Wales in good place insists Gatland
WARREN Gatland insists he’s happy for Wales to go into the Six Nations under the radar after his side sealed a 24-22 victory over South Africa.
New Zealand-born centre Hadleigh Parkes marked his first cap with two tries and a star man performance.
Wales’ victories over Georgia and the Springboks – coupled with defeats to Australia and New Zealand – means they ended their Autumn campaign with a mixed record. But Gatland believes his team are in a good place.
“The whole thing about this autumn was developing some depth for the future,” Gatland said. “I think this coming Six Nations is going to be the closest we’ve had for a long time. Given where we stand with injuries and all the young players we’ve put out, we are in a good place.
“People are talking about teams other than us for the Six Nations at the
moment and long may that continue.”
A delighted Parkes said: “It’s a dream come true, I never thought this day would come. It was a huge privilege and honour to play out there in a fantastic stadium and in front of a fantastic crowd.
“To get the double is something you can only dream about. I’m very, very happy at the moment.”
Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones added: “It’s been an interesting autumn with two good halves against Australia and New Zealand and then capping it off with the win here. We can’t get away from the fact we’ve lost two from four, but we are trying to change things and increase our attacking rugby. We had a purple patch from the first whistle, but then missed chances to drive that home.”
Gatland said: “There is a little bit of relief. We started so well and looked comfortable, but the periods after half time weren’t the best for us. I think we deserved the win and we are pleased with lots of things, especially given the injuries we’ve had and the young players we’ve blooded.
“There are lots of things we can take out of this campaign in terms of developing some strength in depth in the squad. It was pretty nail biting, but that’s what sport and Test match rugby is about.”
South Africa head coach Allister Coetzee cut a dejected figure, but insisted he was still the right man to lead the Boks to the World Cup.
“I’m signed up until 2019, that’s all I’m saying,” he said. “It was a game we should have won, there’s no doubt about that.
“Wales got off to a flyer and we were 14-0 down after ten minutes. I’m proud of the way we fought back and I thought Malcom Marx’s try was a definite score. I was convinced he grounded the ball, but on the whole I think we’ve had a good year given the inexperienced side we have.”
Springbok flanker Siya Kolisi, who took over the captaincy when Eben Etzebeth went off injured, said: “We were chasing the game after the way we started. We made too many mistakes off first phase. We were particularly disappointed with our discipline at the end of the game when we made some silly mistakes.”