Wales may not have done quite enough to win the Six Nations but Warren Gatland is confident they are on course to make an impact at the World Cup. Indeed, he felt bullish enough not only to talk of emerging from the group of death but to claim that Wales were contenders to win the whole thing.
“We can look forward to the World Cup now,” he said, after Wales’s spectacular 61-20 win over Italy. “If we’ve got the players fit and available we’re good enough to come out of that group and even to the win the World Cup. We won’t go into the World Cup with any fears. We have momentum and all the confidence that goes with that.
“We know that when we spend time together we can play some rugby. There’s no fear for us playing at Twickenham against England or Australia. We’ll be in good shape physically. I think we can go there with real belief that we can get out of that group. We’ve got those teams at four, five and six in the world all in the same group. So we know how tough it will be – and I don’t think we should underestimate what Fiji could do with a bit of preparation. It’s unfortunate that you’re going to have a big team lost to the early rounds, but that’s what we have. We’re confident we’ll get out of it.”
He was speaking in the wake of an extraordinary second-half display by his charges, who ripped through an Italy side that collapsed embarrassingly. “It was a great second‑half performance and the biggest away win for Wales in the Six Nations, which is another milestone for these guys.
“I’m a little bit gutted about that last try [which reduced the points‑difference target Wales set by seven], but you can’t question the performance, effort and commitment of the boys. We dug in there and 60 points is not bad. We’ve always said as a squad we get better the more time we spend together and I think we’ve improved as the tournament has gone on.”
Sam Warburton, his captain, refused to dwell on the home defeat England inflicted on Wales in the opening round, which now looks not only costly but strangely out of character. “I won’t look back at things like the second half against England,” he said. “It was not stopping Scotland in the last play of the game at Murrayfield, and it’s the try we conceded at the end today that will bother me more.
“From a personal point of view, though, it’s the first time I’ve played all five games without injury, so the national contract is working, insofar as it’s keeping me on the pitch. We’ve improved with every game, which is the best thing to see. The belief that the boys kept over the last six or seven weeks after losing the first game was amazing.”
