RWC 2015: Incredible World Cup injury list not down to big hits, says Wales legend Shane Williams

The Rugby World Cup casualty count is up to 23, the Ireland captain Paul O’Connell the most recent player to hobble out of the tournament. In the era of the big man, the hits have seemingly got bigger and the perception is that injuries have grown both in their severity and sheer numbers.

World Rugby claimed at the start of the week that “injuries do not appear to be out of step with the norm”, but the former Wales winger Shane Williams believes England 2015 has shown a steep increase in those limping out of the tournament never to return.

“It’s incredible the number of players that have left the field stretchered or carried off,” says Williams. “It’s not what you want to see and it certainly seems like there’s been more big injuries than at previous World Cups.

“It’s not just because of the hits but from pulled muscles or innocuous twists, too. Those happen because the players are so well trained and finely tuned that tears and the like are an issue.

“You’ve got a game now where you have back-row players as quick as the backs and backs as big as the back-rowers, and I don’t see how you can change it. What do you do, stop players from training so hard, to not be as fast or as physical?”

Players are certainly getting bigger. Back in 2004, the average height of an All Black back-line player, for example, was 6ft. Now that is up to 6ft 2in and rising.

Williams is all too aware of the physical demands of the game. At 5ft 7in, he was almost always the smallest man on the field when playing and was repeatedly told coming through the ranks that his height would stop him from getting to the top.

It led to Williams being overlooked for his school team and when he turned professional he recalls: “I was told I was too small for rugby.” An international try count of 58 from 87 Tests and the World Player of the Year Award in 2008 would suggest otherwise, and Williams argues shorter players can still thrive.

“No matter what size you are, you can still achieve in rugby,” he says. “I was written off and just used that as motivation.”

While players from O’Connell to South Africa’s inside centre Jean de Villiers have been forced out of the World Cup, Williams believes there has been at least one positive amid all the injuries. “One thing we should be grateful for is that players don’t appear to be getting ruled out of the tournament with head injuries and concussions,” he points out. “To me, that shows the head injury assessment is working. Now we need to focus on knees, ankles and other injuries.”

Injury has become the watchword for Wales at virtually every turn of the tournament, from Leigh Halfpenny and Rhys Webb dropping out on the eve of the World Cup to a recurrence of Liam Williams’ previous foot injury in the Australia game on Sunday meaning he will no longer play a part in the tournament.

Prior to the Williams setback, his namesake said Wales could not afford to undergo another injury. Now that such a fate has befallen his country, his stance has altered. “It’s not all doom and gloom,” he says. “It’s another opportunity for someone else to shine. When Leigh Halfpenny was ruled out, people said Wales had lost their points machine but Dan Biggar’s just slotted into that role and Gareth Davies has been one of Wales’ most consistent players since taking over from Rhys Webb.

“This will bring the players closer together and the fact Warren Gatland has brought in a player in Eli Walker who isn’t fit for selection until the semi-finals shows there’s still a lot of confidence in the camp.”

South Africa, by contrast, have a fully fit squad for Saturday’s quarter-final at Twickenham but Wales go into the game with the experience of beating the Springboks, having done so last November.

To repeat that feat, Williams believes Gatland and his coaching staff need to come up with another different game plan. “There’s no reason why Wales can’t beat the Springboks again,” he says. “They need to get players like Jamie Roberts, George North and Alex Cuthbert over the gain line far quicker than they have.

“It’s pretty much the way Japan played against South Africa with that high tempo and moving the ball across the field to exhaust the opposition forwards. Even with the injuries, Wales have got some great strike runners and they’re the ones that need possession. If Wales fail to do that, then J P Pietersen and Brian Habana certainly will.”

Even amid the injury crisis, Williams believes Wales can still reach the World Cup final and improve on their semi-final finish four years ago.

He says: “I still keep the faith and Wales have got a good enough team to win on Saturday. Playing South Africa and probably New Zealand is the toughest way possible to win the World Cup. They’re the two most physical teams you’ll play against.

“But if they were to do it and make it to the World Cup final with the injuries they’ve had, it’ll be the stuff of fairy tales, like a Hollywood movie.”

To Williams’ mind, their progress from the “pool of death” featuring also England and Australia is down to the Warren Gatland effect, which has merited two Grand Slams during his time in charge and also a successful tour as coach of the British & Irish Lions in Australia in 2013.

Last week, the Australia coach, Michael Cheika, described Gatland as “the master tactician”. As for what the New Zealander offers, Williams says: “He’s just great to be around as a player because what you see is what you get. People trust him and what he says goes 100 per cent.

“First and foremost it’s like working with your mate and he’s always approachable. If you don’t like something, he’s open to talking about it and new ideas. I remember during my time he’d regularly come to the senior players.

“He’ll do the same this week and what he usually plans, well, nine times out of 10 it works. I expect this weekend to be one of the nine.”

Shane Williams stars in ‘NatWest presents The Flying Winger’, a spectacular film taking rugby to new heights. NatWest is a partner of England Rugby and the WRU. Follow @NatWest_Rugby or like NatWest Rugby on Facebook for more.