SOS in ATFV
#3 Ashley Williams - The Standout Moments
by Swansea oh Swansea editor Steve Carroll
Swansea City club legend announced his retirement from football at the end of January after a fantastic career that saw him play over 800 games for club and country. SoS fanzine Editor Steve Carroll relives some of his key moments for ATFV readers…….
the mad week
Williams made his debut for Wales in a 2-0 victory in Luxembourg in March 2008, and had to rush from international duty to make it to the Liberty before 5pm the following day, to make sure he didn’t miss the transfer deadline. Having just about made it in time, he joined on an initial loan for the rest of the season from Stockport before it was made permanent that summer.
Once the deal was completed it was no surprise to hear Williams describe it as: “the best week of my career, it’s been a bit of a rollercoaster and I haven’t had time to draw breath yet.”
It would get even better three weeks later when in one of his first appearances for the club, a 2-1 victory at Gillingham sealed promotion to the Championship.
clean sheet record and promotion
The following season was a successful one as the Swans finished 8th in their first season in the second tier for nearly a quarter of a century.
But the following season, whilst not as enjoyable or free flowing, saw Williams as part of a defence that would set a club record of 23 clean sheets, one more than the record of 22 which was set a decade earlier as the club won League 2.
That season saw us narrowly miss out on the Play-Offs on the final day of the season. 12 months later though we would not fall short and a 3rd place finish followed by victory over Reading in the Play-Off final saw Swansea reach the top flight under the stewardship of Brendan Rodgers.
Appearance Record and top flight debut
Williams took to the top flight like a duck to water and would go on to set an astonishing record of 166 consecutive league appearances. It’s surely a record that will never be beaten and he would only miss nine league games during his time at the club.
By the time that run ended in March 2012, the Swans had all but secured Premier League survival and we would eventually end up finishing 11th, the second highest in our history at that point.
But better was to come the following season…
attempted murder and Wembley
The Iconic Michael Laudrup took over after Rodgers’ departure that summer and Williams continued to be a regular in the side.
But there wasn’t much festive cheer just before Christmas when, during the home game with Manchester United, he went to clear the ball and it smacked a grounded Robin Van Persie in the head at close range. Alex Ferguson was furious and claimed “he could have been killed” which was ever so slightly over the top.
But it was all smiles a few months later as Williams captained us at Wembley as we won the League Cup by battering Bradford 5-0. This was the club’s first major trophy and the image of him and Garry Monk lifting the trophy after walking up the iconic steps remains one of the greatest in our history.
Captaincy and a European Tour
In the summer of 2013 Garry Monk was no longer a regular in the side, and as a result decided to hand the armband to Williams on a permanent basis. He was now skipper of club and country, having been made the Wales captain the previous October.
He would lead the Swans into Europe for the first time since 1991 and a successful campaign would end with a gut wrenching defeat in Naples in the last 32.
In the league it was a less successful season but after a late season surge a 12th place finish was secured.
New contract and highest finish
With just 12 months to run on his contract, Swansea moved quickly to extend his stay at the club and he penned a new long term deal that would expire in 2018.
The 2014/15 season would start with a memorable win at Manchester United, who we would go on to complete a historic double against.
We also picked up six points from Arsenal and went on to finish a fantastic 8th in the Premier League with 56 points.
struggle and crucial goals
Williams’ final season at the club was a trying one. The club were being managed by Garry Monk, but after a run of just one win in eleven, he was sacked in the December after we were thrashed by Leicester.
The following month Francesco Guidolin was appointed as his replacement and he was in the stands as Williams scored a crucial winning goal in the home game with Watford.
That along with his strike at the Emirates went a long way to securing survival as the Swans eventually finished in 12th place.
euros glory and departure
That summer Williams led Wales at their first major championships since 1958. He played in every minute of Wales’ six games, with the standout moment being his equaliser in the quarter final against Belgium which helped turn the game. Chris Coleman’s side would eventually win 3-1 to set up a last four tie with Portugal.
Sadly the dream would end there as the eventual winners knocked us out but it had been a phenomenal effort.
Williams was expected to return for his ninth full season at the Liberty after the tournament’s conclusion, but departed for Everton after 352 games and eight glorious years. There can be little doubt he’s one of the Swans’ greatest ever players and his place in our history is secure.
