Wales to part ways with Warren Gatland during Six Nations amid worst losing streak in their history
Today at 06:04 AM
Warren Gatland is reportedly set to depart his role as Wales’ head coach following the recent defeat to Italy.
The Dragons suffered their first defeat in Rome in 18 years last weekend after being beaten 22-15 in the Six Nations.
Their defeat at the Stadio Olimpico is also the first time in Wales’ history that Italy have triumphed over them in successive matches.
Wales now sit bottom of the table after their opening two matches having also been thrashed 43-0 by France.
Their shocking start has raised the serious possibility of scooping the unwanted wooden spoon for the second year in a row after losing all five matches in the annual championship in 2024.
And according to the Daily Mail, Gatland will now part ways with Wales, with an official announcement expected later on Tuesday.
The 61-year-old has endured a nightmare second spell in charge of Wales since returning in 2022.
He has overseen 14 consecutive international defeats – Wales’ worst losing streak in history.
That is in addition to losing their last eight games in the Six Nations.
Their last victory on the international scene came against Georgia in October 2023, where they eased to a 43-19 victory.
In total, Gatland has won just six out of his 30 matches during his second stint – a win percentage of just 20.
The stats also make grim reading in terms of their Test matches, having lost 20 from their last 26.
Wales’ disastrous form has seen them drop to 12th in the World Rugby rankings – their lowest ever position.
Gatland’s second spell is a stark contrast to his first stint in charge, where he won 72 out of his 130 matches.
During his 12-year stay between 2007-2019, he scooped four Six Nations titles, while also taking Wales to the World Cup semi-finals in both 2011 and 2019.
But luck hasn’t been on his side since his 2022 return, with his imminent exit not coming as a surprise to former Wales international Alex Cuthbert.
Cuthbert, who was brought into the senior set-up by Gatland, told talkSPORT: “I don’t think it’s a surprise, really.
“I reckon they told him after the autumn that the result that he needed was against Italy and it didn’t happen.
"The union will have come in and said something has to change because this run like you said is going to be looking like nearly 17 losses with three games to go."
Pressed on whether his departure during the Six Nations is unusual, Cuthbert remarked: “This is absolutely unheard of. I don’t think this has ever, ever happened before.
“I think the thing for me that underlines this is they backed him after the autumn, but nothing has changed.
“Not even the style of play, the way they’ve gone about the week and obviously the performances as well.
"It’s a shame really because Warren has obviously got such great history in Wales.
"He is probably one of our greatest Wales coaches in all the success that he’s had, but I think the union have let him down as well, not just obviously himself."
