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Welsh Rugby in disarray but I'm still backing them for the Six Nations

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Pablo Luna - Moonlighting for Betfair. Pablo looks at the reasons behind Wales' failure in the recent World Cup and how they can rebuild

I am an Englishman living within the 'Golden Triangle' of Welsh Rugby (Llanelli, Neath and Swansea). I can still feel the pain the natives are suffering regarding the recent 2007 Welsh Rugby World Cup debacle. It was the third time Wales had lost to a Pacific Island side at the World Cup after they were beaten by Samoa in 1991 and 1999, and also the third time they failed to progress past the pool stages, following similar humiliation in 1991 and 1995.

I am not a Rugby expert but there is no doubt that they underperformed as players but feel there are deeper reasons for their malaise and the real work is in accepting and recognising it!

Thirteen coaches in 21 years is not acceptable, why and how did this happen? What chance for success with this 'hire em fire em' mentality! WRC group chief executive Roger Lewis should hang his head in shame! He is to a certain extent responsible. Continuity, growth and building a side to their peak for the World Cup Finals should be the priority.

Have the Welsh as a rugby nation acknowledged the evolution of the game? Are they in denial, is it a cultural thing or are they too arrogant to change? Where was the attention to detail or the fractions of improvement throughout the competition? In my local pub I hear them disparage robotic and mechanical rugby and although I emphasise with their thinking the Wales 34 Fiji 38 in Nantes result meant them going out of the competition. Words like up and wake spring to mind!

Throughout the competition I could not work out why the coach chose to play in a certain way. Against sides such as Fiji you have to establish a base and be patient. At all costs you have to avoid running plays that create convenient targets for big-hitters and you must not turn over ball. As Wales did both, the Fijians helped themselves with alacrity. Another point that astounded me was the fact that Wales did not play to their strengths. They should have played a more English way as they dominated the scrum and lineout. Where was the collective intelligence?

And of course, in today's game you can never take the field without an apposite goalkicker, a reminder that South Africa won the World Cup Final without scoring a try!

The new idiom in rugby is 'game sense' and it is clear that Southern Hemisphere sides recognise the value of it. From a very early age these sides are taught that the individual comes second to the needs of the team. The importance of the team ethic is now paramount and though there is room for running plays from Wales' imaginative and inventive backs, the game must be strategically won first. Set pieces, recycling, competing physically with pace at breakdown is more important than the individual deciding to have a go. This may not be as pleasing to watch but it is the reality.

There are some things beyond the control of the coach. The game in Wales is a confusion of compromise and it is not easy to assemble a national side within their League set up, as they are isolated. They need to play in the English League where the big boys are! Frankly the Magners league is poor - dump it!

Welsh expectations and long memories conspire so they believe they can do better than they really should (a bit like England's football team). They need to look long and hard at the management hierarchy and the politics within and perhaps employing a foreign coach, who does not have deep routed prejudices and bias can change the mindset that is living within the current Welsh structure!

The RBS Six Nations 2008 start on 2 February 2008 and will make fascinating watching post World Cup, how will the coaches set up their teams and what path will they take. Will Wales embrace evolution?

To win the Championship outright the Welsh are presently trading at an appealing 9.6 with Betfair. The Triple Crown and Grand Slam markets are not yet up and running in terms of being priced up, but I will keep a close eye on the Welsh prospects. I notice that the fixture list is heavily in their favour with three home matches against France, Scotland and Italy. I would not be surprised to see them improve dramatically.

To read more about the Wales Rugby team go to:

http://www.wru.co.uk/3_8.php