Wales star ‘deserves’ British and Irish Lions recognition after ‘outstanding’ season
Gloucester star Tomos Williams scoring a try v Exeter plus an inset of George Skivington
Gloucester director of rugby George Skivington believes scrum-half Tomos Williams is deserving of a call-up for the British and Irish Lions tour this summer, stating he’s one of the best in the British Isles.
The Welsh back, who arrived at Kingsholm at the start of the season from Cardiff, delivered another remarkably classy performance in the Cherry and Whites’ 79-17 win over Exeter Chiefs on Sunday, claiming the Player of the Match in the process.
Tomos Williams ‘deserves’ Lions call-up – Skivington
Jamison Gibson-Park is dominating talk around the Lions number nine shirt after his performances for both Leinster and Ireland in the past year, but there is a good crop of scrum-halves looking to join him.
England star Alex Mitchell, Scotland’s Ben White and Jack van Poortvliet are all in the conversation, as is Williams, but Gloucester boss Skivington is backing his man to make Farrell’s final touring party.
“Definitely (building towards the Lions),” Skivington said. “Selection isn’t that far away, and that game (against Exeter) won’t do him any harm.”
He added: “I think he’s one of the best nines in the British Isles and deserves to be there (on the Lions tour).”
Exeter boss blasts ‘unacceptable’ defeat after coming ‘under an avalanche’ at Kingsholm
The Wales ace faces a nervy wait now though, with that performance against Exeter his final outing before the Lions squad announcement on the May 8.
Skivington lauds Williams’ impact on Gloucester squad
To even be mentioned in Lions conversations is a big thing for players, but Williams is more than deserving after his form, particularly in Cherry and White.
The Welshman arrived at Kingsholm at the start of the season and has quickly established himself as one of the best attacking nines in the league, and that was on full display in their win over Exeter on Sunday.
Across his shift, Williams made 75 metres from his seven carries (10.71 metres per carry) and directly contributed to four of Gloucester’s 13 tries in the process, notably spinning out of a tackle and producing an out-the-back offload to Christian Wade in the build-up for Chris Harris’ try. He also nabbed one of his own for good measure.
But, this is again just one of a number of world-class outings from Williams since his switch to the Premiership, and Skivington was full of praise for his headline acquisition.
“I think he’s been great,” he said. “There’s always a punt when you sign players, but all the conversations and meetings I had with him before we signed him were really good. He’s obviously doing great stuff on the pitch, but what he brings behind the scenes is just as good as well.
“He’s a bloke that likes to have a laugh, but then when things get competitive, he’s not messing around. That competitive nature then comes out on the pitch and I think the boys like following him.”
He also detailed that the key behind his success has been letting him just express himself on the pitch, rather than ‘putting him in a box’.
“You’ve got to (let him express himself), you can’t bring him in and put him in a box. You’ve got to let him do his thing. We have discussions around when to do it and when not, but you sign someone like Tommy to open things up, and he’s done a really good job for us this year.
“He’s also probably learned a few bits playing in the Prem, which has been great for him,” Skivington added. “He’s been outstanding.”
