By Graham Thomas
When Mick Byrne was an Aussie Rules player, he was known as “Mick the Kick” and now he could become notorious as the man who kicks Warren Gatland out of his job.
It’s not too much of a stretch to suggest that a defeat for Wales against Fiji in November could threaten Gatland’s position as head coach.
After all, it was an autumn defeat to Georgia two years ago that led the Welsh Rugby Union pulling the rug from under Wayne Pivac.
Gatland will have gone over a year without winning a Test match – having suffered nine defeats in a row – by the time the Fijians arrive .
A loss to the Flying Fijians, who turned to Bryne as their new head coach in April, could well be too much for the WRU to stomach, despite their steadfast backing of Gatland throughout a disastrous 2024.
With the new rugby season just three weeks away, an indication of the low expectations Wales fans are having to get used to can be seen in the odds for the 2025 Six Nations.
Then come England, at 4/1, followed by Scotland at 10/1.
In that context, it’s not hard to see why 10 weeks out from meeting Wales, the Fijians fancy their chances.
Byrne moved from Aussie Rules into rugby when he became a specialist kicking coach and went on to be part of the coaching set-ups with Scotland, Japan and Australia.
He then landed in Texas, spread his wings into broader rugby coaching, spent some time in Canada , and now at the age of 65, the 6ft 7in Aussie has his first stint as an international coach.
Fiji lost 32-26 to Wales the last time they met, almost a year ago at the World Cup in France.
In many ways, it was Wales’ best performance of the tournament since it was against a team who were on the rise, rather than in freefall like the Wallabies.
The Fijians made it through to the World Cup quarter-finals and it was a measure of their current strength that they were extremely disappointed to lose a tight match to England, 30-24, a nation they had beaten in the build-up to the tournament.
Since then, they have beaten Georgia, lost 47-5 to New Zealand – the one country the Fijians seem to have an inferiority complex against – and recovered quickly to put away Samoa, 42-16, in the first round of the new Pacific Nations Cup.
Gatland may have hoped the Fijians would still be wounded after the shock resignation of former Newport star Simon Rawalui following the World Cup, but the switch of coach does not seem to have affected them.
For Gatland, the autumn fixtures look critical to his future. Even though he has been talking about the next World Cup, unless he can secure the short-term, the long-term will go ahead without him.
“I’ve tried to say that winning takes care of itself by making sure the processes are right,” said Gatland at the close of Wales’ two-Tests, two defeats tour of Australia.
“So rather than focusing on the win, we just need to make sure in those big moments, we’re calm. But everyone wants to get that win.
“We know where the group of players are at. They need some time and experience, but I understand the pressure is on to get some results as well.”
The question for Gatland and his employers is how long can short term pain be endured – with the loss of support, interest and commercial attractiveness – before long-term benefits kick-in?
For a coach who has overseen a team slip to an all-time low of 11th in the world rankings, finish bottom of the Six Nations for the first time in 21 years, and lose the Test series 2-0 in Australia, the answers may become quickly apparent.
