Martyn William: The Autobiography

by Williams

Determined, dedicated, and dogmatic, Martyn Williams is the inspiring number seven lynchpin who has steered club and country to victory in inimitable style. In his action-packed autobiography, he writes about his love for the sport he has made his own. Starting out with hometown team Pontypridd, he made his Wales debut at just 20 and won the Welsh league title with Pontypridd the following year, repeating the feat in his first season after joining Cardiff, whom he went on to captain for three years. Twice a British Lion, his finest hour came as the award-winning role in Wales' Six Nations championship Grand Slam of 2005. But there is far more to Martyn than his seemingly smooth career path from valleys rugby to international stardom. He speaks candidly about the double personal tragedies of losing both his mother and brother to cancer and of the challenges of combining his sports commitments with being a husband and father to his two children. Full of surprises, he also reveals his passion for both American football and soccer. A diehard Liverpool fan, he was a talented center-half himself in his teenage years. He speaks about the controversial departure of Mike Ruddock as coach of the national team, the drinking culture in Welsh rugby in the early years of professionalism, the infamous Battle of Brive, and why he turned down the chance to captain Wales at the 2003 World Cup. He also gives his views on the influx of southern hemisphere coaches like Graham Henry and Steve Hansen, plus the lowdown on how he prepares and trains and what really goes on in the dressing room. With coverage of 2008 RBS Six Nations and revealing portraits of his teammates and opponents, this honest, witty, informative, and entertaining autobiography is a must for fans and any sports lover.

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Mat Greener · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great servant of Wales & great player integral in two grand slams. Very few amusing stories just the key facts of his career.

[russell barnes · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm on page 191 of 288 of Martyn Williams: Can I finish this in a day... and what does that say about this book?

Having finished it in a day, it suggests to me the majority of international sportsmen don't really have an awful lot to say, and what they do say gets repeated four or five times per chapter. This is a slightly scathing and mean assessment as Williams comes across as a likable man, and he is/was one of my favourites from the current golden Welsh generation, but that's about it.

He played through the move to amateurism, was part of the Ruddockgate controversy and went on two Lions tours, but he comes across as mildly piqued by all the controversy, rather than spitting fire and brimstone about it like Brian Moore.

The comparison between the two isn't entirely unwarranted - although you probably don't want to read too much into it - but both suffered family tragedies and indeed neither of them knew their fathers. I suspect the problem lies in the fact Williams is still playing which means the bodies will probably remain hidden for a good while yet.

[Grant · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a very good book, not very well written which would be forgivable if it was Williams himself who wrote it alone but it appears to have been ghost written. Worst of all several times in the book Williams touches on some of the bigger controversy's of his career and chooses not to go into detail or divulge any insider info he would have had out of some sense of loyalty to fellow players or past coaches etc. which is very noble but why write a book if you are not going to tell people how it all happened.