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How has it got so bad for Wales and Gatland – and is his job now on line?

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Wales head coach Warren Gatland's future is under intense scrutiny amid Wales’ record 11-match losing streak in international matches ahead of their final tie in the Autumn Nations Series against world champions South Africa on Saturday.

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Wales head coach Warren Gatland's future is under intense scrutiny amid Wales’ record 11-match losing streak in international matches ahead of their final tie in the Autumn Nations Series against world champions South Africa on Saturday.

Gatland's side have now gone 13 months without tasting victory after suffering a quarter-final defeat to Argentina in the 2023 Rugby World Cup and in total have lost 17 of 23 games in the New Zealander's second stint in charge.

So do Gatland and the Welsh Rugby Union now have some big decisions to make? Sky Sports News reporter James Cole assesses three of the big questions around the situation...

Could Gatland leave after Saturday's South Africa match?

Wales during rugby union's Autumn Nations Series (Associated Press)
Image: Wales have also been beaten by Fiji during rugby union's Autumn Nations Series (Associated Press)

"It could well be his last game.

"This is statistically now the worst Welsh side in history.

"If they lose to South Africa, they will have lost every game in the calendar year for the first time since the 1930s.

"Now the decision the WRU, or indeed maybe Gatland, has to make is what would life look like without him in the role?"

Who are the alternative options?

Wales coach Warren Gatland watches his team before the Autumn Nations series rugby union match between Wales and Australia at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024.(AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
Image: Warren Gatland has not tasted victory in his second spell as Wales head coach since last year's World Cup (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

"The first issue is, if you get rid of Gatland, who comes in? There aren't a huge amount of world-class coaches out there.

"Michael Cheika's name has been mentioned a lot. He's on a one-year deal at Leicester Tigers in the Premiership, but would he really want the job? It's a job that a lot of people think is a bit of a poisoned chalice.

"The second question you've got to ask is, whoever comes in, can they do a better job than Warren Gatland?

"Some may say, well, it's hard to do a worse job, but they're going to have the same players, a young squad, inexperienced players.

Wales's record 11-match losing run in Tests

Opponent Result Event
Argentina 17-29 Rugby World Cup
Scotland 26-27 Six Nations
England 14-16 Six Nations
Ireland 7-31 Six Nations
France 24-45 Six Nations
Italy 21-24 Six Nations
South Africa 13-41 Test
Australia 16-25 Test
Australia 28-36 Test
Fiji 19-24 Autumn Nations Series
Australia 20-52 Autumn Nations Series

"Against Australia, Wales fielded a starting 15 that averaged 19 caps per man. In the back line, if you take Gareth Anscombe, their fly-half, out of the equation then that number drops to four.

"It's an incredibly inexperienced group. Wales' player pool at the moment is not big. They've lost a lot of players in a short space of time. Lions, the likes of Dan Biggar, Alan Wynne-Jones, and that is really telling."

The financial question: Can the WRU afford to change head coach?

"Gatland is reported to be on between £500,000-£600,000 a year.

"So, to pay him out of his contract is going to cost the WRU around about £1m, unless, there's a performance-related clause in there or Gatland decides, as he hinted post-match on Sunday, that he may resign.

Wales' Tomos Williams goes down injured during the Autumn Nations Series match against Fiji (Getty Images)
Image: Scrum-half Tomos Williams sustained a serious shoulder injury against Fiji to add to Wales and Warren Gatland's woes (Getty Images)

"The WRU then needs to weigh up what it was the financial implications of having to pay that sum versus the bums-on-seats effect in Wales. At the game on the weekend, there were 56,000 fans in a 74,500 stadium. For Wales v Australia, that is incredible.

"They need to weigh all of this up and decide if life is better without Gatland and have deep conversations.

"No quick decision should be made. It should be a thorough review. They also need to know what's going on in camp and whether players are still behind the coaching staff."

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