Warren Gatland willing to step down after Australia mauling ‘if best for Wales’

Warren Gatland said he was willing to step down as Wales coach after the team succumbed to a record 11th straight defeat. But the New Zealander also insisted he retained the drive to take the team forward and that he intended to fight on after Australia ran in eight tries at the Principality Stadium.

“Whatever the best decision for Welsh rugby is, I’m more than comfortable with that,” Gatland said after Wales’ 52-20 defeat. “There’s so much negativity around the game, what’s been happening on the field and regionally, financial and stuff. Whatever the best decision is for us – if it’s to make a change to get some positivity in the game – I’d support that 100%. If that means me [leaving] I’m comfortable with that.”

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Gatland returned nearly two years ago after Wayne Pivac’s dismissal and offered to resign in March after Wales lost to Italy in the Six Nations. He previously stepped down after the 2019 Rugby World Cup, when Wales were narrowly beaten by South Africa in the semi-finals, and has been hampered since by multiple retirements, unavailable players and injuries.

Asked if he has the “stomach” to continue, Gatland said: “Absolutely. I do it because I love being involved in the game. I’ve got so many good memories of my time with Wales. I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved in the past.

“It is challenging at the moment. I’m only human. I did ask myself a few times if I’m doing the right thing. But I definitely still want to be a part of it … You’ve got to dig in, don’t you? You’ve got to show to some mental resilience and toughness and dig in.”

The Wallabies head coach, Joe Schmidt, expressed sympathy for his compatriot. “We were talking before the game,” he said. “We shrugged our shoulders at the end of it and said: ‘Who’d want to be a coach?’

“It’s tough, but it’s tough for the Welsh players. I could see how hard they were working. The way they built their way back into the game at 19-13 - that’s admirable stuff. They probably just needed a couple of breaks.”

With next summer’s British & Irish Lions tour to Australia looming, Schmidt said: “It’s about galvanising the nation … Obviously I’d be pretty good friends with Faz [Lions head coach Andy Farrell]. We worked together for a while and I know him well. That will be challenging because he’s a very good coach. Outside of a World Cup you can’t get bigger than the Lions.”