No offense meant to you Black Heart, but why do people try to refer to SBW derogatorily as "Money Bill Williams"? He rejected one of the biggest money offers in rugby union, from Toulon, to come home to New Zealand and play for a spot on the All Blacks side. That, to me at least, is a clear indication that money is not his primary goal.
Because he left the Bulldogs with no notice to sign for a French club which paid him considerably more. The fact that he came to New Zealand to be a part of a winning Rugby World Cup team will probably add a few hundred grand to any future contracts. Regardless, he's still getting paid more than any other rugby player in New Zealand barring McCaw and Carter, after not even being a starting spot. He signs one year contracts and holds the NZRU over a barrell to resign. He's hardly a saint, and there is no doubt that there are great financial benefits to being in the All Blacks during a RWC.
I'm sure he genuinely wants to be in a RWC team, I just don't think he values the All Blacks any where near the level of someone like Gear, Mealamu, Carter, McCaw, Thorn, Nonu, Smith, Muliaina etc, who have all had to earn spots in the All Blacks and have given up the best years of their lives huge amounts of cash for the All Blacks. Especially players like Gear who's in the prime of his life, misses out on a four year challenge to be in the All Blacks in the RWC, and still signs for the Highlanders knowing he's missed out. That's dedication.
Despite Sam's view that anyone who doesn't like SBW is jelous, I think the reason why people don't like him, is that he personifies everything which people don't like in professional sport. Either way, you can't blame him for being out for himself (
who isn't really?), I'm more frustrated with the hype that he creates, as he is clearly a good player, but he's not a better wing than
Gear/Rokocoko/Sivivatu/Jane/Guildford/Maitland/Masaga/Dagg and he's not a better inside centre than Ma'a Nonu and he's not a better utility than Toeava, and yet he'll always get so much more attention than them. The attitude that we have to pick him to play somewhere is wrong, if he's not good enough to be a starter in his position, why put a tested and capable player out of their position to test if he's capable?
Anyway, I didn't mean to have that diatribe. He is a good player and a seemingly good bloke in person. Sometimes he comes off as a tad fake (just watched an interview of him in which when he was asked if he could have any super power, he said "
I wish I could create things out of nothing, so I could create money to give to all the poor countries" and he said it with out a hint of irony). But other than that he seems all right.
ANYWAY, I'll take it all back if he's not picked in the 22 against France and then signs with the NZRU on a two year contract.
