Shane Williams will hang up his boots at the end of the season © Getty Images

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Players/Officials: Shane Williams

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Teams: Ospreys | Wales

Former Wales winger Shane Williams has revealed the reasons behind his decision to hang up his boots at the end of the season.

The Ospreys announced on Thursday that Williams would move into an ambassadorial role with the welsh region at the end of the season bringing down the curtain on an illustrious playing career. And the 34-year-old has revealed that he felt he was getting in the way of younger flyers at the Liberty Stadium.

Williams will run out onto a rugby field for the final time for the Barbarians against Wales on June 2, and he is looking forward to dedicating more time to his family and business interests.

"It has been a tough season, and maybe I haven't been enjoying it as much," Williams told Wales Online. "But I just know it felt like the right time to call it a day. It's all very amicable with the Ospreys, they are like a family to me and I am grateful for the opportunity I have with them.

"All I can say is that on the pitch I have been feeling more and more like I am just getting in the way of the youngsters who are coming through the ranks. They all have aspirations, they all want to get on and win honours at regional and international level, and I am blocking that to some degree.

"It is a feeling that has gradually come on in the last few months. I've reached a stage where I want to do other things. I have a lot of business interests away from the game, like in property and with the clothing line, SW11, that I have launched.

"The fact is I just cannot devote any time to stuff like that at the moment. I want the chance to go behind the scenes at the Ospreys and learn things on the commercial side of the game, that's what I'm interested in doing.

"There's also the offer of quite a bit of TV and radio work which also interests me. Physically I still feel really good, training is going well and I'll give everything between now and the end of the season because that's the only way I know.

"But mentally I just feel it's time. I always promised myself I would never play for the sake of it, and I never will. It's as simple as that."