Gatland for next All Blacks coach? =(

Ok Wales fans... we've all thought about it, we've all considered making this topic, but everyone is so happy we don't want anything to spoil the lovely image we have of Welsh rugby at the moment

However, we all know Graham Henry is retiring after the world Cup, the NZRFU have all pretty much ruled out Hansen so they will be looking for a new coach.
It was made pretty clear to us that both the WRU and Gatland himself, had clauses inserted in the new contract that was signed, before the World Cup.
Gatland had to get Wales to the quarter finals, and has achieved this goal, but Gatland is believed to have had a clause stating he can walk away if the NZRFU offer him the All Blacks job.

Gatlands stock is pretty high, and Deans stock is a bit down, so unless Australia knock out New Zealand next week, then I think it's odds on that Gatland will be going home to his dream job in a month or so, after the December 3rd game against Australia.

Who the hell can we get to replace him?!

Just as well hes under contract, if he jumps ship at least we'll have enough compo to get annother quality coach in..and maybe loose change to help bake morte warburtons

if gatland hadent made up his mind before he wentto nz i bet he has now.

he looked very tired before the rwc. he now looks much healthier. he is living at home, relaxed and away from the voracious wales press.

i reckon he will see it as a good time to go. in with a grand slam and out with a world cup medal. not bad at all.

he will be the first welsh coach in history not to be sacked (in a car park)

He's at the start of something very special in Wales I'd be surprised if he left, even for that job with an ageing NZ team

He has built a very strong Wales squad and I would expect he'd be reluctant to let it go, but at the end of the day his family is in NZ and thats where he wants to be

wonder_man wrote:He has built a very strong Wales squad and I would expect he'd be reluctant to let it go, but at the end of the day his family is in NZ and thats where he wants to be

That's where his legendary big house is they keep talking about on Scrum V.

Now i personaly thought that if, if Wales got dumped out at the Pool stages.and the Abs got dumped out in the quarter final, then Gatland might consider going for the Abs coach job.

But seeing that their is a slim,i say again slim chance that Wales might now win the RWC, i dont think that Gatland will want to go away from Wales, any time soon.

you can have MJ

Henson needs a job too

actually i think we will take that gatland off ya- we will turn him into a premier star in no time- he will be on 10 mill a year and have cherly cole on his arm

majesticimperialman wrote:Now i personaly thought that if, if Wales got dumped out at the Pool stages.and the Abs got dumped out in the quarter final, then Gatland might consider going for the Abs coach job.

But seeing that their is a slim,i say again slim chance that Wales might now win the RWC, i dont think that Gatland will want to go away from Wales, any time soon.

Yeah but I think he wouldnt have been offered the job if that had happened, now his reputation has been enhanced not only by the progression of wales but by the way hes reshaped a moribund team into a fighting force playing and all blacks brand of rugby.

If he were to be offered a job with New Zealand it wouldnt be that hard for him to walk away from even a winning wales team. Its niave to think that its a more pretigious job to a kiwi just because they have win a few games in style.

This about sums it up,

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-sport/rugby/article-23994305-hands-off-warren-gatland-warn-wales.do

Gatland has already been quoted on numerous newspaper website stating he will stay with Wales until 2015 unless they fire him. I can't see him leaving, not with this group of players at his disposal, nor with him under contract.






Or I could just be being overly optimisitc I think he'll stay though.

More worrying, isn't Edwards leaving us after this wc?

Hes already said hes staying until 2015 unless he gets sacked. I think Gats has always said hes a man of his word and he would have weighed up his chances of the blacks job before signing the new contract.

Hes 52 in 2015 just the right age to go home and coach the all blacks after hes defended the title successfully with Wales

Seriously though I think Dingo Deans may have a serious shout with the NZ job espescially if Australia dump the all blacks out next week.

look lets be honest the all blacks say they cant even afford to play rugby against lesser nations- how are they gonna afford the highest paid coach on the planet- which my english taxes are probally paying for

well maybe he could coach new zealand tehn come back for the next world cup since they cant afford to attend it

Lewis also praised the behaviour of Gatland's squad. "Everybody has worked so hard," he said.

"The behaviour of the players and coaches off the field has been exemplary. They have their feet firmly on the ground. They know what they want to do and have a steely determination to achieve it."
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I have been very impressed with our professionalism on and off the field.
During interviews our coaching staff and players have shown respect towards the opposition and thats how it should be.
And it's also great that we have earned respect from a wider audience.

go wales-

luckily for you , your guys havent stayed on any golf resorts

mystiroakey wrote:go wales-

luckily for you , your guys havent stayed on any golf resorts

Actually Powell learned his lesson, there was a buggy on the field during the Namibia game, to get a badly injured player, and Powell didn't go anywhere near it!

Well he couldn't he had the entire Welsh team holding him back!

I thought the AB coach needed to be coaching in NZ to be eligible. Just like its players. So Gatland out.

Gatland doesn't strike me as somebody who would jump ship on a promised commitment at the first opportunity. If he does my opinion of him will have dropped greatly.

Unsure if he'll be chased. I think there are a few options:
Gatland. Will have a show given Wales performances and how he's brought on the team. Not sure if he's really in the running yet. It could depend on the next few games.
Deans. A similar position to Gatland. If they go all the way he has option long term (I think he's stiched up in the short term).

