WARREN GATLAND IS to remain in charge for the 2025 Six Nations following a review into Wales’ slump but has been warned by the Welsh Rugby Union that he must start delivering results.
Gatland’s position has been under intense scrutiny after a dire autumn consisting of defeats to Fiji, Australia and South Africa extended Wales’ losing run to a record 12 matches.
🚨 𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 | Warren Gatland has been challenged to lead Wales to success in the 2025 Guinness Six Nations, after CEO Abi Tierney’s review into national squad performances was completed.
— Welsh Rugby Union 🏴 (@WelshRugbyUnion) December 20, 2024
While Nigel Walker has resigned from his position as Executive Director of Rugby… pic.twitter.com/lqp1Ug7Ioo
It is the first time since 1937 that the national team have gone an entire calendar year without winning a Test and they occupy their lowest ever world ranking position of 11th.
A statement released by the WRU reveals that chief executive Abi Tierney considered “wholesale immediate change” as part of her review, before deciding that challenging Gatland to “change Wales’ fortunes on the pitch was the best approach at this time”.
However, Nigel Walker has resigned from his position as WRU executive director of rugby in response to Wales’ decline.
“I’ve had a number of very honest conversations with Warren and I will make no secret of the fact that his position was on the line as we undertook our review,” Tierney said.
“Further than that, like any head coach in any sport, he knows the security of his position is directly related to the performances of the team and that this is a situation that will continue to intensify.
“There is a tough challenge ahead but Warren is more than up for that challenge. We also believe he is equal to it.”
I’d imagine there’s no long line of suitors!
He’ll leave ‘by mutual consent ‘ after the 6 Nations finishes
Sort out the 4 regions before you get results for Wales. Absolute shambles
@Simon Dwyer: Wales have never needed strong regions. It is not part of their rugby DNA and Welsh people have never identified them. In truth, rugby has been declining in popularity in Wales since the 2000s, even though they had managed to disguise this through some extraordinary results on the field. This is in no small part down to the success of their national soccer team, qualifying for Euros and World Cups and Swansea & Cardiff having some success at different times. It also has alot to do with economic decline in Wales since the 1980s. Parents are either working 2 jobs or are fighting mental health problems that they don’t have the energy to bring their kids to rugby. Soccer is a little more accessible in the school yard or on the green. Kids are playing and watching the wrong sport.
Hopefully, he gets them back up. We need a strong 6N to progress our own players
@graham crosby: they will lose all 5 games
he should bounce, hes a good head coach, could do a job at a host of clubs or other nations. WRU have decided not to invest in the game and that job is a poison chalice
@Owen ODonoghue: Joe Schmidt was their short term fix, but unfortunately they decided to go backwards. Gatland was and is a busted flush for Wales.
Wales played 3 tests in 1937 (in grainy black and white with a vintage brown leather ball on a mud patch) , hardly a comparative year. Gats has full colour , a 600k salary, computer analysis software and state of the art training facilities ….
Wild how they imply gatland is the reason Wales is dire and not the WRU