Welsh rugby starts another week in crisis with the future of head coach Warren Gatland up for debate.
Wales have lost 10 Test matches in 2024 so far with one final game against world champions South Africa to come
Over the bridge, critics of English rugby have tried to claim a crisis there, after Steve Borthwick's side lost five consecutive games. Even he admitted he was unsure and there was an air of resignation, mixed with occasional bouts of defiance, about Gatland in his interviews after the Australia defeat.
His side have not won a Test match since. They finished bottom of the Six Nations for the first time in 21 years, lost at home to Italy and Fiji and slipped to a World Rugby ranking low of 11th. This squad, led by an impressive captain in Dewi Lake, is full of young men proud to play for their country - but they are currently lightweight and novices on the international stage.Gatland's critics will immediately put forward a long list of candidates, naming Michael Cheika, Shaun Edwards, Brad Mooar, Tony Brown, Franco Smith and Pat Lam as alternative options and there will be others.
So moving Gatland on could come with financial ramifications for a governing body who have recently paid out £1.8m to former employees, including £480,000 to Phillips.Welsh Rugby Union executive director of rugby Nigel Walker, chief executive Abi Tierney and chair Richard Collier-Keywood are the top three officials within the governing body
There was new leadership put in place designed to reform and rejuvenate Welsh rugby but they appear to be repeating the mistakes of previous regimes. Walker was present at Gatland's post-match conference where he heard the coach field relentless questions about his future.
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