NZ based coaches.
I think Smith and Henry are out of the Running. Hansen has to be in with a shout. Given his involvement for the last 8 years I'm picking they could be looking for new blood. If the AB's go out against Australia, his oddsget longer.

None of the super coaches stand out. Hammet is to new and his time at the hurricanes too triubled. Joseph had a good year with Otago but is still green. Blackadder and Lam haver a bit more experience, but could do with another 4 years. Blackadder might have a chance given the crusaders performance. Rennie would be an outside chance given his experience with Manawatu and the Agegroup sides.

I'm unsure about overseas based coaches. One that come to mind are:
Mitchell (lions, SA). No chance given his history.
Kirwin (Japan). no chance
Smit (Leinster). v. little chance
Cotter (Clermont). v. little chance
The reality if you aren't coaching in NZ your chances are slim. The lack of super high quality internal applicants is the only reason to give them a chance.

None stand out for me. In fact we should resource cloning a younger Henry perhaps?

I'm all for change at this point but no one is obvious for me. I'd probably go for Blackadder 'cos he's a nice fulla'.

Deans would probably go well and I liked Beales comments about him on the weekend. Beales career funnily enough took off under Deans where prior to that he was getting scathing comments in Oz.

I'm confused.

Before the World Cup all the Welsh fans hated Gatland.

1. His selections were all wrong. He was picking rubbish off form players like Huw Bennett, Mike Phillips and Jamie Roberts. Remember all that stuff about Jamie Roberts and Jonathan Davies not making a proper centre combination, remember how Gatland was unable to produce anything more than a myopic one dimensional side. These were comments from Welsh fans. One Welsh fan suggested that the Welsh starting half back combination should be Knoyle and Tovey - seriously, and Mike Phillips shouldn't even go to the World Cup.

2. His man management shocking. He talked of honesty and players having to be fit to travel, and yet he wrongly gave special treatment to Gethin Jenkins allowing him to be fit.


My own view was and still is that Gatland and his coaching staff are a superb and proven combination, and lightyears ahead of the English and French coaching set-ups. I'm often wrong, but not on this occassion.

Wales are the best prepared side for the World Cup. Everything about the approach has been impressive. Gatland has never ducked the tough matches, he's picked players on form and to a large degree ignored reputation, and when he has picked on reputation, he's largely been vindicated.

When Gatland and Edwards went to Wales I said that England has missed a big trick. All that without a crystal ball. It was obvious.

I think Gatland will want to stay with Wales. He's built a great side and a young side, and its best days are ahead of it.

The difference with this tournament to others is that Gatland has had 4 months to prepare this squad, as apposed to a couple of weeks. It's a huge difference.

I will hold my hands up though and eat a whole lot of humble pie when it comes to his continued selection of Huw Bennett. I honestly thought he was mental to keep doing so, but he's proved us all wrong.

The other difference is that Gatland's had hasn't been forced by injuries, and he's mainly been able to pick the side he wants (apart from missing his two world class props in the only game that Wales have narrowly lost).

What seems telling to me is this. The more time Gatland and his coaches have with the players, the better they are. Better physically and mentally. Players like Lydiate and Warburton are reaching new levels as players, levels they have never reached before.

With England, the exact opposite is true. The longer they spend with Johnson's "elite" coaching set-up, the worse they become. Foden, Ashton and Youngs were handed to Johnson by Northampton/Leicester as young and exciting talents. Their impact at international level was instant and exciting. In little over a year they have become turgid and slow. The side doesn't create anything for them, and they have almost stopped caring. They looked dejected shadows of the players they were starting out. England's only hope is that their clubs, largely excellent set-ups, can take them back and revive them.

Bravo Gatland.

fes,

Whilst I didn't say he should go before the WC I did have doubts over some of his selections and questioned some of his staff (Howley in particular).

I still have kittens everytime I see Bennett go to throw in at the lineout and just hope he continues because his scrimmaging has always been good.

I do wonder how many of these players would have been involved if injury hadn't forced his hand and that he has sort of stumbled on a few combos.

Which players do you think he may not have "stumbled upon" were it not for injuries?

I really find it staggering the lack of credit the Welsh fans give Gatland for this.

funnyExiledScot wrote:Which players do you think he may not have "stumbled upon" were it not for injuries?

I really find it staggering the lack of credit the Welsh fans give Gatland for this.

It is disappointing, there's no way he can win with some posters but an increasing amount are giving him the credit he deserves I feel.

Jenks and Jones have been first choice all the way and are a match for anyone in the scrum. Bennett is suddenly putting in monster performances, a contender for most stunning turnabout ever! No great injury in the locks and those Gatland has picked have done the job every time. The back row has looked world class, again a product of Gatland's initiative rather than injury. Priestland has been picked despite the availability of Hook and Jones and has yet to disappoint. Pretty much all the backs have had turns and impressed when given the chance.

Sorry bedford, can't really see where injury has played a decisive part.

On Bennett, Gatland, having lost Rees and Hibbard to injury, made a pretty fair assessment of the remaining hooker options (giving others a chance as well as Bennett) and it looks like he made a pretty good call based on what he'd seen.

I still think Rees and Hibbard are better players, but given the situation I think Wales have done well, given the lack of depth in that area. Bennett has really proved doubters wrong. Nallet and Bonaire will challenge his throwing on Saturday again most certainly, but he's not done a bad job so far. Hopefully Charteris will be fit. He's a big help to the old line-out problem.