From GWS Giants rookie to rising star: Zac Williams proud to have defied the odds stacked against him
ZAC Williams was forced to scrap from the bottom up after coming to the Giants via the AFL rookie list.Now, he’s preparing for one of the biggest games of his career against Hawthorn.
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In the eyes of AFL rivals the GWS Giants might be defined by their overload of first-round draft picks, but Zac Williams says pedigree has nothing to do with the club’s top eight surge.
Williams is one of the few young stars out west to have fought his way into the AFL the hard way, and the 21 year-old from Narrandera is proud of it.
There is no question the rest of the AFL finds the Giants’ extraordinary bounty of 10 top-round picks difficult to stomach, but inside the GWS dressing room reputations are left at the door.
We’re all about the hard work at the Giants so if you put in the hard work and the dedication into what you do … you’ll earn a lot more respect
Zac Williams 
Williams always had the odds firmly against him chasing his AFL dream; growing up in a town with a population of just 2000 in the NSW Riverina and forced to scrap from the bottom up after coming to the Giants via the AFL rookie list.
But as the Giants prepare for Saturday’s home-ground blockbuster against Hawthorn at Spotless Stadium, self-made talent Williams is proof that not everything has been handed to GWS on a silver-platter.
“Most of the boys at the club are high draft picks but once you walk through the doors it doesn’t really matter whether you’re a high draft pick or not. It’s an even playing field and you just have to prove you’re good enough to play this sport,” Williams told The Daily Telegraph.
“We’re all about the hard work at the Giants so if you put in the hard work and the dedication into what you do … you’ll earn a lot more respect I think.
“That’s how we go about things — hard work overrides talent.”
Rebounding defender Williams was one of the Giants standouts in Sunday’s huge win over St Kilda and the indigenous livewire has been one of the real success stories’ of the club’s early-season wave of momentum.
However, even more impressive is the fact Williams’ form has come on the back of the “sour” disappointment of being left out of the side for the opening two weeks of the competition.
Compared to former Essendon and Port Adelaide dual-premiership winner Gavin Wanganeen for his expert work in the back pocket, Williams said he has returned to the AFL with a strong point to prove and is determined to finally cement himself in the Giants’ top side once and for all, after debuting back in 2013.
“It was a bit of a sour taste in the mouth that I didn’t get picked in the side for round one or two. It was pretty tough watching from the sidelines but I just dealt with it as best I could, copped it on the chin and got on with it,” he said.
You always get up for the big games and to play the reigning premiers you always have to bring your A game a
Zac Williams
“I felt like I did have a point to prove and I really wanted to cement my spot in the team. I haven’t cemented it yet but hopefully in the coming weeks I can play some consistent footy and do that.
“This is my fourth year here now so I feel like I had to step up and mature a bit.”
Williams found the transition from Narrandera to life in Sydney challenging initially, primarily being separated from his mother, and greatest influence, Joy.
But at the Giants this year, Williams has childhood hero Lenny Hayes at the club as an assistant coach and has been working side-by-side with mentor and GWS co-captain Heath Shaw.
On top of that, mum Joy is at most games and is on the phone every day as her boy starts to feel more and more at home in the AFL.
For the Giants, playing at home at Spotless for the first time in 2016 against the might of Hawthorn is a massive occasion — but Williams says GWS will rise to the occasion rather than be overawed.
“You always get up for the big games and to play the reigning premiers you always have to bring your A game against them because you know that they’ll always find a way to play their best footy,” he said.
“You could say (this is the biggest game of my career) but every week is a big game. First home game at Spotless is always a big thing. We’ve got a lot of confidence that we’ve been playing good footy over the last couple of weeks and hopefully we can take that into this weekend.”
Originally published as From GWS Giants rookie to rising star: Zac Williams proud to have defied the odds stacked against him
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