Warren Gatland says he would not have returned to the position of Wales head coach had he know the full scale of issues in Welsh rugby.
On and off the field, the game in Wales has faced unprecedented turbulence over the past 12 months.
Budget cuts, a near player strike on the eve of the Six Nations match against England and a sexism scandal rocking the Welsh Rugby Union were just a few of the problems, coupled with poor performances from the men's national team and continued failure to compete for silverware at regional level. . To get the latest rugby news sent straight to your inbox, sign up here
Gatland, who agreed to return to Wales to replace Wayne Pivac just before the turn of the year, says if he had known the extent of the issues, he would have gone somewhere else.
"When I came into the Six Nations, I had no idea. I didn't realise a lot of the things that were going on and the issues that were behind rugby and the squad and the players," he told the BBC's Scrum V podcast in a wide-ranging interview.
"I kind of took the approach, get a good feel for it, get a handle on where we're at, and then make some decisions going forward. I kind of feel like we are in that place now that's exciting. Look at some of the young talent that's coming through. I think Welsh rugby is going to go through a little bit of pain from a financial perspective, the regions, there is a great chance for us to have a really positive reset on a number of things.
"At the time if I had known, I would have made a different decision and gone somewhere else probably.
"But I look at it now, and it's a positive, what are the learnings I've had from that, the experiences I've had, how do you implement things and put things in place and do things better? When I had made the decision and spoke to the family, I definitely wasn't expecting the opportunity to come my way but the big part was the family saying 'you've put a lot of your heart and soul into Welsh rugby, the friends that you've made, the fans and the people, that's why I want to put something back into it' and hopefully make a difference over the next few years."
He added: "There's no doubt that the success of the national team in the past... a lot of these issues were here, we probably papered over the cracks and they didn't come to the forefront. They've come to the forefront and probably for the better, and there is a chance to focus on the things that needed fixing."
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Welsh rugby has also been hit with the shock international retirements of Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric and Rhys Webb in recent weeks, with Cory Hill also withdrawing and Rhys Carre being dropped from the squad for fitness issues.
Gatland admitted he thought a number of players may withdraw from his 54-player squad, which was going to be cut to 45 anyway before heading to a training camp in Switzerland.
"A few of the decisions, I wasn't surprised with... you don't normally ring 50-odd players and ask would you be [available]," he said. "I hadn't been contacted previously by any players who said they weren't available, except Ross Moriarty, who said he was going to France and moving his family there and he didn't want to be considered."
Gatland said he held talks with his former captain Alun Wyn Jones during the Six Nations about his future. "He knew that at some stage it was going to be time to call it quits, whether that was now or later on. I think the reason he's been as great a player as he has been is he probably never knew when to quit. That's what drove him on, that's why he's been so brilliant. We went down to Mumbles and saw him and had a conversation, he felt it was a good chance to call time on his international playing career."
Gatland revealed Webb, who was offered a one-year deal to remain at the Ospreys, has got a two-year playing contract in France, which could end up providing security for him for up to five years. "He's 34 at the moment. I fully understand the decision he has made, thinking 'I'm coming towards the end of my career but I've got to make some decisions and I know that I'm up against some pretty stiff competition in terms of my position'. I have no issues with players making some tough decisions, and that has always been my stance."
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As for Tipuric, Gatland said he was not feeling fully fit and wanted to spend more time with his family, including four young children.
Hill, meanwhile, was "desperate" to be involved with Wales and returned from Japan to link up with Wales but could not secure a club deal in Wales, England or France, and ultimately made the decision to return to Japan to a lower-division club - making his mind up in a congested enough market only days before London Irish players came on the market.
As for Rhys Carre, the Cardiff prop was released from the squad for failing to meet individual performance targets, with the news and reason being announced on the WRU's social media, which caused a backlash from fans who questioned the manner in which the player being dropped was communicated. But Walker revealed that Carre was consulted about it and was "comfortable".
"Rhys Carre has been released from the Wales senior men's preliminary training squad for Rugby World Cup 2023," the statement said. "Following ongoing discussions between the player and the Wales coaching team, Carre has failed to meet individual performance targets set at the end of the 2023 Guinness Six Nations."
Gatland: "I think the statement we put out was very, very simple without a lot of detail, saying he hadn't met the standards that he had been set. I can tell you that we've set targets for a number of players in the past who have reached them. This is the first time I've experienced a player who hasn't reached the targets that have been set. I would like to know from you, what could I have done better?"
Walker said: "Rhys was consulted on the way that it was going to be communicated and he was comfortable with it. People talk about mental health - he is supported by his region, by the Welsh Rugby Union in terms of the psychologist, coaches and fitness advisor. There was quite a dialogue over a number of days, if not weeks.
"People can still say, and they're entitled to, that still wasn't the way to do it, but if the player has been consulted and the player accepts 'I'm comfortable with it' and that's the way it's then communicated... it would have been difficult to change the narrative but we're in international sport, targets were set, the player didn't meet the target."
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