Wales scrum-half Williams to retire at end of season
Wales scrum-half Lloyd Williams will retire from professional rugby at the end of the season. The 36-year-old Worcester Warrior played 32 times for his country between 2011 and 2023, scoring two tries. Williams' first taste of international rugby came against Wales, when he played for the Barbarians against his home country in June 2011.
He was drafted into the Wales training squad for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, but had to wait to win his first cap until August of that year in a win over Argentina. Williams also featured in the 2015 World Cup and was part of the squads that won three Six Nations titles, including a Grand Slam in 2012. "It's kind of a heart and head decision; the heart tells me to keep on playing, but my head is saying I need to start looking after my body and start focusing on the next chapter," he told the Worcester website.
"I've had a fantastic year here at Worcester, it's something I'm really proud of and will look back with a lot of fond memories. "The fact that this year will be my lasting memory of professional sport as a player is seriously special. " Williams is the son of former Wales and British and Irish Lions scrum-half Brynmor, and like his father played the bulk of his club career for Cardiff.
Williams' brother Tom also played professionally. After making his Cardiff debut against Leinster in 2010 as a 21-year-old, Williams went on to make 261 appearances for the Blue and Blacks, bagging 42 tries in the process. While at Cardiff, he won the European Challenge Cup in 2018 as well as captaining the side on several occasions.
Williams was one of seven Wales internationals to leave Cardiff after the end of the 2022-23 season, joining Ealing Trailfinders for two seasons before finishing his career with Worcester Warriors. Worcester play his former club Ealing on Saturday in the Elior Champ Rugby semi-finals.