Throughout season 2015, Media Team member Aaron Kirkby-Rodier will be taking to some of the Leagues biggest names to get their side of their Football Journey.
Last Week, The Eastern Footballer featured Part one of the Leigh Williams Story, with Part 2 to come in this weeks edition, below is Part 1 of Aaron’s Chat with the Norwood Forward.
From the east to the big time and then back again, for Leigh Williams has a remarkable story to tell in such a short career.
As a 12 year old Williams headed down to his local club Park Orchards before heading off to Norwood later in his juniors.
“I started off at Park Orchards and played a few seasons there, I moved to Norwood in the under 16’s for the pure fact that Park Orchards didn’t have seniors
“I had plenty of mates at Norwood so it was an easy decision to move really.”
Playing with two very successful junior programs surprisingly Williams didn’t enjoy much success in his junior career.
“I think at Park Orchards we might have made finals once an then at Norwood we didn’t make finals so not really any team success.”
Heading into his Under 18 season Williams had been training with the Eastern Ranges summer squad hoping a chance to play TAC Cup might present.
“I was in the squad and they cut me that year, I had grown a lot so I was getting injuries and I suppose that was an easy out for them.”
Being able to turn his attention back to Norwood, as a 17 year old he would make his debut in the senior side.
“I played the first few games in the 18’s then I played my first game in the seniors against Lilydale. I think I played in the forward pocket and did alright.”
Williams continued in the seniors for a few games before it became evident that the Colts would make finals and the seniors would miss out. Unfortunately after playing several games back in the 18’s injury would strike.
“Before finals I ended up doing my knee so I missed the finals and the most of the next season with the knee reconstruction.”
Williams would make a return in the 18s with four rounds remaining in 2008 and would play off in the grand final.
“We played off in the grand final but we lost to Knox. I think, over those two seasons I only played maybe 12 Under 18 games and three senior games.”
Fast forward to 2011, Williams is an integral part of the Norwood side. Kicking 88 goals, the most in Division 1.
“I won the goal kicking and we finished eighth or ninth so wasn’t a great year for the team. But personally it was a pretty good year.”
After the season Williams was on clubs radars, with plenty of VFL offers the season before he had elected to stay with Norwood.
This Year would be somewhat different with some AFL clubs casting their eye over the Norwood spearhead.
“I had heaps of VFL clubs speak to me the year before but I didn’t really think I was ready just yet. So for 2012 I was really just thinking about heading to the VFL.”
Williams was about to head away on the end of season footy trip when to his surprise he was contacted by Melbourne.
“The week before I was heading to Bali on footy trip I spoke to Melbourne, I was pretty surprised I wasn’t expecting to hear from any AFL clubs.”
On his return from Bali, Williams got some more surprises this time from Collingwood and the Western Bulldogs, Williams would talk and complete testing with both.
“Mid-October I spoke to Collingwood and the Bulldogs, I did testing with them and then the week before the rookie draft I trained with Melbourne. I felt if I going to get picked up I was more of a chance to go Melbourne or the Bulldogs.”
Not expecting to get drafted Williams didn’t even keep an eye on the draft.
“I had some time off work and I was at home but I wasn’t going to watch it on the computer just because I didn’t want to be disappointed. I think it was either my Uncle or my Mum messaged me and said you got drafted.”
Heading in to Melbourne, Williams had the luxury of training with them for a week. Not always confident that he could train at that level, after being drafted Williams felt more confident and that the club believed in him.
“I felt a bit out of my depth to be honest but once I knew Melbourne believed I was up to it I had more confidence in myself. I think I dropped 8 kgs in the first few weeks and they wanted me to model my game on Nick Riewoldt playing that high half forward role.”
Williams loved the AFL lifestyle and was felling really good about himself and his body heading towards the NAB Cup he was positive about his chances to play. Once again injury struck and would see him sitting on the sidelines for a period of time.
“I was pretty confident I was going to get a NAB Cup game just based on some injuries we had, I ended up having a slight fracture in the lower back and wasn’t available to play till Round 4 of the season.”
Making his return through the VFL Williams got through two games, during the second he copped a slight concussion which, a week later had him in an induced coma.
“I got a slight concussion during the second game and that brought on the meningitis I had.”
Williams didn’t sleep for a week and had a constant headache, club doctors thought that it was the flu as it had swept through the club in the previous weeks. Williams would pull out of Casey’s game on the Saturday after a week of no sleep but it was Saturday night when things would take a bad turn.
“I think I was watching the Dees at my ex girlfriends house and I just lost feeling in one side of my body, it was like I was having a stroke. I lost my speech and then the ambulance was called I don’t remember a lot.
“They originally took me to Maroondah and I flat lined for a bit so I then went to Box Hill.”
Williams would spend the next three days in a coma when he woke he still spent the next 2 weeks in hospital. He didn’t train for another month.
“I didn’t do much for 6 weeks really just meetings and things like that, even after that I had to do a month of solid work before they would let me play for Casey.”
Once he returned to Casey, Williams managed to string four or five games together and with injuries in the Demons front half there was a chance of a senior call up.
“Mitch Clark went down and a few of the others so I thought I might have been half a chance, there was about three or four games left in the AFL season by that stage. Unfortunately I did my ankle after kicking 5 goals in the first half against Geelong (VFL) and that was it I didn’t play another game for the rest of the year.”
Williams tore three ligaments in his ankle and spent the next month on crutches and in a moon boot. Melbourne were pro active in trade week gaining the rights to gun youngster Jesse Hogan and premiership forward Chris Dawes, this would spell the end for Williams at Melbourne.
“They said they would keep me on if they got Hogan but when they got Dawes as well that made it hard and I think the next day I had my exit meeting.”
Unlucky to get delisted Williams felt as though even with a very interrupted year with injury that he may have done enough to remain with the Dees.
“I thought in my last five or so games with Casey that I’d shown enough to get another crack. I just think with all the injuries I didn’t get much chance to prove myself. The ankle didn’t help either I think I would’ve missed the first ten weeks of preseason and with the forwards they’d picked up it was hard to argue.”
Williams would talk with the Western Bulldogs after being delisted but ultimately the dogs didn’t select him. He would head down to Williamstown to hopefully give himself a chance the year after by playing with the ‘Dogs VFL affiliate.
“I thought that would be a pretty good fit for me and it would mean the dogs could keep a pretty close eye on me.”
Only managing a handful of games at Williamstown injury would strike again the same ankle Williams had done the previous season would fell him again. Even though he had signed a two year deal, relationships would sour with Coach Peter German and CEO Brendan Curry.
“I was pretty annoyed with the way I was getting treated with injuries I had, I just didn’t feel the duty of care was there. I probably could have avoided the injury I had because they had rushed me back and the doctor had given me an injection which in reality makes the ligament brittle.”
“There was some other stuff going on off field as well trying to work for myself and travel to Williamstown five nights a week wasn’t really working, my good mate from Norwood Dale May committed suicide and my Grandma died so I just wasn’t enjoying footy.”
Still involved with Norwood and on the committee Williams had Wayne Gobble on his back to finish the year back at Mullum Reserve.
He would return and finish the season and would look ahead to a big 2014…