Jim Williams recalls Munster move: 'It was one of the best decisions I ever made'
It is 24 years ago that Williams captained a Brumbies side including Stephen Larkham against a Lions team featuring Munster icons and soon-to-be clubmates Ronan O'Gara and David Wallace and then tasted victory over Graham Henry's 2001 tourists in an Australia A jersey. Two months later, having been overlooked for the Test series after 14 caps and a place in the 1999 World Cup-winning squad, the No.8 was making his debut in red in a pre-season friendly for Declan Kidney's side at Musgrave Park against London Irish.
Williams played 74 times for Munster, became the province's captain before transitioning to an assistant coach under Kidney in the historic 2005-06 season at the end of which the Heineken Cup was lifted for the first time.
By the time he left for home to take up the same role with the Wallabies at the end of the 2007-08, 'Seamus' was a Munster icon in his own right and now 56 he has not forgotten the impact his seven years in Ireland has made on him.
Williams is no longer involved in rugby, choosing lifestyle over coaching professionally with a career change to a government job and moving south of Sydney to Woolongong. Yet the 2025 Lions tour drew him back in once more, if only from his sofa.
"It's been excellent," he told the Irish Examiner before settling down for the final Test last Saturday. "I mean I love the Lions tours, doesn't matter where they are and where they're playing, it's always something that I try not to miss."
Shane Horgan, Leinster, in action against Munster's Jim Williams, 6, and Ronan O'Gara in the Celtic League Final 2001. Pic: Matt Browne, Sportsfile
Playing against the 2001 Lions was a significant moment for Williams.
"It was my first introduction to Ronan O'Gara and guys like that. It certainly holds special memories, and the game down in Canberra (with the Brumbies) was excellent.
"We got really close to beating them that night, great atmosphere, and all those special memories certainly of that Lions tour when they came out in 2001.
"And I joined Munster straight after that Lions tour.'
Williams credits a young adult life as an amateur player for helping him to settle so successfully at Munster. He joined the Australian Army at 17, also worked as a plumber and had a season in English club rugby at West Hartlepool in the mid-nineties.
"I didn't play professional rugby until I was 30, with the Brumbies. I suppose that might have helped a little bit, being a little bit more mature, and moving with my partner at the time wasn't a big deal because it was the two of us.
"So it wasn't a massive move, but I certainly did take the time, and I had a lot of advice from John Langford at the time about Munster.
"I did have a few other offers in France and I just thought basically going to an English-speaking place over in Europe was probably on my mind.
"And the fact that it was Munster and John Langford had been there and had raved about it an had been so well accepted and had been successful himself, it really wasn't an issue about where I was going to go after that.
"It was always going to be Munster from there on in, and certainly it worked out that way. It was just a wonderful time of my life."
For Munster supporters, memories of Williams the powerful ball carrier and tackler with excellent leadership qualities tend to stand out, yet the man himself equally cherishes the dressing room camaraderie he felt as a player and his time as a coach under Kidney, when the province finally lifted the Heineken Cup.
"Winning those from a coaching perspective, my first year of coaching and having the likes of Declan Kidney back and that kind of thing, that was wonderful from that perspective. And to be able to do it in 2008 as well, that was very special.
'Obviously as a player, you always want to win those titles, but I think from a coaching perspective, it was extremely rewarding.
"It's not easy to go from a playing environment to a coaching environment, especially with guys that you've just done so much with.
"As a player, I just had the right environment around me, I had the right coaching, I had the right players, and the right support outside of rugby as well to be able to succeed while I was there.
"I can't pick out one game. I mean, people pick out the Gloucester game, the Miracle game and all that kind of thing but I think every time I got on the pitch with those boys, the likes of Ronan O'Gara, Paul O'Connell, Donncha O'Callaghan, Anthony Horgan, those type of guys, it was always something that I was going to try my best at.
"I didn't need to think about it. I didn't need to do anything different from what I normally do. I did the work during the week and I knew all these boys would.
"You didn't always win games, things didn't always work out, but I knew the effort was always there and I think that was probably the most enjoyable thing from a playing perspective.
