ASSISTANT COACH Rob Howley has revealed he will lead Wales during their first two Tests in November in place of head coach Warren Gatland.
Wales have four Tests lined up in November and December and Howley is set to take charge against Argentina and Samoa before Gatland resumes his duties against New Zealand and Australia.
“I’m working on the basis that I will be in charge for the Argentina and Samoa Tests in November,” Howley said in an interview with Wales Online. ”Then Warren comes back for New Zealand and Australia.
“England play the Wallabies on the weekend of our Samoan game and Warren will be able to watch that, which will be great for us in terms of our preparation for taking on Australia.”
Gatland’s attendance at the match between England and Australia match strengthened the widely-held belief he will be named the head coach of the British and Irish Lions for their 2013 tour, as he would use the opportunity to scout English players for his squad, as well as the Lions’ Australian opposition. Howley added to the speculation by revealing he expects to resume as interim head coach during next year’s Six Nations.
“The plan is I will be in charge again through the Six Nations,” Howley said. The 41-year-old former scrum-half also led Wales during their three-Test series in Australia in June while Gatland was out injured after he fell off his roof in New Zealand. After losing that series 3-0, Howley hopes he has learnt from his mistakes and can achieve better results against Samoa and Argentina.
“Ultimately international rugby is about results, any head coach will tell you that,” Howley said. ”That’s where you will be judged and I’m not hiding away from the 3-0 whitewash in Australia.
“The challenge now is to learn the lessons from that and put those lessons into practice come (November).”
