JOHNNY GRASPS SECOND CHANCE

WHEN Johnny Williams held court to preview the Scarlets’ derby against the Ospreys last December, he was inevitably asked why he had been left out of the Wales squad despite being in a rich vein of form.

- STEFFAN THOMAS

“It was work rate off the ball,” said Williams at the time.

“That was the big one for me.

“With what I was doing and my skill set they were quite happy with. It was my work rate off the ball, kick-chasing hard and metres in training.

“There’s always strings you can add to your bow and you can always look to improve.

“A big one for me has been my fitness, involvements in games, speed up off the floor, kick-chasing hard and leadership. I've been quite hard on myself.”

Williams has certainly had a big impact on the Scarlets’ late surge which secured a place in the United Rugby Championship play-offs.

In fact, it could strongly be argued that if it wasn't for powerful centre Williams and fly-half Sam Costelow returning from injury, the Scarlets wouldn't have reached the last eight.

Williams and Costelow have dovetailed wonderfully, with the Scarlets attack functioning far more efficiently as a result.

The 28-year-old can make valuable ground, while his offloading and footwork have also been top notch. He can also now strike the balance between when to carry hard and when to shift the ball wide.