Mosgiel-raised Williams owned 4% of the New Zealand Derby winner and Melbourne Cup placegetter Xcellent, and was in the syndicates which raced Auckland Cup winner Pasta Post and Wellington Cup winner Leaderboard.
A steward at the Auckland Trotting Club, he was also in the syndicate which raced star pacer Changeover. In October 2023, he celebrated his 500th winner as an owner.
Williams loved all sports and was good at them: he captained Otago Boys’ High School’s First XV and played eight first-class cricket matches as wicketkeeper for Otago. More randomly, he represented Bermuda at the World Table Tennis Championships.
He spent seven years on the island after graduating with a University of Otago accountancy degree. It was there he met wife Roseanne: their three children include comedian Guy Williams. After returning to New Zealand in the late 1980s the family settled in Nelson, where they bought two McDonald’s fast-food franchises.
He died on November 8, aged 72.
