British and Irish Lions: Williams thrilled by call-up

SHANE Williams has revealed his sense of shock after being summoned from Japan to play for the British and Irish Lions.

The 36-year-old former Wales wing, who retired from Test rugby 18 months ago, will line up against the Brumbies in Canberra tomorrow.

He is joined in the three-quarter line by two England backs – wing Christian Wade and Brad Barritt – who have yet to arrive in Australia from Argentina and the United States respectively, while centre Billy Twelvetrees hooked up with the squad just three days ago.

Lions head coach Warren Gatland’s team for the Brumbies clash features six players – Wade, Barritt, Twelvetrees, Williams, Scotland prop Ryan Grant and hooker Rory Best – who were not original selections in his 37-man squad.

Williams, a Lion in 2005 and 2009, is due to be a radio summariser for the three-Test series against Australia but now finds himself pulling on the famous red shirt once again as the Lions grapple with injury concerns – notably Wales backs George North and Jamie Roberts – and giving players sufficient recovery time before Saturday’s Test series opener.

“I had a phone call to see if I could help out because there are a couple of injuries in the squad,” Williams said. “There was no chance I was going to say no, to be honest with you. It was completely out of the blue. I never thought I would get this opportunity again but, if me contributing on Tuesday is going to help the Lions squad be successful in the three Tests, then that is what I am here to do.

“Rob Howley [Lions assistant coach] phoned me. It is still sinking in. I am over the moon and what I will do on the field is give my 100 per cent effort and commitment to help the team out. I have been playing in Japan over the last 12 months. Fitness is not going to be an issue. If I had any doubt that I wasn’t capable or good enough then I would have said no, because there is no way I will let the Lions down.”

Williams, who currently plays for Mitsubishi Dynaboars in Japan, will train with the Lions today, play tomorrow, and then leave the squad on Wednesday. “It is the pinnacle of any player’s career. I always wanted to play for Wales, and I didn’t ever consider I would be good enough to play for the Lions,” Williams added. “To be associated with the Lions is the greatest honour a rugby player could have.”

Williams scored a record 58 tries in 87 Tests for Wales. His last Test match appearance was against Australia in December 2011, while he signed off from the Ospreys by helping them be crowned 2012 RaboDirect PRO12 champions.

Lions head coach Warren Gatland, who coached Williams with Wales between 2008 and 2011, said: “We just said we needed Shane for one game. We spoke to Shane and said the proviso is he comes in Monday, trains, plays on Tuesday and he leaves the squad on Wednesday. He was perfectly happy with that.”

Five games into their ten-match tour, the Lions are unbeaten and Gatland is upbeat about his team’s prospects against a Brumbies side viewed by many pundits as potential Lions tamers. “There is no way we are going out on Tuesday sacrificing a game. The motivation is there,” he added.