Welsh rugby reaches record low as England run riot

BBC News

15-03-2025

Welsh rugby has had some troubling times in the past 18 months. Allowing England to run riot in their Cardiff home will rank as the lowest point.Ten tries and a 68-14 defeat. It beggars belief. As England kept alive their Six Nations hopes at the Principality Stadium and you heard 'Swing Low Sweet Chariots' ringing around, Welsh rugby was left to reflect on the horrific state it finds itself in.It was a record defeat for Wales in Cardiff, the most points they have conceded at the Principality Stadium, their heaviest Six Nations defeat and a record tournament loss and most points conceded against England. Those were just the headlines and not the full picture.This once proud nation are used to competing for Six Nations title and Grand Slams on the final weekend of the tournament which has become known as 'Super Saturday'.In Cardiff on this occasion, they have become the first Wales side to win successive Wooden Spoons by finishing bottom of the table again.
Unwanted history boys
Wales have become the unwanted history boys with a 17th successive defeat, the most for a tier one nation in the professional era and equalling Scotland's losing streak between 1951 and 1955.Whether Wales should still be considered a tier one nation as they have slipped below Georgia in the world rankings to 12th will be debated with former Ireland full-back Rob Kearney having already broached the subject.It has been 525 days since their previous Test victory when they beat Georgia at the World Cup in October 2023 in Nantes.It has been 588 days since the last home win when Wales defeated England in August 2023 with nine successive defeats.It has been 1,127 days since Wales won a Six Nations game at the Principality Stadium when Scotland were beaten in February 2022. Nine defeats have followed.This was the first time Wales have lost every game in two successive tournaments and picked up the Wooden Spoon, with 11 successive Six Nations losses to their name.
From bad to worse
After an opening 43-0 loss to France and 22-15 defeat in Italy, Warren Gatland left his head coach role after 14 Test defeats.Cardiff coach Matt Sherratt was brought in for three games in an interim appointment and provided a feel-good factor with an improved performance in the 27-18 loss to Ireland. The optimism was over the top because of the misery the Welsh game during the past 18 months. A couple of Under-20s wins against England and Ireland also clouded the judgement of many because Welsh supporters have been starved of any success.Wales were outclassed in Scotland before a late revival at Murrayfield with the visitors eventually losing 35-29.After Italy' 22-17 defeat against Ireland, Wales knew they need two match points to avoid a second successive Wooden Spoon even though they had not won a game in the tournament.What followed was a demolition job of the men in red by the white shirts as they overpowered and outmuscled their inferior opponents.You had the demoralising sight of home fans leaving early as the English supporters celebrated.And at one point former England scrum-half Danny Care, commentating for BBC One, admitted he felt "uncomfortable" about what he was witnessing.
Time for action
Who is now going to fix the mess Welsh rugby finds itself in? Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) bosses keep saying there is silver bullet with two Tests in Japan this summer to follow. The WRU has no director of rugby, no permanent head coach and no detailed strategy on how they can at least be competitive in world rugby again.They will appoint the director of rugby this month and are due to unveil the details of their new strategy they launched in June 2024.A head coach to take Wales through until the 2027 World Cup in Australia will follow with Australian Michael Cheika and South African Franco Smith mentioned as Sherratt returns to his day job at Cardiff.The WRU are supposed to be the guardians of the game in Wales and they have failed so many levels in recent seasons.The commitment of the players can not be questioned but the lack of quality compared to other leading nations is evident.Whatever is decided, they should never forget the events of 15 March, 2025. A 96-13 loss against South Africa in 1998 will still top the charts of Wales' darkest days but this day will challenge for the worst of the rest.The WRU and others have allowed this to happen. They need now to somehow fix it.
What they said about Wales
Former Wales hooker Ken Owens: "It is a dark day and tough to watch. I can't question the effort of the players as they are trying their heart out."We can't match teams physically to give the likes of Jarrod Evans and Ben Thomas an opportunity to test defences."The best teams that are physical can absorb us. That is the sad part of where we are at in Welsh rugby at the moment."Former Wales captain Sam Warburton: "If you win the power game so convincingly there's nothing the other team can do.This is international rugby, it's a brutal and physical sport and power wins and England completely obliterated Wales.They were just physically far superior. There was nothing Wales could do and that was the hardest watch for me, because it just showed the gulf in physicality.Speaking on ITV, former Wales fly-half Dan Biggar: "Firstly it was a really deflating day in Cardiff for any Welsh fan."There was a lot of hope going into the game, but ultimately they were overpowered and that's the way the game is at the minute."Looking further ahead, they've got a big tour to Japan this summer which becomes crucial for World Cup seeding."The powers that be in the WRU now, if you're not going to make tough decisions when you've lost 17 on the spin, then you probably never will."Something drastic and big changes are going to have to happen in Welsh rugby, that's stating the obvious."