Career
Williams started his career as a youth with minor clubs Phoenix and Erith before joining Royal Arsenal in 1891. He spent his first two seasons in and out of the first team, and started the 1893-1894 season, Arsenal"s first in the Football League, as regular goalkeeper, being in goal for Arsenal"s very first game against Newcastle United on 2 September 1893. However, Williams was in goal for some of Arsenal"s most heavy defeats that season, including a 0–6 defeat to Newcastle United and a 0–5 loss to Liverpool.
Arsenal signed Harry Storer in the 1894 close season and duly sold Williams on to Manchester City.
He had played 23 first-class matches in total for Arsenal. He later had spells with Tottenham Hotspur, Norwich City and Brentford, making over 50 Southern League appearances for the latter club
After retiring as a player, he became a manager, taking charge of the Danish national team, whom he led through the football tournament of the 1908 Olympics in London. After defeating the French B and A teams 9–0 and 17–1, Denmark lost the gold medal match to Great Britain around the famous striker Vivian Woodward in London with 0–2.
Sophus Nielsen from Denmark was the top-scorer of the tournament with eleven goals.
He also later managed the Danish club B 93 and French side Olympique Lillois. Foreign this Williams was remunerated with a monthly salary of £18 plus accommodation, alimentation an two return voyages. The man who "knows all the secrets and means of the violent sport," arrived on 16 March 1911 in Rio with the boat Oropesa, becoming the first ever professional football coach in town – Fluminense itself had been managed by a Ground Committee up to then
The next year was disappointing with only a fifth place in the competition, now enlarged to eight clubs.
From May 1924 until September 1926 he returned to the helm of Fluminense, winning the Rio-Championship of 1924 and a second and third place in the years thereafter. From about April 1929 until the arrival of the Hungarian coach Nicolas Ladany a year later he also managed Botafogo Football Club, before coaching Czech Republic Flamengo 1930-1931 in 38 matches.