Sonny Bill Williams won two World Cups with the All Blacks. He says his NRL premierships mean more
Sonny Bill Williams has admitted he holds his two NRL premiership triumphs with the Bulldogs and the Roosters above his World Cup wins with the All Blacks in terms of importance.
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Sonny Bill Williams has admitted he places his NRL premiership wins with the Bulldogs and Roosters above his two Rugby World Cup wins in terms of importance.
The dual-code superstar, who recently signed a $10 million two-year contract with the Toronto Wolfpack, has won just about every award on offer in both league and union.
Williams won two premierships in league with the Bulldogs in 2004 and the Roosters in 2013 and two World World Cups with the All Blacks in 2011 and 2015.
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However Williams admitted to The Telegraph, that his two NRL titles still rate as his greatest achievements.
“From a sporting point of view? I guess it would have to be the NRL championships that I was a part of – they were a bit more special than anything else. Growing up as a league man, you envisage those moments so much,” Williams said.
“It has been an unbelievable journey to be an All Black. But when I hear some of the boys, like Sammy Cane, talk about the jersey and how much it means to them, I see the same in me when I was young – except that I was dreaming of playing in NRL.”
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It is a significant admission from the dual international, given the reverance that the All Blacks jersey holds in New Zealand culture and how hard World Cups are to win.
However the 34-year-old is focused on creating new milestones with the Wolfpack ahead of his first season with the Super League club.
“As Toronto players, I think we’re going out there to turn some heads,” Williams said.
“But then also the amount of support the lads have back in Toronto, it sounds crazy.
“It’s a journey, there’s a bit of pressure there but it’s so exciting.
“But I just go back to the conversations that I had with Brian [McDermott, Wolfpack coach]. Yes, I’m a sportsman, but I need to have that purpose, something I really believe in, and just his philosophy, how he wants to play the game, I feel like the way I strive to play the game, I could be really suited to their style of play.”
Originally published as Sonny Bill Williams won two World Cups with the All Blacks. He says his NRL premierships mean more