Harry Williams

Harry Williams (b. 1951) is a Wiradjuri man and the first Indigenous footballer to represent Australia at international level. After playing at club level for Sydney's St George, he was recruited for the national team at nineteen. Williams played just six senior games before he was selected for the Socceroos in 1970, when the side embarked on a gruelling international tour. Four years later he was a member of the Australian side that reached the 1974 World Cup Finals in West Germany – until late 2005, the 1974 team was the only Socceroos outfit ever to achieve Finals qualification. In all, Williams played 43 games for Australia, including 20 full 'A' internationals and a 1975 match against Manchester United in Sydney. Known for his blinding speed on the left flank, he was still playing professionally into the mid-1980s. Since his retirement Williams has given back to First Nations communities through the Harry Williams Cup, an Indigenous soccer tournament, managing the Indigenous Services and Cultural Diversity Unit for ACT Correctional Services and as an ambassador for the Charles Perkins Soccer Academy. In 1999 Williams became one of the first inductees into the Football Federation Australia Hall of Fame, and he was inducted into the NSW Hall of Champions in 2020.

Photographer Sahlan Hayes took this image of Williams as part of a series of First Nations sportspeople. 'I wanted to recognise and celebrate their significance in Australian history by depicting contemporary athletes but also revisiting some older sporting identities as a means to renew their place in history.'

Purchased 2006
© Sahlan Hayes