his first club,

Return to Oxford

On 9 June 2021, Williams rejoined former club

when his contract expired at Portsmouth. He signed a two-year deal.

Perth Glory

In June 2022, Williams left Oxford United to return to Australia, joining

Perth Glory Perth Glory Football Club is an Australian professional Association football, soccer club based in Perth, Perth, Western Australia. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under Professional sports league organi ...

for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-year contract. He was welcomed back to

scoring an absolute stunner out of the box goal against Western United.

Bengaluru

On 28 July 2023, Williams signed a one-year deal with an optional one-year extension with

club

Bengaluru FC Bengaluru Football Club () (Kannada: ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು.ಎಫ್.ಸಿ) is an Indian professional football club based in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The club competes in the Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian football. The club w ...

. In 2024 Ryan Williams decides to extend his contract for another year.In 2024 his combination play with Sunil Chhetri played a pivotal role and providing assists and scoring goals led him to win the 2024 December Indian Super League Player of the Month.

International career

Williams played for the under-20 and under-23 sides, representing Australia at

U20 U20 or U-20 may refer to: Naval vessels * * , a sloop of the Royal Navy * , a submarine of the Austro-Hungarian Navy Other uses * Great truncated cuboctahedron * Meizu U20, a smartphone * Roland U-20, a synthesizer * Small nucleolar RNA S ...

level at the

2012 AFC U-19 Championship The 2012 AFC U-19 Championship is the 37th edition of the tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation. The AFC approved UAE as hosts of the 2012 AFC U-19 Championship on 23 November 2011.

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

and at the

2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the nineteenth edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, since its inception in 1977 as the FIFA World Youth Championship. It ran from 21 June to 13 July 2013. At the FIFA Executive Meeting in Zürich on 3 March 2011, ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. He was called up to the

senior squad in May 2019 for the friendly game against

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

on 7 June. He made his international debut as a second-half substitute in the game.

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Rotherham United *

EFL League One play-offs The EFL League One play-offs are a series of play-off matches contested by the association football teams finishing from third to sixth in the EFL League One table and are part of the English Football League play-offs. , the play-offs comprise tw ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

Portsmouth *

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Motors, Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football, football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and ...

runner-up: 2019–20

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Ryan 1993 births Living people Soccer players from Perth, Western Australia Australian sportspeople of Indian descent Australian people of English descent Australian people of Anglo-Indian descent Men's association football forwards Men's association football wingers Australian men's soccer players Australia men's international soccer players Australian expatriate men's soccer players Australian expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in England Perth RedStar FC players Fulham F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Gillingham F.C. players Oxford United F.C. players Barnsley F.C. players Rotherham United F.C. players Perth Glory FC players English Football League players Bengaluru FC players 21st-century Australian sportsmen