Dragons start life after Warren Gatland – Wales v Ireland talking points

Wales begin life after Warren Gatland when they tackle Guinness Six Nations title favourites Ireland in Cardiff on Saturday.

Gatland departed following Wales’ 14th successive Test defeat – a 22-15 loss to Italy – with Cardiff boss Matt Sherratt now in charge on an interim basis for three remaining Six Nations fixtures.

Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the talking points heading into the game.

Gatland exit had to happen

Unable to mastermind a Test match victory since the 2023 World Cup, when Wales beat Georgia in Nantes, their performance against Italy was dire on so many levels that there could be no realistic way back for Gatland.

Reign

First time around with Wales, the New Zealander presided over Six Nations title triumphs, Grand Slams and World Cup semi-final appearances, but his second reign delivered just six wins from 26 Tests.

Inevitably, there was no magic wand, and many will argue that his legacy is tarnished, but in terms of accomplishments he remains Wales’ most successful coach in more than 140 years of international rugby, and that should not be forgotten.

Sherratt takes the reins

Still dressed in his Cardiff tracksuit and arriving straight off the training pitch, there was a surreal air to Sherratt’s introductory press conference as Wales’ interim head coach.

He went from a United Rugby Championship game against Connacht to Welsh rugby’s biggest job, albeit for three Tests only as the search begins for Gatland’s long-term successor.

Horror statistics

Sherratt is an affable, engaging and popular figure who wants his teams to entertain, and while he can only do so much in the next few weeks, there is nothing realistically for him to lose.

Wales surely cannot be any worse than they were at Stadio Olimpico, and it could be a fascinating ride with the man nicknamed Jockey.

Wales can only wish that the phrase ‘lies, damned lies and statistics’ was accurate in their case. Unfortunately, facts and figures scream at them from every page.

Sherratt has inherited a squad at the lowest of ebbs, reeling from a record run of Test defeats that began with a 2023 World Cup quarter-final loss against Argentina in Marseille 16 months ago.

That shattering sequence has seen Wales drop to a new world ranking low of 12th, while an Ireland victory would see them suffer a ninth Six Nations reversal on the bounce. Wales have also lost seven successive Tests in Cardiff.

One glance at World Rugby’s latest rankings list confirms the gulf that currently exists between Ireland and Wales.

Second-placed Ireland are 17.61 ranking points clear of Wales, which is a bigger gap than their hosts on Saturday have between themselves and the likes of Brazil, Zimbabwe and the Netherlands.

While Wales have lost 14 successive Tests, Ireland’s defeats across the same number stand at four, with three of those being against New Zealand (twice) and world champions South Africa.

Advantage

Ireland have also beaten Wales seven times from the last eight meetings, and even with home advantage, Wales are a 25-1 chance with some bookmakers to shred the form-book.

Ireland will wear predominantly white shirts against Wales in order to help supporters impacted by colour blindness.

Ireland have traditionally worn their green home jerseys for previous trips to the Principality Stadium, but the combination of red, worn by Wales, and green is a particular problem for people with colour vision deficiency (CVD).

New World Rugby regulations, which came into effect on January 1, require visiting teams to switch to an alternative option in order to avoid kit clashes which could negatively impact spectators and television viewers suffering from CVD. Around one in 12 men and one in 200 women are affected by the condition.