George Williams makes passionate England admission ahead of Samoa series opener

George Williams admits being captain of England is the pinnacle of his career as he prepares to lead his nation into a two-match Test series against Samoa.

The Warrington Wolves star will again captain his country this autumn, with Shaun Wane’s England side taking on Samoa in Wigan on Sunday afternoon, followed by the second and final Test in Leeds next Saturday.

Williams has won 19 caps in total for Great Britain and England since making his international debut in 2015 – but he says actually being able to captain his country is ‘beyond his wildest dreams’.

“I always thought playing for England was the pinnacle, but to be captain is unbelievable,” Williams told Love Rugby League.

“I’m just proud. Don’t get me wrong, I also lean on other leaders in the group, we’ve got some captains of clubs and people that have been around the game for a long time. Sam Tomkins (team manager) is still within the group and I can lean on him for some advice so, even though I’m captain, I still need a hand along the way but it’s something I’m really proud of.”

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Sunday will be extra special for Williams, who will walk England out of the tunnel against a star-studded Samoa side in his hometown of Wigan, with a cohort of his family and friends in attendance.

“I didn’t really think about it (leading England in Wigan) to be honest until the other day,” Williams admitted.

“Obviously you are in the heat of the season and I knew we had the games but now it has come around and I’ve had a bit more time to think, so it’s nice that family and friends can come – not that they wouldn’t – but to be in your hometown is pretty special and being the captain of England is the pinnacle for me.”

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England may have claimed an impressive 3-0 series win over Tonga last year, but Williams knows his side need to be at their best if they are to achieve a similar feat against Samoa this time around.

“We are always looking to improve and yeah, we won 3-0 last year, but we know we’ve got to be better again to go 2-0 against Samoa,” Williams told Love Rugby League.

“I played against a few (of them in the NRL). I think there are some obvious ones, obviously Jarome (Luai), (Roger) Tuivasa-Sheck, (Jeremiah) Nanai are the standouts but I think they’ve got some really good young ones who have set the NRL alight.

“I made my England debut against France in 2015 and the following week I played against New Zealand and Tuivasa-Sheck was the fullback then. We’re talking nine years ago now, so I’ve played against him a few times and in the NRL as well. He’s a great player.”

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