Gatland in firing line from former favouritespublished at 15:54 Greenwich Mean Time
15:54 GMT
Wales v Australia (16:10 GMT)
Image source, Huw Evans Picture Agency
Had a bad week? Well it could be worse, you could be Warren Gatland.
What has especially marked this week is how, for the first time in his combined 15 years as Wales coach, he is receiving stinging criticism from former favourites.
Here are some of the highlights, or lowlights rather…
Jamie Roberts: “I have a
huge amount of respect for Warren and his coaching team, but I won’t apologise
for making honest comments, that’s part and parcel for what we do as pundits.
“He
has been a wonderful coach for Wales down the years. He is operating in a very
difficult time at the moment.”
Tom
Shanklin:
“They [the Welsh Rugby Union] are being quite lenient, but these next two games are massive
for him and the coaching team.
“If
we don’t get any results in those, I don’t think there is another option apart
from to look for a new coach.”
Alun
Wyn Jones: “I want to see some
accountability with the people that are making the decisions on the total game,
not just on the field.
“The
coaches are taking a lot of stick at the moment, but they and the players are
not going out there to lose.”
Alex
Cuthbert:
“He [Gatland] has been in this situation before and if anyone can get it right, it’s
Warren Gatland.
“But
there’s probably no bigger week in his Wales managerial career.”
Rhys
Priestland: “It’s easy to say forget about the last 10 games and think
about next week but when you are on a run like this, the tension increases.
“You
worry and things will be very difficult for the boys in camp this week. The
shirt will weigh heavy right now.”
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source link
