Mark Williams
MARK WILLIAMS
Playing for AFL club Hawthorn
Mark Williams (born 13 April 1983) is an indigenous former Australian rules footballer who played with Hawthorn and Essendon in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was traded from the Hawks to the Bombers during the 2009 AFL trade week.
Making his debut in 2002 after being drafted by the Hawks at pick 43 in the 2000 AFL Draft, Williams was a small forward and came of age in 2005 when he was used as a full forward where he kicked 63 goals, making him the leading goal kicker of the club.
Known for his flamboyance, pace and use of the “shotgun”, a trademark celebration he used to use after kicking a goal, Williams was one of a number of young players at Hawthorn.
Williams finished 2006 with a total of 60 goals and again was the leading goalkicker at the Hawks. A knee injury cut short his 2007 season after only four games leaving him stranded on 13 goals.
Williams attracted controversy in 2008 when he made a choking gesture targeted at then Port Adelaide coach, Mark Melville Williams. This was in reference to the then Port Adelaide coach’s famous choking gesture when the Power 2004 Premiership. Williams was warned that he would be shown the door if such action occurred again. He did apologise to his Port Adelaide namesake after the game, which Hawthorn won.
In the 2008 Grand Final, Williams and Stuart Dew kicked four goals in three minutes to put Hawthorn in a winning position late in the third quarter. Williams’ three goals was the most by any player during the Grand Final.
In 2009, Williams injured his knee and missed almost half of that season’s games. The 2009 post-season trade week saw Williams traded to Essendon in a complex trade involving four clubs. He had a disappointing debut game for Essendon, when the Bombers were beaten by Geelong at the MCG. It was not a great night for Williams as he gathered just eight disposals and was kept scoreless in the match.
In the twilight of his career, Williams was unable to gain senior selection and played with Essendon’s Victorian Football League affiliate the Bendigo Bombers, until his retirement which was announced on 25 July 2011.
Williams agreed to play with Ballan in the Central Highlands Football League for 2012 and 2013. Williams became the inaugural coach of Western Region Football League club Newport Power at the end of 2015. In his first season in charge, he steered the club to premiership success.
STEVEN and DAVID WILLIAMS
STEVEN WILLIAMS
Mark and and his brother Steven both played football for Ongerup as juniors with Steven moving to play seniors in Katanning. Steven returned to Ongerup and and played senior football there for a couple of years, while Mark moved on to South Fremantle in the WAFL before being drafted to Hawthorn.
Steven was also a talented footballer as was his father David who played for Ongerup picking up a few club Fairest & Best awards and a couple of association Fairest & Best awards. See more here
FURTHER READING
Former AFL player Mark Williams steers Newport Power to WRFL Division 3 premiership glory
MARK WILLIAMS
Coaching Ballan in the
Central Highlands Football League
Glenn McFarlane,
Sunday Herald Sun
August 24, 2008
THE prospect of premiership glory was the furthest thing from Newport Power coach Mark Williams’ mind in the build up to the Western Region Football League Division 3 season.
But the former Hawthorn sharpshooter masterminded Parkside’s downfall on Saturday as the Power claimed the ultimate prize in its inaugural season in the senior ranks. Continue reading
Williams making his mark
Glenn McFarlane,
Sunday Herald Sun
August 24, 2008
IF YOU had asked Hawthorn forward Mark Williams a few years ago where his home was, the answer would have been straightforward and pointed. Williams would have acknowledged that while he lived in Melbourne and enjoyed playing football for Hawthorn, his home was 3327km away, the town of Katanning in WA’s Great Southern region. Continue reading
Racial attack on Ballan’s coach
The Courier
Tim O’Connor
15 June, 2014
BALLAN coach Mark Williams has been rocked by a verbal altercation that took place in the Central Highlands Football League on Saturday. The Courier understands the former Hawthorn and Essendon player was the victim of a racial slur during the round eight senior clash against Bungaree, which has now been handed over to the league for resolution. Continue reading