They delivered in style for themselves, their families and the nation on another unforgettable day at Principality Stadium as they rose to second place in the World Rugby rankings.
This is how some of the key characters reacted to Wales’ 12th Grand Slam and the third of the golden ‘Gatland Era’.
GUINNESS MAN OF THE MATCH GARETH ANSCOMBE
“It’s hard to put into words what this means. We have a habit of winning and it’s a special group. We’ve worked incredibly hard over the last year and we worked hard for each other today.
“We wanted to enjoy it. We’re in the best stadium in the world in front of our people and we wanted to take the game to them.
“It hasn’t all been smooth sailing. For me, it’s a day and weekend to remember for Welsh rugby.
“The celebrations will be a couple of days, I think. I don’t know if I’ll go to training on Monday – I’ll have to ask the coach.”
TRIPLE GRAND SLAMMER ALUN WYN JONES
“Anything can happen when you work hard and you’re a proud nation, and we’ve shown that. Warren’s the man at the top and we’ve been under pressure, but he’s always been unwavering. He’s got a bit left on his contract, but I’m sure we’ll miss him when he’s eventually gone.
“At times we’ve been unconvincing so we like to think there’s still potential in us. We’re well aware we’ve just put a big target on our backs before the World Cup.”
RECORD BREAKING COACH WARREN GATLAND
“It was a fantastic performance and we didn’t look too tired, did we? We spoke beforehand about the players playing for themselves, their families and the fans and being able to create a bit of history. You can never take that away from them now.
“I said if we won the first game against France we’ve got a good chance of winning the whole thing. If that creates that bit of belief in the players then maybe something like this can happen.
“Alun Wyn Jones has really matured as a player. He’s done a great job of leading the team in this campaign. He’s tough, he’s resilient and he deserves all the adulation he gets.
“We’re just trying to slip under the radar. We know on our day that we’re capable of beating good teams so I think we’ll have a break now and start preparing for the World Cup.
“These boys will run through a brick wall for you. They’re a really tight group and really close to each other. If we go there with a bit of luck and not too many injuries we’ve got a good chance of beating anybody.”
WALES TRY SCORER HADLEIGH PARKES
“The crowd has been amazing, we’re really enjoying ourselves, and to do it like that is amazing. Everyone is good mates and wants to work hard for each other and you can see that in the defence when everyone puts their bodies on the line.
“We’ll enjoy the celebrations for a while. They’ll be awesome.”
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