Six Nations 2023: The fall of Wales

He did not expect to find his “ex-wife” in such circumstances. Warren Gatland left the bench for Wales in a World Cup minor final defeat by the All Blacks in the autumn of 2019, after twelve years of successful refereeing. Called up in the autumn by the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) as a firefighter on duty, after a dark year for the Red Dragon, the New Zealand coach found himself, despite himself, mired in an outdated situation. I wasn’t aware of any of these issues, I learned all about them last weekat the end of February, the coach who has led the Welsh to the Grand Slam three times since 2008. I wish I knew some of the things that were going on here. »

Qualified by Warren Gatland as “a whirlwind challenge to be taken”The situation was threatening the entire sport of rugby in the British principality. At the end of February, a few days before the third Six Nations meeting kicked off with two defeats, players were fighting, not on the field but in the halls of a hotel on the outskirts of Cardiff.

The XV du Leek’s internationals threatened to go on strike not to play the match against England, and opposed the WRU captains, who wanted wage cuts forced on them, due to the economic crisis. If an agreement was reached in the extreme—and the match against England was contested and the Welsh forfeited—the captain, Ken Owens, insisted: “Welsh rugby cannot continue in this way, going from one crisis to another. Because it affects everyone.”

When it comes to facing Italy on Saturday, February 11, in Rome, at 3:15pm (French time), Wales will be hoping to stop their slide, both on and off the field. Long an Oval anomaly, a small nation with impressive results, the Principality is bearing the brunt of the effects of an economic crisis that threatens to engulf its four professional teams – Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets – and the national team with it. Drained financially, the WRU found itself reduced to offering players largely revised contracts downward at the end of their contract this year – after they had played for so long, due to its inability to offer new ones.

Harmful situation

Demanding that the eligibility rule for exiled players be scrapped – until now, only players who had accumulated sixty caps could wear the Welsh shirt if they played abroad – so that they could travel to more lucrative climes, such as France’s Top 14, XV du Leek players have yet to put themselves in Perfect conditions to get close to the competition. “They worry about their future, and it’s hard to perform with everything that’s going onThis week, veteran Taulupe Faletau revealed. When things aren’t going well, it’s hard to give your all. » Despite advanced discussions, many foreigners remain unclear about their future status.

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