Most sportspeople grow up dreaming of one day playing at Wembley.
Whatever the sport, whatever the country, Wembley is an iconic stadium that captures the imagination. When you grew up in Cooma, the tiny New South Wales town with population 6,301, Wembley might be as far away as Mars.
But Cooma Colts junior Sam Williams and his club Wakefield are now just two more victories away from a Wembley appearance. Trinity and their Australian halfback take on Salford in the Challenge Cup quarter-finals on Thursday with a semi-final spot up for grabs.
Both Wakefield and the Red Devils have enjoyed fantastic Super League seasons to date, sitting in fifth and second currently on the ladder. But on the AJ Bell Stadium on Thursday one of the two’s Cup ambitions will come to an end.
Wakefield’s last Wembley appearance came way back in 1979, when they lost to Widnes. For Salford they last visited the famous London arena in 1969. Getting to Wembley for either club, two of the smallest in English rugby league’s top flight, would be a special feat.
They meet after both suffered defeats in the last round of Super League. Trinity ended a seven-game winning streak with a tight 18-16 loss to Leeds, while Salford went down to Hull FC.
“Leeds are the sort of side which that find a way to score tries, they’re not the most conventional ways but they score tries and they do it well,” Williams told The Sportsman. “So you just can't give them that opportunity and it came back to bite us on the end.
“We just didn’t play well enough. Leeds came back after a slow start and gave it to us. Credit to them. But we’re not too disappointed, it’s been a good run and we’ve just got to refocus now as it’s a big game on Thursday.”
For Williams it has been somewhat of an up and down season since his arrival from NRL club Cronulla. The 26-year old started the season in the halves with Jacob Miller, then reverted to a bench role, battled an injury and is now back in the starting team with Liam Finn following Miller’s broken leg.
But Williams has kept calm and composed, contributing effectively when requiring. So far the dependable scrum-half has kicked 26 goals and set up 14 tries, ranking him seventh in the entire competition in try assists.
“I was coming off the bench for maybe two or three games in a row,” he said. “We were winning games so that’s the biggest thing. Everyone wants to be in the 17, winning games and playing a role, whether you need to bring energy off the bench or start the game. Everyone’s got a role to play and if at the end of the 80 we’re winning, then happy days.”
Williams knows Wakefield will have to be on their game against Salford. Trinity have beaten the Red Devils twice in 2017 but both were incredibly tight encounters.
“They’re a good team. They’ve got a lot of strike power and they’re a side that don’t go away. There’s a lot of positives to that Salford side and going there is not easy. We were there last week and it was a battering sort of game, tough and physical and it will only go up another notch on Thursday. I think a lot of the boys are looking forward to it, but we’re going to need to be on.”
For Williams his Super League sojourn, his second after a 10-game stint with Catalans in 2014, has been a positive experience. His future beyond this season is unknown at this stage, but the halfback is enjoying things as they come and going to Wembley in August would be a welcome treat.
“It’s been good,” he said of his time in the UK. “Where we sit on the table helps a bit. It’s something different and the concept of the Challenge Cup is exciting too. I haven’t been part of that and it's something I’m looking forward to.
"I really want to be part of something with Wakey going forward and hopefully we can try and create something special here.”
