Ruddock applauds his team

Ruddock was desperate to play down talk of a Grand Slam despite a third win from three in this year’s RBS Six Nations Championship. But he was more than happy to praise the unbeatable spirit within his side after their remarkable comeback in Paris.

“The character and confidence within this team has been building ever since their performances at the Rugby World Cup,” said Ruddock. “Ever since then, things have been building and players have been developing. This is a great time to be coach of Wales.”

There will certainly be coaches and managers across the world who would like to know what he said to his players at half-time. Wales trailed 12-0 after just fourteen minutes after conceding two tries before hitting back with two tries from Martyn Williams and fourteen points from the boot of Stephen Jones.

Ruddock said: “There was not one specific thing that changed the game. We just spoke about the three Ts that were letting us down. Turnovers, failing to make our first tackles and missing touch. When we sorted those things out, I knew we had the ability to beat France.”

The only cloud over Wales’s 24-18 triumph was the injury to skipper Gareth Thomas that threatens to rule him out for the rest of the championship. Thomas was taken to hospital in Paris after the game with a suspected fractured thumb that will, if confirmed, sideline him for six weeks.

Ruddock said: “That would be a huge blow but there is enough strength within the squad to cope with it.”