Close friends Williams and Hendrikse vie for Springbok spot

Sharks scrumhalf Grant Williams says his healthy rivalry with close friend Jaden Hendrikse has helped to bring the best out of both of them.  

The players are among the top scrumhalves in the country and their rivalry does not end with the Sharks, it spills into the battle for the Springbok No 9 berth.    

Both are competing to make the Springbok squad that will defend their Rugby World Cup title in France starting in September.  

“Jaden is a close friend and the rivalry brings the best out of us to compete every week,” Williams said. “He is a good competitor. I’m sure I push him too.”  

One of Williams’s weapons is his speed. It was on show again when the Paarl-born speedster burst through to score his team’s first try in the Sharks’ 31-24 United Rugby Championship (URC) defeat to Ulster at Kings Park at the weekend. 

Williams revealed he was not always among the fastest players but professional help from an expert took his running to another level. “I only developed speed after school, and I have been working [on it] ever since, but I’ve never been a professional athlete.  

“I spent time with a professional coach who helps athletes. I would go back to Cape Town and spend my holidays doing speed training with him. Obviously, there are a lot of ways to develop speed, but I would say ‘hill training’ [was a crucial aspect].”  

The Sharks will be desperate to return to winning ways in the URC when they travel to meet the Stormers at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday (kickoff at 2.30pm).  

The Durban team is looking to cement a place in the top eight and book a spot in the quarterfinals. A top-four finish will secure a home quarterfinal.  

They are in seventh spot and will need to have an aggressive approach in the final four round-robin games to stand a chance of making the top four.