Williams primed for debut by Scots mentor

Stewart Fisher

Sports Writer

Wednesday 20 March 2013

JONATHAN WILLIAMS had the words of a Scot ringing in his ears as he climbed off the bench to make his senior debut.

Jonathan Williams has faced George Boyd for Crystal Palace this term and could do so again at Hampden

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Stewart Fisher

On Friday night, the 19-year-old might have the noise of 50,000 of them reverberating in his ear drums as he makes his international bow at Hampden.

The diminutive Crystal Palace midfielder is the latest Welsh talent to come off the production line, his clever brand of playmaking having helped the Selhurst Park club into a promising position in the race for a place in next season's Barclays Premier League. However, he freely admits he wouldn't be where he is today if it were not for the influence of Dougie Freedman, the manager who took him through the ranks at Palace and handed him his debut prior to his mid-season departure for Bolton Wanderers.

"Dougie was a massive influence on me," said Williams. "He started my career, really. He was the one who believed in me and gave my chance. I can't thank him enough for the opportunities he gave me. When I was 17 he showed faith in me to take me away for pre-season with the squad. "I'll always remember my debut – it was against Coventry at home and I came on in the 67th minute. We were 1-0 down and we went on and won the game 2-1. It was just a great night for me and one I'll never forget. So I was gutted when he left. It was unexpected but in football you get these decisions. But now we have Ian Holloway and he has done great for me as well. "It would be massive if I was to play at Hampden, it would be the biggest crowd and stadium I have ever played at," said Williams. "But the chance just to train with guys like [Gareth] Bale and [Craig] Bellamy and [Aaron] Ramsey – the list goes on – makes it worthwhile. We have a lot of world-class players and it is only a matter of time before we start topping groups and testing the top teams even further."Williams may be star struck in training, but the Scotland team also contains a player who the 19-year-old looks up to, at least figuratively. "I like Shaun Maloney, he looks a really good player from what I have seen on Match of the Day and stuff," said Williams, who was also eligible to appear for England. "We are quite similar in size, I suppose, so those type of players catch my eye. "Obviously, I have seen more Scottish football from watching Joe Ledley and Adam Matthews playing in the Scottish league. They have done so well at Celtic, reaching the last 16 of the Champions League."

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Williams primed for debut by Scots mentor

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