By Graham Thomas
Warren Gatland expects to meet with Welsh Union officials to discuss his future over the next few days after suffering another crushing defeat.
The Wales coach appears to be nearing the end of his time in charge, allough he also insisted he still has the stomach for the fight despite presiding over a record 11-match losing run – the worst in Welsh rugby history.
An emphatic eight-tries-to-two, 52-20 defeat to Australia at the Principality Stadium may prove to be the final straw for Gatland – not a knockout blow in itself, but the latest in a series of repeated punches that have left him questioning whether it might be best if he is removed from the firing line.
That decision lies with his bosses at the WRU, who Gatland expects to meet before Wales host South Africa in the final match of their Autumn Series next week.
Asked if he expected to still be in charge for that game, a downbeat and sombre Gatland admitted: “I don’t know.
“I am more than comfortable in supporting Welsh rugby in making the best decision for Welsh rugby.
“It’s just a question of talking to the right people and making the right decision – whether that’s from a Union perspective or myself and my family.
“I wouldn’t be human if I didn’t ask myself some questions.”
After one of the toughest weeks of his career, I asked Warren Gatland if he still had the fire in his belly to carry on… @ITVWales pic.twitter.com/sJior8JdNG
— Matthew Southcombe (@MattSouth7) November 17, 2024
Gatland – who offered to resign at the end of last season’s Six Nations – revealed he had already held another dressing room conversation with director of rugby Nigel Walker and chairman Richard Collier-Keywood in the aftermath of the Wallabies defeat.
“It’s probably about taking a little bit of time and reflecting on some stuff,” he added.
“I had a chat with NIgel and Richard in the dressing room afterwards. What I do care about massively is Welsh rugby and the friends I’ve made, and the players. So it’s about now making the best decision for Welsh rugby.
“If that’s me moving on and that’s the best decision for Welsh rugby, I’m fine with that.”
Gatland stopped short of saying he was ready to quit, but there appears no doubt that if the WRU suggest it’s time for him to fall on his sword, then some kind of pay-off will be agreed on the remainder of his contract.
That deal – worth a reputed £600,000-a-year – runs into the next World Cup in 2027, but includes a break clause midway through.
A week ago, after a first home defeat in their history for Wales against Fiji, Gatland attempted to claim the talk of his future was “media-driven narrative”.
There were no such diversions this time – just an honest assessment of a poor performance that allowed the Wallabies to cross Wales’ line eight times, even scoring 21 points when they were down to 14 men.
“We weren’t good enough,” added Gatland.
“That performance hurts. We started off not great. We conceded some points. We got back into it, but to concede 21 points when down a man wasn’t good enough.”
Gatland has now presided over Wales’ longest losing streak in their history and this result was a thrashing, whichever way you look at it.
Australia scored eight tries and racked up a record highest points tally in Cardiff, with two players – Tom Wright and Matt Faessler – scoring try hat-tricks.
That they managed to do so with 14-players for 20 minutes – during which time the Wallabies scored three tries after having centre Samu Kerevi shown a red card for a high dangerous tackle on Jac Morgan – merely underlined the rudderless ship that Wales now resemble.
As defeats go, this was not the worst of the 11-match losing sequence, but that is not saying much.
It was not a total shambles, since there was a period of 18 minutes before half-time when Wales applied pressure, took their chances, and actually worked themselves back into the match.
But the opening quarter – and mostly the entire second-half was dominated by Australia – who have moved on quickly from their own World Cup disaster, with a new coach at the helm in Joe Schmidt.
Gatland’s current influence – or lack of it – over events on the field was encapsulated in his decision to replace his captain Dewi Lake with replacement hooker Ryan Elias after 55 minutes.
It was a pre-planned manoeuvre that appeared to bear any relation to events on the field, with Wales immediately losing the next five line-outs on their own throw.
These are the kind of in-game decisions that Gatland used to get right in his first spell with Wales, but now appear to backfire.
Without Lake’s accuracy as well as his leadership, Wales crumbled and the hard work gained from an Aaron Wainwright’s first-half try and the boot of Gareth Anscombe soon dissipated.
Wales had briefly fought back from an alarming early 19-point deficit through a Aaron Wainwright try, plus two Anscombe penalties and a conversion, but despite centre Thomas’s late try that Sam Costelow converted, there was no escaping another comprehensive beating.
