It is the end of an error. If news of Warren Gatland’s axing came as a surprise in terms of timing, then the conclusion that the Wales head coach’s position was untenable was one that many had reached long before the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) pulled the trigger two rounds into the Six Nations.
For these have been two years of strife and struggle the like of which Welsh rugby has never really known. Since Gatland’s return for a second stint in charge of the men’s national team in December of 2022, the WRU have lurched from calamity to calamity and review to review, never seeming to escape the perma-crisis that has engulfed the national game. Despite a mid-tournament announcement, this is no knee-jerk decision.
