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George Williams spills all in one-off interview

The George Williams saga has been running for a number of weeks now, but finally it appears to be nearing its end.

Before Williams jetted back off to the UK though, the English halfback revealed all in an interview with the Daily Telegraph.

A once tight-knit bond between club and player was broken almost within minutes after Williams approached CEO Don Furner for an early contract release due to homesickness.

“The first conversation happened in round five when I sat down with Ricky (Stuart) and the club’s welfare officer,” Williams told the newspaper.

“I told them I wasn’t in a good spot and that I might want a release at the end of year.

“The conversation couldn’t have gone any better with the club and Ricky – the way they handled it I thought ‘happy days’.

“They were open to me going at the end of the year and they asked me to get through this year so I was positive how that came out.”

Despite the apparent goodwill between the two corners, Williams was informed that Canberra would not be releasing him because they couldn’t find someone adequate to replace the halfback.

“The situation wasn’t improving,” Williams said.

“They were talking about bringing my family out which was not just doable. It wasn’t a false promise but with the pandemic it just wasn’t going to work. I put it to my mum and sister – they were willing to do that but it just wasn’t doable.

“At first it was a discussion but when I went in and said “please will you release me at the end of the year”.

“The club changed its tune. They said “no, we can’t find another halfback”. I get it’s a business and they need to do what’s best for the club.

“There were four or five conversations before I asked for a release. It wasn’t like I was giving up straight away after one conversation.”

Perhaps inevitably, things turned sour very quickly when Williams asked to have a day off from training, which angered coach Ricky Stuart and CEO Don Furner. The later then sacked the halfback.

“That happened about 1030-11am and by 4pm I was released. It had gone from asking for a day off to being sacked.

A deal between both parties has since been agreed upon.

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