"I always knew these guys were always going to put it in every time they went out and from a coaching perspective, I think to coach that and see that from outside was just as rewarding.
"I suppose just the experience that I had playing with the guys and being able to coach them, I think it's probably the most special thing that I can take away from my time at Munster.
"I had success playing with them. I probably had more success being part of the coaching staff and being able to be a part of those two titles that we got, I think it was just wonderful. It's just something that I'll never forget."
Williams thinks Australia should send more of their players overseas to experience different environments, conditions and team cultures and cites Will Skelton's current spell under O'Gara at La Rochelle as a prime example of the benefits to Wallaby rugby. And he cited his only visit to the redeveloped Thomond Park with the Australians on the November tour of 2016 as the perfect example of a collective lack of experience as Munster defeated the touring Wallabies 15-6 on a typically wild cold and stormy winter's night in Limerick.
'I've been back to the stadium once with Australia which wasn't a happy hunting ground That was a wild night. I've seen conditions like that before and I wasn't surprised.
"The team that went out that night, the coaches that went out that night, the looks on their faces, they hadn't been a part of conditions like that.
'I had no illusions about the conditions that were going to happen and full credit to Munster that game, they just played the conditions perfectly and that's more or less what won them the game and they thoroughly deserved it.
"That's the beauty about playing overseas and going overseas and playing. Obviously playing in different countries but playing in different environments and playing in different conditions.
"You've got the likes of Nic White who have come back and guys like Will Skelton who I think is a better player for the fact of playing overseas and understanding what it's like to play in different conditions and different arenas and different styles of football.
"It should be a wonderful learning experience to go overseas with the Wallabies on the Spring tours. Yes, they want to play and they want to play well and they want to win but they want to learn from those aspects about playing overseas and playing in different conditions and weather that's not conducive to running rugby and adjusting your game and adjusting the mentality about what you do and how you do things to win games.
'It's certainly an honour playing over in Europe and playing in different conditions and it's just something that I'm so glad I did, when I had the opportunity to do it. It was one of the best decisions I ever made."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
I tried Alton Towers' new ‘Disney-style' dining package which saved us nearly £100
At the top end is The Ultimate Dining Plan, at £90 per person, which gives you a three-course evening meal at any of the hotel restaurants IN LINE FOR A TREAT I tried Alton Towers' new 'Disney-style' dining package which saved us nearly £100 HAVING just been hurled through the 14 loops of Alton Towers' The Smiler, that familiar summer holidays siren went off. 'Mummy, I'm hungry!' said my five children in unison. 5 Gemma Quade tried the new Alton Towers package - it may seem pricey but it's great value for money Credit: Jon Parker Lee 5 Gemma enjoys a glass of wine at Alton Towers 5 Gemma's family Credit: Suppled Due to the prices at theme parks, that's usually enough to make you feel sicker than when on the big rides. Thankfully, rather than scouring the rucksack for some broken breadsticks, this time my reply was: 'No problem, where would you like to eat?' My unusual generosity was because we were trying out Alton Towers' new Disney-style dining package. Launched this summer, it allows visitors staying in any of the resort's hotels or lodges to pre-pay for their food at a cheaper price. And it offers decent value at that. There are four options, starting from a Standard Dining Plan, at £50 per person, which offers a two-course evening meal, a lunch and a snack. At the top end is The Ultimate Dining Plan, at £90 per person, which gives you a three-course evening meal at any of the hotel restaurants. You also get your pick of lunch options in the park, a towering snack from kiosks dotted around the themed areas, alcoholic or soft drinks, a Costa coffee and a bottle of fizz in your room. Kids cost less. For £20, children aged three to 12 can get lunch, snacks and evening meals from locations that match their adult's dining option. Booking is recommended for evening meals. For us, that meant a table at the Secret Garden Restaurant at the Alton Towers Hotel. That's where we were staying in adjoining Moon Voyage rooms, complete with double beds and bunk beds — perfect for our big family. We had worked up an appetite flying down the flumes and larking about in the lazy river at the waterpark in Splash Landings Hotel in the resort. I was the first to ride Alton Towers' newest ride Toxicator - it was a topsy-turvy spinning explosion So the three-course meal at the restaurant, which is decked out with plants to make it look like an English country garden, couldn't have been more welcome. While the adults' food included smoked sal-mon tartare, duck with dauphinoise potatoes, ribeye steak with chips and wine, the kids were delighted with dough balls, chicken goujons, burgers and pasta. When we totted up what we would have spent on this meal alone — over £80 each for the grown-ups, and £20 each for the kids — we had already made a huge saving with the dining plan. The next day, we loaded up on breakfast before an early start in the theme park — hotel guests get early access at 9am. Thanks to fast-track tickets, we had managed to tick off nine of the big coasters before 1.30pm — in the height of the summer holidays. 5 Gemma and daughter Credit: Suppled 5 Arctic Explorer room at resort hotel Nemesis Reborn, Galactica and The Smiler were consistent entries on both the kids' and adults' top threes. And despite the high-speed, brain-shaking and stomach-flipping twists and turns enjoyed or endured, depending on your perspective, the kids were all ravenous. With five children aged between nine and 12, including one vegetarian, finding an option to suit everyone can sometimes be a bit of a chore. Can't argue with that value But on the Ultimate Dining Plan, you can choose a lunch meal deal from any of the restaurants on site, including Eastern Express with naan wraps, The Rollercoaster Restaurant serving burgers, and Just Chicken. But we went for Explorers Pizza & Pasta Buffet in Katanga Canyon for its all-you-can-eat pizza slices and pasta dishes and bottomless drinks. GO: ALTON TOWERS STAYING THERE: Moon Voyager rooms at the Alton Towers Hotel cost from £265 per night based on two adults and two children sharing and including breakfast, evening entertainment, a round of nine-hole round golf and free car parking. One-day theme park entry costs from £34 per person. Dining packages cost from £50pp for a Standard Dining Package. See Coming in at £22.50 per adult and £12.75 per kid for those rocking up on the day, the £90-per-person cost of the Ultimate Dining plan was looking like extraordinary value when you add in the other meals too. With our snacks and coffees too, I reckon I chomped my way through £120 of food and drink, while the children ate their way through £41 worth of grub for their £20 Kids Dining Plan. You can't argue with that value. But better still is the convenience of being able to pre-pay for your food and drink at the time of booking your short break, which makes it just like an all-inclusive. And let's face it, faff-free breaks during the summer holidays are what it's all about.
RTÉ News
an hour ago
- RTÉ News
Annabel Wilson leads Irish contingent at Centurion Club
Lurgan's Annabel Wilson is tied-15th after the opening round at the PIF London Championship with Alexandra Swayne and Laura Fünfstück leading the way at the Centurion Club. Defending champion Leona Maguire - who won in spectacular fashion with an eagle at the final hole last year - is absent but Wilson leads a four-strong Irish contingent after firing a two-under par opening round 71 around the London venue. Lauren Walsh is two strokes further back on even par, the Kildare golfer bouncing back from a double-bogey and bogey on successive holes on the third and fourth with birdies on the fifth and seventh. Sara Byrne carded a one-over 74, which included five bogeys and four birdies, while Anna Foster is well back after a five-over par 78. In glorious conditions, Swayne and Fünfstück both fired rounds of 67 (-6) on the first day to share the lead. It was a good start for Swayne, who represents the U.S. Virgin Islands, as she made a birdie on 10 before her only dropped shot of the day on 11. She rolled in back-to-back birdies on 17 and 18 before an eagle on the first and rounded out her day with birdies on seven and eight to be tied for the lead on six-under-par. Germany's Fünfstück began her day with an eagle at the first and added a birdie on the second before another on the ninth. Her only bogey of the round came on 11, but she bounced back with birdies on 12 and 13 and finished in style with another birdie at the last to be tied alongside Swayne. Switzerland's Chiara Tamburlini and Spain's Carlota Ciganda are in a share of third place on five-under-par. Three-time LET winner Tamburlini had eight birdies and three bogeys on her scorecard for her round of 68. English trio Cara Gainer, Mimi Rhodes and Charlotte Laffar, Sweden's Bringner, and Italy's Alessandra Fanali are in a tie for fifth place on four-under-par.
