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Growing up admiring Sonny Bill Williams, Wales centre Max Llewellyn hopes to give the All Blacks some offloading headaches when the two sides meet. Steve Tandy’s side will welcome New Zealand to Cardiff in the Nations Championship on Saturday at 14:10 GMT.
Channelling a Childhood Idol
The 6ft 6in Gloucester back grew up watching the double-World Cup winning All Blacks side featuring legendary players such as Dan Carter, Richie McCaw, Ma’a Nonu, Sam Whitelock, and Kieran Read. However, it was the sizeable frame of dual-code icon Williams and his ability to free his arms and keep the ball alive that particularly caught Llewellyn’s attention.
As reported by BBC Sport, Llewellyn said, “He was probably someone that I really enjoyed watching when growing up. I was a centre, he was a centre and he had a similar frame. I really enjoyed what he did in bringing the offload into rugby. That kind of changed the game a bit and was something that I looked at and wanted to emulate.”
Chasing an Elusive Victory
Llewellyn has previously achieved a rare feat for a Welsh rugby player by beating New Zealand during the 2019 World Rugby Under-20 Championship in Argentina. However, few expect that shock age-grade success to be repeated at senior level this weekend.
Wales have lost 34 successive games in a losing streak stretching back to 1953, which includes a narrow one-point loss in 2004 when Llewellyn’s father Gareth played in the second row. Although an unconvincing 28-21 win against Japan did little to raise expectations of a major upset, the centre insists that a defeatist mindset does not exist within the Welsh camp.
Llewellyn stated, “There’s always the belief, especially when you come into work and you are in this Welsh jersey, that you can win. We are always willing to deliver everything we can, and above, to make that happen. We have been working really hard to make our performances more consistent and better. If we can do that then we will be in a really good spot to be a lot more competitive on Saturday.”
Settling into the Inside Centre Role
Llewellyn was paired with 6ft 4in Scarlets back Eddie James for the first time against Japan, marking the sixth different centre partnership for Wales. This selection signalled a shift away from the previous policy of deploying a ball-player such as Joe Hawkins or Ben Thomas in the midfield.
Describing the new partnership, Llewellyn explained, “I really enjoyed it. It was the first that I have played with Eddie and I thought we played pretty well together. The first week of training was about making sure we had the combination locked down and I felt that happened really quickly.”
Having worn the number 12 jersey only once for Gloucester this season and having made his sole previous start at inside centre for Wales against England in an August 2023 World Cup warm-up, Llewellyn views the position as his long-term future.
He noted, “The roles are definitely different. At 12 you get a lot more direct tackles and at 13 you get a few more opportunities when you are out in a bit of space. I enjoy playing both and I am fortunate that I can play both, but in the long-term 12 is where I will probably be. I think that is where I could get the best out of myself going forward. I enjoy both positions, and they both have different opportunities, but the physical aspect of the game at 12 suits me.”
The Nations Championship fixture takes place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, with live radio coverage broadcast across BBC platforms.
