Gatland started off his post match interview stating “we didn’t look too tired did we!?” The interviewer suggested it was in response to something Eddie Jones said and Gatland was too much of a gent to comment further.
Gatty was being slaughtered by so called “knowledgeable” rugby posters here last year. He apparently was nothing compared to Joe Schmidt.
That’s 14 test victories in a row now for Wales.
Thankfully at least one knowledgeable poster was much less doubtful as to Gatty’s merits as a world class coach.
The following posts are looking fairly prescient now. Wales may have just won a Grand Slam, but they also have a history of raising their game even further for a World Cup.
Gatty was getting a good bit of stick in Wales for a few years. They hadn’t won a Championship under him since 2012, I think there was possibly only the one second place finish last year and a less than stellar record against Southern Hemisphere opposition. They do have a nice World Cup draw and unlike Ireland it’s a younger age profile and they’re not heavily reliant on players well in to their 30’s.
Could it actually be that the lauded IRFU player welfare system is ultimately counter productive? It might be beneficial in February/March when well rested Irish players come up against fatigued opponents in the Six Nations, but maybe those guys are battle hardened and better able to cope with 7 successive weeks of tournament rubby come world cup time?
Entire Irish pack played more in last 12 mths than opposite no. 10/15 in total. Of the 5 who didnt Sexton, Henshaw, Earls all injury prone players who missed spells.
He’d have got Ireland to multiple RWC semi finals if he had not been disgracefully sacked.
A real sliding doors moment for Irish rugby football. What could have been. They must be kicking themselves ditching the greatest coach in world rugby football.
He underachieved with wales in my opinion. He’s absolutely hated in New Zealand too. Pretty sure they’ve called out his style on multiple times. He’d have to probably coach a super rugby franchise first to have any chance.
They’d have mixed views on Gatland in Wales. Wales have a very demanding rugby public. They were the preeminent international team in European rugby for the guts of a century up until the early 1980’s when the collapse of the steel industry and the mass exodus to rugby league decimated the Welsh game. The feeling in Wales was when rugby went professional, the old order would be restored. It took a few years to bed down put when the first Grand Slam since 1978 was won under Mike Ruddock in 2005, the view was they were back in their rightful position to stay.
Gatland was under pressure coming into this season, not having won a Championship since 2012 under his stewardship. Even when they won the Grand Slam this year, there were mutterings from the Welsh rugby public that only Italy scored more tries. There’s an expectation in Wales, not only that they win, but they win in style like the team of the 1970’s did.
I watched the match this morning, with a mate from Wales. He played through all the grades for Wales, bar senior and lined out for Llanelli for a few years at the end of the amateur era. He was like a dog after the match. His parting comment to me was, that’s two semi finals under Gatland that we’ve fucked away, when we had the better team and players.
