Wales assistant coach Matt Sherratt addresses England defeat
Wales assistant coach Matt Sherratt, who previously served as Cardiff head coach, has acknowledged that the team's performance in their 48-7 Six Nations opening loss to England was "not acceptable."
Under head coach Steve Tandy, Wales prepare to face France in Cardiff on Sunday, following a challenging period marked by 12 consecutive Six Nations losses and 22 defeats in 24 internationals since the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
During the match at Twickenham's Allianz Stadium, Wales conceded seven tries and had four players receive yellow cards, alongside conceding 16 penalties, reflecting a display marred by disciplinary issues.
Wales captain Dewi Lake expressed regret after the game, stating the squad had let supporters down, while wing Josh Adams was visibly emotional.
"No, it wasn't. It doesn't sting anyone more than the players and staff, it's so disappointing. With the big picture, we want to make the nation proud of the Welsh rugby team. There wasn't a lack of effort, but at the top end of sport, you need more than effort."
Sherratt responded candidly when asked if the performance was acceptable.
Post-match review and reflections
Sherratt described the usual post-match review conducted on Tuesday as an honest assessment of the defeat.
"The review was honest. It wasn't brutal, but it was honest. We had two days afterwards, which helped, because sometimes it is a bit of a grieving process. By the time we came back in on Tuesday, there had been a lot of conversations and the players understand as well. It's not about the coaches standing at the front telling the players where it went wrong. It's pretty joined up, we've got senior players who were hurting as much as anyone."
He noted that despite two weeks of preparation, the players were unable to translate training into performance on match day.
"We felt we'd worked hard for two weeks, but with every sport, it's about producing what you've done in practice on the day and we weren't able to do that. Regardless of the scoreboard that was the most disappointing thing. We didn't feel like we replicated what we'd done in training."
Despite recent setbacks, Sherratt emphasized the importance of maintaining the current approach rather than frequently altering tactics.
"It's a balance, it's like with any job. If you start changing course every two or three weeks, you lose confidence in what you're trying to do also. We've been clear from the start. We've got a group of players we want to play in a certain way. It's been inconsistent. We've seen shoots of it against Argentina and New Zealand and then not in the other games. So it's about trying to get more of what we're trying to do on the field, not changing. We're not stubborn, so we will look at what's the best chance for the team to get a result at the weekend. But you can't be scrapping your plans each week as well."
Defensive challenges and coaching roles
Wales have conceded 248 points and 34 tries in the five matches since Steve Tandy took charge, a period during which no specialist defence coach has been appointed. Tandy combines his head coach duties with the defence coaching role, a position he previously held successfully with Scotland and the British and Irish Lions.
Sherratt confirmed that this arrangement will continue.
"Steve's the defence coach, he is British Lions defence coach. He is a very good defence coach and it's not one thing."
This weekend, Wales will face France, whose defence is coached by Shaun Edwards, a former Wales coaching favourite.
"I know Shaun well, I worked with him with Wales, Cardiff and the Ospreys. They're good defensively and Shaun is a world-class defence coach. It's more about the players going against their defence rather than me against Shaun because, on and off the pitch, he's pretty formidable."
