Player Profile

Peter Williams became the second player to turn out for England in rugby union and Wales in rugby league, after Thomas Woods in the 1920s. He also won two caps for Great Britain. Born in Wigan, he attended Upholland Grammar School. His father, Roy Williams, was a prop forward who played rugby union for Llanelli RFC and rugby league for Wigan.  Peter Williams played rugby union in school and debuted for Orrell in 1977. He went on to represent Lancashire in the County Championship, and played in the 1979–80 and 1981–82 Championship finals. He won caps for England while at Orrell in the 1987 Five Nations Championship against Scotland and in the 1987 Rugby World Cup against Australia, Japan, and Wales. In March 1988, Peter switched codes to turn professional with Salford. He retired at the end of the 1993–94 season after playing 154 times for Salford, scoring 35 tries. In 1996, he returned to Orrell as director of rugby. He resigned in April 1997. He then spent two years as an assistant coach at Wigan, Peter worked as a physical education and history teacher, but later re-trained to become a physiotherapist when he began playing rugby league.