Irish Examiner
2 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Dr John O'Driscoll becomes the 136th President of the IRFU
Dr John O'Driscoll has been elected the 136th President of the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) at their Annual Council meeting held on Friday. The former Ireland and British and Irish Lions flanker represented his country 26 times and made 19 appearances including six Test for the Lions between two tours. O'Driscoll's first cap for Ireland was in 1978 and toured South Africa in 1980 with the Lions and then New Zealand three years later. He helped Ireland to a first Triple Crown since 1949 as he played a key role in the 1982 Five Nations. O'Driscoll played for Stonyhurst School in Lancashire before playing club rugby with Liverpool St Helens and Manchester. O'Driscoll played for Connacht at provincial level making 13 appearances. He captained London Irish from 1979-1981 leading them to the John Player Cup final in 1980. He was named Irish Sportsman of the Year in 1980. After hanging up his boots, O'Driscoll remained deeply involved in rugby. He coached the Irish Exiles team that played in the Senior Interprovincial Championship from 1991-95 and went on to become President of the Irish Exiles from 2006-10. In 2001 O'Driscoll was a selector with the Lions. He went on to hold numerous administrative roles within the IRFU including representative to World Rugby and Rugby Europe from 2016-25. Away from rugby, O'Driscoll's career was in medicine where he was a Consultant Dermatologist, Clinical Director of Greater Manchester Dermatology and Regional Skin Cancer Network Chair. Speaking on his new role O'Driscoll said 'It is a great honour to be elected as the 136th President of the IRFU. "Irish Rugby has given so much to me since an early age — first as a supporter, then through a wonderful playing career with London Irish, Connacht and Ireland. In more recent years, I have been privileged to contribute to the administration of the game alongside people utterly dedicated to its success at every level. 'I look forward to visiting clubs across the country and meeting the volunteers who are the lifeblood of the sport. Their passion, commitment and depth of involvement are vital to Ireland. 'I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my wife Susan and our children Billy, Danny and Gemma for their constant support. I also want to congratulate Declan Madden on an outstanding year as President. The 150th anniversary was an enormous success, and Declan worked tirelessly to be present and supportive at every turn. 'Now, our attention turns to the upcoming Rugby World Cup. This is a moment to unite behind our women's players and we are extremely excited for what Scott Bemand and his squad can do together.' The IRFU Financial Statements for 2024/25 will be published in November with the IRFU reported to have budgeted for a small deficit for the financial period. Speaking on the season IRFU Chief Executive Kevin Potts said 'As we conclude our 150th year celebrations I am really pleased to report that rugby in Ireland is in a strong position, with the game thriving all across the country. "More people are playing, watching, and supporting the game than ever before. The 150th afforded us a fantastic opportunity to showcase the depth of our community, the strength of our teams, and the pride of people across the island of Ireland. 'Our Men's National Team continue to be one of the best in the world, currently sitting at third in the world rankings. Our players, coaches, and support teams continue to set world-class standards on and off the pitch, and we remain the envy of many rugby nations. Our Women's National Team continue to build momentum and we are all eagerly awaiting the kick off for the 2025 Rugby World Cup in the weeks ahead. 'Financial sustainability is one of the biggest challenges facing the game. We continue to investigate new sources of revenue to support our ambitious targets for the game, but we are equally mindful of the need to constantly review our cost base. While our cost base is currently outstripping our revenues, we are fortunate to have a strong balance sheet including Cash advances for ten-year tickets and our long-term property and stadia investments. This enables the Union to protect the long-term future of the game and absorb any unexpected shocks such as Covid. We have had to make some difficult decisions in the past 12 months and one such decision was the discontinuation of the Men's Sevens programme. We have to continue to invest in a financially sustainable manner, which, in turn, will allow us to deliver on our strategic priorities. 'There have been some highs and some lows, but we finish this year in a position of strength, ready for the next chapter. We will continue to work with our fellow Unions, our Provinces and all the stakeholders in our game, on the challenges that face us.'
