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Chester Williams

21 quotes

“I remember we had to get changed on the bus as the changing rooms were only for white players.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I never thought I'd have the lifestyle I have now ... It was difficult times when I was growing up.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I was trying to idolise my dad as he was playing for the black team who were one of the few who were playing against the white people.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I also dreamt of being a Springbok even though in those days it was almost impossible to become one. I kept on dreaming and through hard work, persistence, I got the opportunity to play once and I had to keep my position through hard work and determination. I never really had the talent as they say, but I had potential to achieve.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I remember getting the bus to the fields and playing against the white players so we then had to get changed on the bus as the changing rooms were only for white players. The after-game functions were just for white people.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It was difficult times but I wanted to be recognised for the ability I thought I had. I trained hard, work hard and travelled by train every morning at four in the morning and got back at 11 in the night and that was five or six days a week. Rugby was amateur then but I was putting so much into it. But then things worked out for me when the game became professional. I had to work hard to try to be a great Springbok and being part of that team in 1995, I achieved it.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The marketing men branded me a product of development and a sign of change, Nothing could have been more of a lie. I wasn't a pioneer. Other black players had been Springboks before me, one of them in my own family [his uncle Avril was capped in 1984]. More have followed me. They know the vibe. They have felt it and been demoralised by it.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Look, I enjoyed 1995, but I knew I was under massive pressure. There was a lot of pressure on me to be successful. The billboards were of me, everywhere. And then I got injured - Chester wasn't there to play anymore. And then I got called back and the pressure was even greater as I went straight into the quarter-finals. If we lost, I'd have got blamed. But then I got my four tries.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A lot of guys have given a chance to Springboks but if you look at those circumstances, they are picked but then left out. They aren't given sufficient opportunities. I refer to them as opportunities instead of calling them development players because theoretically Bryan Habana is still a quota player but he has over 100 caps -- he isn't one. That's my biggest concern as I don't think the players are getting a chance, the opportunity. Look at Oupa Mohoje -- he was our No.1 flanker but suddenly they don't talk about him anymore.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“You must scrap quotas but I still think there must be opportunities for the black players. You must give them more than one chance -- they need to show confidence. If they have [only] a good camp, they drop them. If they have an excellent camp, they keep them. They must have an excellent Test but not everybody can perform on their debut. There are guys who haven't been given sufficient opportunities and that's my biggest concern with transformation.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It's like apartheid; we've been having it for so many years it's difficult to get over it. The end goal is that no one speaks about transformation. You don't even talk about it and people accept the team for what it is. If we look at numbers, we won't get past the transformation.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We all looked different, but our personalities haven't changed.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It showed what we can achieve -- if we stand together, are a powerful nation. Sport is powerful which is why the World Cups in the various sports are so important. That brings memories, brings people together, helps them communicate and build new-found respect.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“When we travelled by train during the apartheid years, it was a third-class carriage and we had to stand for two hours to work as it was that packed, The other day I said to my wife I can't remember the last time I was on a train, it was a long, long time ago. I'd like to put my kids on the train and tell them the story of me.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) first seen 2015 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Chester Williams on his 'almost impossible dream' to become a Springbok, September 25 2015
“It could never occur to them that a black player could be better than a white, They only tolerated us in the team because it made them look as though they had embraced change. You know, much of it was born of the belief that being white in South Africa somehow made you superior to anyone born black.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“All I ever wanted was to be accepted as a rugby player, I hated being called a 'quota player'. That suggested I didn't deserve my place in the team. Until then I really believed my performances in 1995 and after that had broken down prejudices and changed mind-sets. That hurt.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“In all my playing years, most white players and coaches believed that a black selection weakened the team.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“My experience was that only a minority of players looked beyond the colour of the skin.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It's a fair question with a simple answer, I was still playing then. And I just saw too many black players who spoke out seeing their career finished. If you wanted to get on, you put up and shut up.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Yeah, but that is not the reason why I waited, I was just not the kind of guy who rocked the boat. Perhaps I should have done. Who knows? But if I had I wouldn't have won so many caps for the Springboks, so I wouldn't be as famous as I am now, so I wouldn't have had the platform I now have to make these comments. So you could say it was not bad to wait.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) said by 2019 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“What I regret is that in my younger days I was just so ignorant about the apartheid system, Even in rugby I knew nothing of the struggle of our rugby players, guys like David Barends who couldn't get a game at home and had to come over to England to play rugby league in the 60s and played for Great Britain.”
Chester Williams (1970–2019) first seen 2002 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Interview: Chester Williams, November 18 2002