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I bet somewhere, in his heart of hearts, Sonny William Williams has thought about and maybe even wished he had signed up with the ARU to play for the Wallabies.
Sure, it’s a great honour to represent New Zealand and the All Blacks, the greatest rugby team of all time, but playing off the bench with the odd game in the starting XV is probably not what he had envisioned.
All was looking rosy after the Super Rugby season. The Crusaders had made the final, he’d had an outstanding debut season and his main rival for the All Black centre spot had looked ordinary all year.
But then Nonu pulled on the black jersey (the All Black one, not that imitation England job with the numbers that fall off) and with his faithful side-kick Conrad Smith, made his case to remain New Zealand’s first choice.
If Williams had instead signed with the ARU, things could have been very different and I’m sure the big guy has thought about this from time to time.
He may well have ended up at the Reds outside his mate Quade Cooper, had an equally outstanding season culminating in a Super Rugby title, and unlike in New Zealand, he would have been an automatic centre selection for the Wallabies.
Drool. Imagine Sonny William Williams playing at 12 or 13 for the Wallabies. The one area in which our so-called best backline in the world lacks true talent in both defence and attack.
Not only would he get far more game time, but dare I say it, he would actually perform better in the Wallaby back line than he has at the All Blacks.
His style is more suited to the Wallabies game and as they don’t have an established centre-pairing, it wouldn’t be as disruptive as trying to fit him into an established centre partnership that is arguably the best in the world.
Fortunately (for the Wallabies and the rest of the world), Graham Henry hasn’t appeared to click onto the idea of playing Williams on the wing.
That’s right, the wing. You heard it here first.
This is the best spot for Sonny Will in the All Blacks set-up. Nonu and Smith are a package – they’ve played together at international level for years and their experience and value as a duo should not be underestimated.
But as Sonny Bill showed against the Tongans, he’s just too good to be left out of the side. In other internationals he hasn’t proved to be much of an ‘impact’ player off the bench, so why not give him a run out wide?
He’s fast enough, he can break tackles and he can offload in almost any situation, providing the perfect platform for finishers such as Dagg and Smith to get over the line.
But for as long as Henry and the All Blacks continue to miss this trick and keep Sonny on the bench or out of the side altogether in the big games, so too will Sonny wonder about what could have been if he had chosen to make a go of it with the Wallabies.
At this point it’s too early for regrets but that may change by the end of the tournament.
The All Blacks are still firm favourites to finally win the Rugby World Cup after a long drought, but whether they do it and whether it’s with or without Sonny William is yet to be seen.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.