Why George Williams is Canberra’s most audacious English recruit yet
Replacing a grand final halfback meant George Williams was always going to be under pressure, but a quarter century of failure from his countrymen has only added to the stakes.
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It wouldn’t matter if George Williams was from Wigan or Wagga Wagga, becoming the halfback for a team with premiership aspirations would be a tough ask.
But seeing as George Williams is from Wigan, the new Raiders playmaker doesn’t just have expectations to fulfil as he replaces grand final halfback Aidan Sezer – he has to defy a quarter century of failure from his countrymen.
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“But the reason George is good is because he performs under pressure,” Raiders star John Bateman told The Daily Telegraph.
“I’m not saying he’s going to go out there and score ten tries in his first game – but that’d be perfect, he’d love that as well.
“I know what he’s about, and once he settles down and plays his game he’ll be the George Williams we know.
“Sez (Aidan Sezer) loved taking control, getting his hands on the ball from play to play, but George is more of a runner, an attacking player who likes to get on the front foot.”
Bateman played alongside Williams in two Super League grand final victories, and has no doubt Williams can end 25 years of English backs failing to make it in the Australian competition.
Williams himself sees ending that streak as a point of pride.
“I’ve got a point to prove, for myself and for Super League, really,” Williams told The Daily Telegraph.
“Quite a lot has been spoken about English backs not doing well, and I want to change that.
“I like to play what I see, little bit off the cuff. But I’m not going to be a world-beater from Round 1, I’m going to build into it slowly.
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“I played with Hodgo (Josh Hodgson) for England a good few times, I know what he’s about. Jack (Wighton) spoke for himself last year, he played for his country and for New South Wales, it was just good to able to play with blokes like that.
“I’m not as vocal as them at the moment – I don’t want to come in screaming, I want the boys to respect me first.
“Hopefully I can do that in the first few rounds. I’ve still got to speak, I’m a halfback, but not so much as them.
“I just want to be consistent, and stay consistently good through the year.”
A list of the Super League backs to have fallen over in the NRL, apart from Brian Carney’s one year with the Knights in 2006, makes for grim reading.
Joe Burgess and Dan Sarginson were Test players who barely made it through one season. Ditto Zak Hardaker. Sam Tomkins was supposed to be the British Billy Slater, until he wasn’t. The jury is still out on Kallum Watkins and Ryan Hall, but the start hasn’t been promising.
And then there’s all the others – Chris Thorman and Richie Mathers, Jordan Tansey and Greg Eden. Even Canberra have had one fall flat, when poor old Jordan Turner only lasted six months before heading back to Super League.
But things can be different for Williams. For one thing, he’s in his physical prime and coming off a proper pre-season, unlike Hardaker, Watkins and Hall. Plus, he’s joining a club with great experience in transitioning English players to the Australian game, a luxury Tomkins was not afforded.
Hodgson is the model for Williams to follow – the former Hull KR man improved his play tremendously when exposed to the week to week intensity of the NRL, and Williams is aiming to do the same.
“No offence to Super League, but some weeks that can be a real tough game and other weeks it’s not so tough,” said Williams.
“I found my game would go up and down sometimes depending on opponent – no disrespect to the other teams, but you go from a packed stadium to two fans and mentally it’s hard to get up.
“So consistency is the key for me and the team this year.”