As a Welsh coach, you just get no leeway... it’s how you cope with that is what counts
WROBIN McBryde perhaps never got the plaudits he was due during his time in charge of Wales’ forwards under Warren Gatland.
But when things went wrong, he soon heard about it.
That was the reality during his 12 years in the post, although you do not win three Grand Slams and a further Six Nations title and reach two Rugby World Cup semi-finals along the way without a platform.
McBryde moulded that up front, although his name only tended to get mentioned if the lineout wobbled or the scrum creaked.
At times he was a maligned figure on the coaching team when adulation flowed the way of Gatland and Shaun Edwards.
Those experiences have helped McBryde get to where he is today, having just been announced as the Lions’ forwards coach under Gatland for the upcoming tour of South Africa.
“I think one of the most difficult things about being a Welsh coach is coaching in Wales because you’re not given any sort of leeway whatsoever,” he tells WalesOnline.
“If you come in from New Zealand, you’re given however much, six months or whatever, to get things right.
“If you’re a Welsh coach you’re not given that space, they expect you to be hitting the road running right from the word go and it’s very hard to do that.
“But not everything’s going to go your way, it’s how you deal with it, it’s the ability to just focus on what’s important and all the other rubbish that’s been talked about, just let that go.”
He draws comparisons with Wales’ current coaching staff briefly, alluding to the criticism Wayne Pivac came in for during the autumn of 2020 before bouncing back to win the 2021 Six Nations.
McBryde may also be pointing towards the stick which his successor, Jonathan Humphreys, received.
“That’s what was so pleasing about watching Wales in this Six Nations, there were a lot of doubters out there but ultimately they came out on top and we’ve got quality people, good people, really deserving of the credit they got towards the end,” he insists.
Injury forced McBryde to retire from playing in 2005 with 37 Wales caps, a Grand Slam and a Lions tour to his name.
His ascension to the Wales coaching ticket was swift, having taken up a role coaching the Scarlets’ age-grade side after hanging up his boots.
Within three years he was alongside Gatland in the coaching box and admits there has been a lot of learning to do along the way, not least during periods when he was interim head coach of Wales when his boss was away on previous Lions tours.
“Warren will tell you himself what I was like at the start, ranting and raving trying to get the boys up,” he smiles.
“It’s been a gradual thing, I’ve had a lot of experience during that period.
“Obviously, the last three Lions tours I headed up the Welsh tours to various parts of the world.
“I had the luxury of, in between campaigns, going on either courses or visiting different environments.
“It’s been a gradual thing, I’ve come across some fantastic people in that period who had a fantastic effect on me influence-wise.
“But, Warren has always been a constant there, really. To start and finish on a successful note after so many years there, never a dull moment really. Different challenges. To be on that journey - I count myself extremely fortunate.
“Ultimately, if I wasn’t willing to learn then I wouldn’t have been there that long. I’ve been very fortunate, as I am again, with Warren.”
Perhaps, though, there is no doubting McBryde’s personal credentials.
He was snapped up by European and domestic juggernauts Leinster before his contract with Wales ended after the last World Cup.
When a team of that esteem is keen to tie you down, it speaks volumes.
“It was always going to be different because the nature of the competition is different,” McBryde says of his time at Leinster so far.
“It is more week to week, day to day. “It is interesting, going from one successful environment into another one. It’s not like they’re wrong, it’s just a different way of doing things.
“It is being respectful of the background of the players that I’m dealing with at Leinster, which is completely different to the players I was dealing with in Wales.
“You’ve got to tailor your cloth accordingly - where the areas of focus are, what they pride themselves on.
“Everybody sees the game differently, that’s been good for me, having different challenges and doing things differently.”
But this summer he is back with Gatland once again. The unavailability of Steve Borthwick and Graham Rowntree may have left the door ajar for McBryde but you can’t say he hasn’t earned this opportunity.
He was the only coach on Wales’ team for more than a decade who had not toured with the Lions. Now, his time has finally come.
“Obviously everyone wants the opportunity to work with the Lions and this is my opportunity, and it’s just fallen in my lap because Steve and Graham weren’t able to commit, so yeah, it’s my opportunity and I’ve got to make the most of it,” he says candidly.
“You’re always going to come under pressure, you wouldn’t be in the job if you didn’t like to be in that bubble and I dare say if you’re going to come under the pump again, it’s how you react, nothing’s going to go 100% your way.
“You’re just going to have to have 100% conviction that what you’re doing is right and then do it to the best of your ability.
“That’s what I’ve always done under Warren and fortunately he’s given me this opportunity.”