Upwards of 60,000 people will attend Wales’ showdown with Australia, in the Dove Men Challenge match at the Millennium Stadium, and amongst them will be virtually the entire population of the valley which produced the 2008 IRB World Player of the year.
Williams was born and bred in the Amman Valley, his earliest memories are of life living above a pub called the Cross Keys in Glanamman, he has lived in Penybont and Garnant too.
To this day he has never left the region, he still lives within a stone’s throw of his old stomping grounds and is a regular spectator at Amman United, where his brother Dean regularly turns out.
And, as the curtain falls on his Welsh record breaking 57-try (to date) international career, Williams expects at least 4,133 familiar faces to be in Cardiff to see his final hurrah.
“There will be busloads coming from the Amman Valley, I don’t think there will be anyone left there, it will be a bit of a ghost town for a few hours, there will be hundreds of lads coming just from the rugby club alone,” said Williams.
“All my friends and family will be there too, we have three hospitality boxes full of people, it should be a great day and it will be an even better day when we beat Australia.
“I’m getting constant pressure from friends and family and from various different methods of social media to change my mind and keep on playing.
“The tweets and facebook messages are almost constant, but it just feels right to me, the timing is right and I’m confident I’ve made the right decision.
“I’ve got my destiny in my own hands and that was always the way I wanted to do it. I’m excited now and looking forward to it, it’s going to be an amazing day.”
Fans could be forgiven for thinking Williams is taking everything in his stride and feeling calm and relaxed on the eve of his final international, after all he has done this 86 times before for Wales as well as excelling on the world stage for the British and Irish Lions.
But the Ospreys, and former Neath, wing wizard says he still finds it hard to believe just what he has achieved in his 11-year international career and will relish his final match just as much as he did his first and each game in between.
“It’s still a bit surreal for me that I’m here doing this, I still pinch myself on the night before a big game like this one against Australia or before an international against the All Blacks or a Grand Slam game,” said Williams.
“You can’t quite believe what you are experiencing when you are in the moment, it can be quite difficult to stand back and put it all into perspective but I am determined to enjoy every moment tomorrow as I have done every time I’ve pulled on the jersey for Wales.
“My career has been a dream, there’s no other way to describe it. It’s been a rollercoaster, I’ve learnt from the tough times as well as the good times and I wouldn’t change a single thing.
“I will enjoy myself tomorrow and I want to play well, but this game is not about one player it is about Wales versus Australia and we want to win the match for no other reason than that is why we play rugby.
“It’s not a day about Shane Williams it’s a day about Wales and this side can really achieve something tomorrow and set itself up for the 6 nations.
“That’s what we want out of this game and I’m sure that’s what they will be dreaming for in the Amman as well.”
