The conclusion of the game’s showpiece tournament in Japan will signal, on his terms, the departure of Gatland from a role he would have held for some twelve years.
Gatland recently sat down with the media to talk them through his strategy for Wales peaking in 2019 and when pressed on his personal feelings leading into his final year the Kiwi opened up honestly and from the heart.
“I’m bricking myself about the next year because I want it to be a good year,” he admitted.
“I am focused on doing the best job I can as I have loved my period in Wales. It is time to move on and I want to leave these shores with my head held high.
“That makes the next 12 months pretty important, especially the goal at the end of it – the Rugby World Cup.
“Wales is a special place. I am often asked what I will miss most and honestly and simply it is the people.
“There is a certain amount of pressure going into this year but that is pressure we as coaches have put on ourselves. Everyone has put a huge amount of work in over the past 12 years and we want to end of a high
“Looking back over our time as a coaching team, our record in the Six Nations, our win/loss ratio has been pretty outstanding and we have performed pretty admirably in the World Cups too.
“We would have liked to have a better ratio against southern hemisphere teams, but I believe we should be really happy with the progress we have made.”
Keen to move the subject back to the squad and the plans for the coming months Warren detailed how every bit of planning is geared for next September.
“Since 2015, the focus, the end goal has been 2019. We work in four-year cycles and we are now in the final phase of that, the one-year countdown.
“Everything we do as a squad is focused for next year, taking every opportunity together to learn, develop, build on what we have so we are ready when the tournament rolls around.
“We have proven, both in 2011 and 2015, that we do get it right and we do peak at Rugby World Cups. That gives us confidence in what we are doing and we are all pretty excited about what lies ahead.
“Every match this Series is a further opportunity for players to keep the jersey on their back and fight for it going forward.”
