Alyson Rudd travels to the Ospreys' cafe to run the rule over Lions wing Shane Williams in The Times.
"The café at the Ospreys academy in Neath is busy, but a few players stand out. Lee Byrne and Ian Evans stride around confidently, say hello, let me hold a tape measure to their throats. Somewhere among them is Shane Williams. I cannot see him at first. He is the shortest and the shyest and even though he is the one player who has been warned that there is a reporter with a tape measure on the loose, he looks the most perplexed.
"Wrapping a tape around Williams's bare chest is among the most surreal of many odd moments in my career. We have barely exchanged words and I am pinching his biceps and shouting out to the photographer that his left thigh is bigger than his right. But gradually we both see the funny side and he admits he is not feeling too awkward, although he would be if he was not in top physical condition.
“One of my fears is getting embarrassed in public, making a fool of myself,” Williams said. “I'm probably more confident on the rugby field than I am anywhere else. It took me a long time to be comfortable with people. Sometimes I find it very difficult meeting and greeting for the first time. That is something I've had to overcome. It really was a phobia of mine.”
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