The Welsh coach was looking for players to put up their hands for selection for Saturday’s second Test in Wellington, particularly as he needs to replace star wing George North because of his hamstring injury, but he saw little to commend as the Chiefs ran in six tries.
Wales have now conceded 16 tries in their last three games – five in the 28-13 defeat against England at Twickenham, another five in the 39-21 loss to the All Blacks last weekend and six now more in Hamilton.
“It was disappointing. We asked a few questions of some players by giving them an opportunity, but some of them didn’t take their chance and we weren’t clinical enough in finishing off our chances,” lamented Gatland.
“As a team we felt the Chiefs were tiring a bit, but they defended well and when the chances came their way they were excellent. They dominated us at collision time.
“Sometimes the game of rugby is very simple – it is a physical game about collisions and they were better than us in attack and defence in that area. A lot of our players will have learned a lot from that.
“There were a number of players tonight given a chance to go out and make a statement, perform and put their hands up for selection for Saturday. A few questions were answered for us about the fringe players and where they are at the moment.
“Players have been asking me for an opportunity and asking me why they haven’t been selected. There are some very simple answers in the next few days with their performance.
“They have got to be honest about looking themselves in the mirror, going away, looking at that performance and what they learned from tonight and thinking about how they apply that to being better players in the future. We’ve got to do the same as coaches.”
Wales face the All Blacks in two more Tests on tour, starting in Wellington on Saturday. The big question now is will the recent scorelines have an adverse effect on the team spirit?
“In terms of morale, we are disappointed with the performance, but a big part of having this game was to give the players a chance to learn from playing against one of the top teams in the world. The big part of tonight is what the players and coaches take away from the game and what we learn from tonight,” added Gatland.
“Midweek games are tough but part of the experience for some of the squad was to learn from playing against a quality side. We have never shied away from want ing to play against the best teams. We have learned from those games in the past and I think the players will have learned a heck of a lot from tonight.
“We need to apply some of that learning from tonight and last Saturday to next weekend. I thought our line out functioned pretty well. When we scrummaged we had them under pressure, but we weren’t able to convert that into points.
“When you are in a tight game like that and you create a few chances and don’t take them, you end up chasing the game.”
