VIDEO: 'He is the best scrumhalf'

Springbok scrumhalf Grant Williams’ unique ability could easily make him the best No. 9 in South Africa, according to Peter de Villiers.

In a very raw and insightful interview, the former Springbok head coach sat down with Rudy Paige and Juan de Jongh in the latest episode of Behind the Ruck.

De Villiers opened up about his coaching style, his thoughts on the current Springbok squad, and also reminisced about his career highlights.

During the interview, De Villiers chatted about his selection policy before revealing who he believes is the best scrumhalf in South Africa.

“A few things. Who don’t I want to play against? That’s number one. If I don’t want to play against you, I will pick you,” De Villiers told the Behind the Ruck duo.

“Number two: What is your try-scoring rate? A rugby player is there to score tries. That is why our scrumhalf now at the Sharks, Grant Williams, is to me the best scrumhalf.”

The 2023 World Cup winner has been incredible for the Springboks and Sharks. He has 17 Test caps and has made more than 60 appearances for the Sharks. The 28-year-old also helped the Sharks to a Challenge Cup title last year.

“He’s the best scrumhalf not because he’s better than any other scrumhalf. He’s the best because he can score tries. He scores more tries than any other scrumhalf,” De Villiers added.

“So when I need tries – like Ricky [Januarie in Dunedin in 2009] – they will score the try for you, outside the structure of the game… the potential he has and the individual brilliance he brings to the game.”

De Villiers, who achieved a 62.5% win ratio with 30 wins from 48 Tests, compared his era to the current setup under Rassie Erasmus.

“The money that we pump into the game now is so much more.

“We had 30, 40 guys. They’ve got 80 guys coming to camps to prepare. The next-level guy is actually almost there; I think that, in its own sense, is a very good thing.

“The one thing I can say about the past is that we prepared for games. We never prepared for teams. We wanted to go and win the games.”