Tamaiti Williams
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| Born | 10 August 2000 Whangārei, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 196 cm (6 ft 5 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 144 kg (22 st 9 lb; 317 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | St. Kentigern College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable relative(s) | Eric Rush (uncle) Brady Rush (cousin) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tamaiti Patariki Thomas Williams (born 10 August 2000) is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays as a Prop for the Crusaders in Super Rugby and Canterbury in the Bunnings NPC.
Williams was born in Whangārei, New Zealand to father Johnny and mother Natalie. Of Māori descent, he affiliates to the Ngāpuhi iwi.[2] He has two sisters, Kenya and Terina. The family moved to Perth when he was only a few months old, where he later schooled at Aranmore Catholic College, playing both rugby union and rugby league for Western Australia. In 2016, the family returned to New Zealand to live in Kaeo in the Far North where he attended Kerikeri High School, playing for their Condor 7s team. This led to Williams earning a scholarship to attend Saint Kentigern College, for whom he continued to play rugby. Playing as a loose forward in his school days, Williams subsequently transitioned to the front row where he gained some experience at loosehead prop and has now settled at tighthead prop, though is capable of playing in both positions.[3][4]
Canterbury
Williams made his debut for Canterbury in Round 1 of the 2020 Mitre 10 Cup against North Harbour at QBE Stadium, Albany on the North Shore. Canterbury won the match 43–29.[5] Between 2020 and 2022 Williams played 20 matches for Canterbury, starting 8 and scoring 4 tries.[6]
Crusaders
Williams caught the attention of Crusaders' scouts, leading him to decide to move to Christchurch at the end of 2019 to join their highly successful academy.[4] He was named in the Crusaders squad for the 2021 Super Rugby Aotearoa season, making his debut that year, with the team going on to win the Championship. Between the 2022 and 2023 Super Rugby seasons, Williams made 31 appearances for the Crusaders and scored 4 tries. The Crusaders won the Championship both years.[7][8][3]
Māori All Blacks
On 24 November 2020 Māori All Blacks coach Clayton McMillan named his squad to play Moana Pasifika on 5 December, which included Williams for the first time. He was the youngest member of the team and made his debut as a replacement during the match which they won 28–21.[2][9][10]
