Opinion: Wales have failed but it's not Gatland's fault

If you’re a Welshman right now, it’s probably fair to say that you’re slightly disenchanted with your national sport. Rugby is at an all-time low, the Welsh Rugby Union is in disarray and the national squad cannot buy a win. It’s a sad state of affairs for a once proud rugby nation that had once won an incredible three Grand Slams in just eight years.

So, how did this former rugby giant go from world beaters to the laughing stock of Northern Hemisphere Rugby?

Well, many would believe that it is the fault of head coach Warren Gatland, as it is under the Kiwi coach that Wales have fallen to 12 straight test match defeats.

Despite signs of optimistic improvement in the latter stages of 2023, including beating the Wallabies with a record score during last year’s World Cup, this current calendar year simply has not turned out the way Gatland had planned it.

I would argue that Gatland’s apparent demise is only a subject of the cards he has been dealt, however. When the former British and Irish Lions boss arrived in 2023, he made the admission that he would not have taken the job if he had known the circumstances surrounding WRU at the time.

“At the time if I had known, I would have made a different decision and probably gone somewhere else … These issues were here before, but there’s no doubt that the success of the national team in the past probably papered over the cracks.”

Having had huge successes with the national side in his previous tenure, not one single person can deny the coach’s attributes, but the simple fact is that his Grand Slam-winning teams were on an entirely different stratosphere to the team we see today. The successes of a team consisting of Sam Warburton, Jamie Roberts, Dan Biggar, George North and many others cannot be compared in parallel to the current side of young and inexperienced Welsh players. This 2024 Wales side consists of maybe only one or two world-class players and a series of quality, but not top international level, professional players.

So where does the blame lie for the lack of quality within? The WRU? Gatland can’t be blamed for that one.

The 61-year-old may not be as sharp as he once was, perhaps, after all, he did catastrophically miss out on the inclusion of the England flyer Immanuel Feyi-Waboso. But the fact is, for a country with such a proud rugby history and culture, they should not have to fight for players. Players should be honoured to play in the red jersey.

The big problem for the Welsh board and coaching team is that there is not a huge pipeline of Welsh talent coming through the racks, particularly with their regional sides struggling so poorly, both financially and on the field. As a result, a Welsh turnaround in fortune is not one we should expect to see within the next five years.

Welsh rugby needs an influx of care, attention and finances invested into the grassroots and youth game. The Welsh need only look at their recent opponents, South Africa to see the blueprint on how to develop international talent. It all starts with schoolboy rugby in South Africa, which showcases some of the most impressive and entertaining youth rugby in the world, with skills, fitness, and constructive competition being input from an early age.

It seems simple, but if Gatland is to make this Wales journey a success, his focus needs to be less on the here and now, and more on the future of the nation’s game. Gatland needs to drag himself and his players out into the school yards and the local rugby clubs all around Wales to create a genuine connection between the top-level players and the youth of today. They need to create the bond that has worked so well for South Africa, Ireland, New Zealand and France over the past 10 years.

Change needs to happen, but not on the field. Build the game in the background, and the results will improve in the foreground.