Rugby

Wales coach Gatland hits out at Bok tactics

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epa10820469 Kwagga Smith of South Africa (C) scores a try during the Rugby Test match between New Zealand and South Africa in London, Britain, 25 August 2023. Both teams prepare for the Rugby World Cup 2023 in France that will kick off on 08 September with New Zealand facing France in the opening match. EPA/NEIL HALL
  • Post published:December 28, 2023

Wales coach Warren Gatland has again called for a reduction in the number of replacements in rugby, saying the Springboks had an unfair advantage in their 2023 Rugby World Cup win.

Gatland has spoken numerous times before about his wish to limit replacements to only those for injuries, rather than allowing the likes of the Boks to bring on seven replacement forwards to replenish their powerful pack in the second half.

“The game is producing incredibly powerful athletes and when you see teams like South Africa at the World Cup name a bench with seven forwards and just one back, it means that your forwards only have to play for 40 minutes. That was not what it was intended for,” Gatland said in his column for The Telegraph.

“Rugby used to be about attempting to tire out a forward pack so that the space opened up in the final 20 minutes and there were more opportunities to attack.
“We are not seeing that at the moment because of the number of replacements and the incredible athletes we are producing.

“I think the time has come to trial a reduction in the number of replacements or even a return to when they were only for injuries. This ruling may just apply to top-level or international rugby.”

Gatland misses the point that the same substitute rules apply to both teams, but the Boks have over years cultivated two world-class packs for this very reason. Other teams were free to do so as well.

But the reality is that other nations do not have the quality in depth of the Boks, which is an issue with their development pathways and not the rules.

Gatland has lost to the Boks on several occasions through his career, not least as coach of the British & Irish Lions in 2021, and the 2019 World Cup semifinal with Wales.