Wales fans all asking same question after performance against Ireland

The manner of Wales’ defeat to Ireland in their Triple Crown decider in Cardiff under new head coach Matt Sherratt has left many Wales fans pondering what exactly went so badly wrong under Warren Gatland.

The men in green survived a serious scare on Saturday to secure the Triple Crown with a 27-18 victory over a rejuvenated Wales side – who seem to have refound their fire under a new leadership.

Despite extending their losing run to 15 matches in all competitions, Wales delivered a performance few would have predicted.

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The home team showed a level of intensity and attacking intent rarely witnessed under recently departed head coach Warren Gatland. It’s led to a surge of rhetorical questions on social media from fans wondering what exactly Gatland was doing in his disastrous second tenure.

Ireland opened the scoring through Jack Conan but two Gareth Anscombe penalties and a Jack Morgan try saw them led 13-10 at half-time. The home side eventually pushed a heavily favoured Ireland to their limits before Sam Prendergast’s late penalty kicks put the contest out of reach.

In the aftermath, Welsh supporters on social media expressed both admiration for the team but also a certain frustration at the abrupt turnaround, openly asking how Wales managed to look so much stronger in such a short period.

“What are the many commentators who said pointless removing Gatland saying now?,” posted one fan. “A great past coach of past players. Good selection and three training sessions later, the likely Grand Slam winners have had to work every minute to beat Wales. Now WRU needs to get a grip nationwide.”

Sherratt oversaw just four training sessions before Saturday’s Six Nations clash. Nevertheless, the Cardiff head coach orchestrated what many rugby fans have described as Wales’s best display since the 2023 World Cup.

“Matt Sherratt has had less than a week with Wales and overseen 4 training sessions and Wales already look so much better than they did for the last year under Warren Gatland,” wrote Jamie Phillips on X. A

Another user stated: “The way Wales are playing just goes to show how much Gatland had lost the dressing room and respect of the players,” while another added: “Wales are playing like a dark cloud has been lifted. What was Warren Gatland doing over the last 16 months?”.

“So, Gatland was the problem then,” declared one fan, while another fan echoed the sentiment: “OK, so Warren Gatland’s weird coaching decisions really were a problem for Wales then…”

Popular rugby union Youtuber Squidge Rugby argued the showing proved there is no lack of talent in Welsh rugby, a refrain that has become popular in Welsh rugby over the last two seasons:  “I would like to ask all those who said Wales didn’t have the players to do any better than they had if they still feel that way.”

The big takeaway is a positive one though: For many Welsh supporters the manner of the defeat offers considerable hope for the rest of the Six Nations campaign and beyond.