Grant Williams (born 22 July 1996) is a South African professional rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half or wing for the in the United Rugby Championship and for the South Africa national team. Williams is noted for his exceptional pace and finishing ability.
Early life Williams was born in Paarl and attended Paarl Gimnasium. He did not secure an immediate professional contract after finishing school and instead, he enrolled at the Stellenbosch Rugby Academy before moving to Durban, where he played club rugby for College Rovers. His performances at amateur level eventually led to a professional opportunity with the .
Club career Williams moved to Durban in 2017, where he joined the amateur club side College Rovers and impressed sufficiently to be brought into the team in early 2018 as injury cover for Louis Schreuder.
He made his Super Rugby debut in February 2018, appearing as a late bench replacement for Michael Claassens in the opening match of the 2018 season against the Lions, replacing Cameron Wright in the 60th minute. This was to be his only Super Rugby appearance of the 2018 campaign, though he did appear for the Sharks XV in the SuperSport Rugby Challenge.
Williams featured intermittently for the Sharks across Super Rugby and the Currie Cup during 2019 and 2020, though at scrum-half he remained behind Louis Schreuder, Sanele Nohamba and Jaden Hendrikse in the pecking order. During this period, he made 8 Currie Cup appearances for the union. His increased involvement in the 2021 Currie Cup, Rainbow Cup and inaugural United Rugby Championship seasons saw him become a regular member of the match-day squad, leading to his first national team call-up in August 2021 as injury cover for Jaden Hendrikse.
From 2022 onward, Williams established himself as a core member of the Sharks’ senior team. He was part of the side that won the EPCR Challenge Cup in 2024, starting in the final in London as the Sharks claimed their first European title.
In the 2024–25 URC season Williams struggled with a neck injury that ruled him out for approximately three months during the latter stages of the campaign.
International In August 2021, Williams was called up to the Springbok squad as an injury replacement for fellow Sharks scrum-half Jaden Hendrikse. He made his international debut off the bench on 9 July 2022 in a 13–12 defeat to Wales in Bloemfontein. Williams was part of South Africa’s victorious 2023 Rugby World Cup squad and later featured in the teams that won the 2024 Rugby Championship and 2025 Rugby Championship. Honours Sharks
Currie Cup: Winner: 2018
EPCR Challenge Cup: Winner: 2024
South Africa
Rugby World Cup: Winner: 2023
The Rugby Championship: Winner: 2024, 2025
Statistics Test match record
Opponent P W D L Try Pts %Won 2 2 0 0 0 0 5 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 2 10 1 1 0 0 1 5 1 1 0 0 0 0 3 2 0 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 2 10 1 1 0 0 0 0 6 3 0 3 1 5 1 1 0 0 2 10 3 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 3 2 0 1 0 0 Total 31 25 0 6 8 40
International tries
TryOpposing teamLocationVenueCompetitionDateResultScore1Bordeaux, FranceNouveau Stade de Bordeaux2023 Rugby World Cup17 September 2023Win76–023Johannesburg, South AfricaEllis Park Stadium2024 Rugby Championship31 August 2024Win31–274London, EnglandTwickenham Stadium2024 end-of-year tests16 November 2024Win20–295Gqeberha, South AfricaNelson Mandela Bay Stadium2025 Italy tour of South Africa12 July 2025Win45–06Saint-Denis, FranceStade de France2025 end-of-year tests8 November 2025Win17–327Turin, ItalyJuventus Stadium2025 end-of-year tests15 November 2025Win14–328Johannesburg, South AfricaEllis Park Stadium2026 Nations Championship4 July 2026Win45–21
References
External links Grant Williams at Springboks