Warren Gatland has been ‘unveiled’ as the Head Coach of the British and Irish Lions.
“Being offered the best job in Rugby, to take on consistently the best team in Rugby, it’s just something I couldn’t turn down.”
Gatland coached the victorious Lions Tour to Australia in 2013, but has come under criticism for his preferred style of play, and his overall record against the Southern Hemisphere nations.
Gatland said at the press conference that he would appoint his backroom staff and announce them on December 7th.
Do you agree with the appointment? How do you think he will get on? How can he coach the side to play in a style to beat the All Blacks?
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From what I’ve read he had the best CV of the applicants so I do understand it. I don’t like it but it makes sense. I just wish the panel had been a bit more willing to take a risk and go with someone a bit more exciting. The problems with Gatland are that his game plans are very limited, this has worked in the past (although rarely in the southern hemisphere) but the game has evolved now and Gatland hasn’t kept up. I’m sure he will catch up but he hasn’t yet. As well as this I can’t see him bring a team together from other countries. The last tour didn’t seem to gel very well (I know they won but still the games were very underwhelming and the whole thing lacked the spark of other tours) and he will show bias towards Wales. If England are still playing well and win the 6 nations this could be problematic as last time around Gatland went on record saying he avoided picking English players as he didn’t want the attention that would come from a squad with a lot of English in it. I think to win the Lions needed someone with a bit more flair and risk taking about them I just don’t think Gatland has that and I expect the Lions to get hammered.
On a final point it frustrates me the coach comes from current sides. If Gatland takes coaches from other nations he will get a huge advantage in future games against them as he can learn their tactics. As an England fan I would much rather see England win games than the Lions, so anything that might give an advantage to opponents doesn’t sit well with me.
Your final point there is interesting. The four home unions are always keen to make their coaches available, because of the learning experience that the Lions offers.
The risk of coughing up a small amount of knowledge to rival coaches and players is probably a reasonable trade-off, don’t you think?
I’d also say that Borthwick and Gustard are probably too savvy to give away anything that the welsh analysts couldn’t already decipher.
What on earth do they learn from Gatland?
I imagine Gatland would get more from it than the other coaches would. Personally I don’t think the trade off is worth it.
Wow. I didn’t see that coming. Need a lie down. Good to have a coach with a winning track record against New Zealand.
I’ve never really been a fan of the Lions, for the entirely of my watching of rugby (25 years and counting) the Lions have been exclusively on Sky, so I have been priced out of the franchise. However for a touring party where unifying players from different countries and backgrounds, I feel Gatland is highly unsuited. His last selection was unbelievably biased towards Wales, and the cock up in the scheduling will no doubt give him the excuse to do so again, as very few Welsh players will be involved in the play-offs.
Hard to know if it was bias or not – he picked the team that he felt was the best side to win that match. He obviously knew them better, which helped, but you could make a fairly strong case for all the Welsh players that he picked over their rivals.
They won the series and Gats was lauded as a hero, and I want to give him the benefit of the doubt and get behind him for the next tour.
As I confessed earlier, I don’t really have much skin in the game when it comes to the Lions, but it did seem that any 50/50 calls went the Welsh players way last time. You can call it pragmatic, going with who he knows, limited prep time etc, but then what is the point of the Lions if you’re not even going to bother crafting a genuinely new side. Wales were not SO dominant to justify 13 players in the starting 15, I mean even England didn’t have that in 2001 and they were head and shoulders above the rest back then.
And let’s face it, Australia were worse then than they are now, so I honestly don’t think the selection justified the result. I really hope Gats does snub the England players, because this will not be pretty, and I don’t want another generation scarred by a tour from hell.
Well Gatland has already said that he will give preference to players who have toured with the Lions before. Seems he is getting his excuses in for picking Welsh players over others already.
So one view is that a Welsh bias would be a good thing as they would go on a gruelling 2 month tour and come back broken and knackered ready for the next season and if they get thrashed it doesn’t matter because everyone expected it and its only the lions
If ever there was a poisoned chalice, being manager to this Lions tour is it. Gatland has no real opportunity to work with the squad before they are plunged into a ludicrous schedule, and he will be taking a bunch of players knackered after a long season, many of whom will have been playing in vital club games the day before the tour departs. Touring with the Lions is the high spot of most British player´s career. This scheduling has only been agreed in order to maximise the revenue for the NZRFU, and to ensure that they win comfortably. They should have been told quite bluntly that a tour consisting of burnt out players with no proper chance to prepare is bad for the game and should not take place. I fear that we will get absolutely stuffed by the All Blacks. Gatland will pick Welsh players in front of their English counterparts partly because they will be familiar with him and the style of play he wants. Unfortunately the AB´s will show him to be five years behind the times. As regards possible alternative managers, I´m not sure that many would want the job, particularly now Lancaster is once more gainfully employed!
There’s no need roof for her going down the Wales only for the Lions Road! The tour against Australia was in a period in Welsh 6 Nations dominance. If anything he’ll pick a bunch of other n-from rm Englishmen!
I am surprisingly uncynical about this choice. I think he was the clear favourite for the job and I wish him the best. And as an English fan I am also selfishly glad we keep Jones with us all year.
Regarding any pro welsh bias last time – well Wales were the best team at the time and the other players only have themselves to blame that they didn’t get picked. I would be astounded if he picks 10 Welsh again to start the first game – that of course is assuming the Welsh team don’t dominate and win a grand slam in next year’s 6N. Gatland is a top level coach, he is not so petty as to let national rivalry jeopardise his chance at winning the series. If anything, being a Kiwi he will be more desperate than anyone to win. Lets not forget he took 14 of the 15 Welsh players to win that game against England last time. He was happy to kick Biggar to the curb as he felt he was not in the top two flyhalves and it was in the team’s best interests, regardless of any bruised ego he would have to deal with when he got back. I think that shows a lack of Welsh bias if anything.
And on ‘Warrenball’ tactics – yes that is how he plays with Wales, but that has partly been dictated by the players available to him. There is not the luxury of the huge talent pool that a team like England enjoys. Lets be honest, the Welsh team, bar a few places, picks itself. For example, he couldn’t really play two playmakers at 10/12 as, bar the frustratingly inconsistent Hook, Wales haven’t had the options there for a few years.
I expect both a evolution of style and a much broader blend of players in the Lions team next year. If that doesn’t happen, New Zealand will already have one eye on the series win.
They have both eyes on a series win already Henry. One look at the departure date and the schedule makes it quite clear that they have no intention of giving the Lions any chance at all. What they don´t seem to have realised is that trying to squeeze too much out of players and too much money out of the game will eventually be counter-productive
Make that the British Lions. I have no intention of getting behind this Lion’s rubbish more so if Gatland is coach, good luck NZ, Ireland has got your back!
Gatland.
Sigh
I guess it was inevitable. Still doesn’t make me like it any more.
Somehow I doubt he’ll be adding any victories to his frankly dismal record against the S Hemisphere.
Still I’ll get over my disappointment and get excited about the lions.
Until he names a first team that includes Jamie Roberts, Gethin Jenkins and Dan Lydiate