Steve Tandy ‘overwhelmed with pride’ as Wales end Six Nations losing streak

Wales head coach Steve Tandy said he was “overwhelmed with pride” after his side ended a three-year wait for a Six Nations victory with a 31–17 win over Italy in Cardiff.

The result at the Principality Stadium brought an end to a 15-match losing streak in the championship and marked Wales’ first Six Nations win since 11 March 2023 – 1,099 days ago.

Tries from Aaron Wainwright, who crossed twice in the first half, along with scores from Dewi Lake and Dan Edwards, powered Wales into a commanding 31-0 lead after 47 minutes.

Italy mounted a late fightback with three tries to reduce the deficit, creating a tense finish for the home crowd, but Wales held on to secure a long-awaited victory.

Speaking after the match, Tandy said the moment carried deep significance for the squad.

“It was a massively emotional day, a win in the Six Nations has been a long time coming,” he said.

“I am overwhelmed with pride by what this group delivered. I’ve always said it’s never been a question of desire, physicality or work ethic in this group.

“I just think it’s getting them to understand how far they can go with the work ethic and physically they’ve got.

“I’m not going to lie, it did feel like a long last 10 minutes and that did seem to drag out a little bit.”

Wales had endured a difficult start to the tournament, suffering heavy defeats against England and France in their opening two matches.

However, narrow losses to Scotland and Ireland suggested signs of improvement, and Tandy said he had challenged his players to finish the campaign strongly.

“England was a massive lesson for us, we didn’t impose anything of what we wanted to do and panicked with our discipline,” he said.

“Since then I believe the boys have grown every week, have got a bit of confidence, and had a bit of cohesion as a team.

“It’s a good day to enjoy – it’s been a while – but we have to keep growing.”

‘Developed’

Wales captain Dewi Lake, who also scored a try in the victory, said the performance showed how far the team had developed during the tournament.

“We hope that we have restored some faith in the jersey and into what this group can do,” he said.

“That performance sums up how we have grown in the last two to three weeks.

“The scoreline was similar to half-time against Scotland and to come out and score first, to never give up on the moment, to stay switched on and stay in every play shows how we have learnt.”

For Italy, the defeat ended hopes of achieving a historic milestone after earlier victories over Scotland and England had put them within reach of their first ever three wins in a single Six Nations campaign.

Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada acknowledged Wales’ intensity had proved decisive.

“We saw a big improvement from Wales against Ireland and we knew they had the opportunity to put everything out there to get victory,” he said.

“It was a big game from Wales and they never gave up.

“The win was maybe bigger for them. Their heart and physicality was bigger than us in the first half.

“We did better in the second half, but that first half defined the game.”