Former Wales scrum-half Mike Phillips has doubled down on his scathing social media attack on Warren Gatland but says he should stay on as head coach until after the Six Nations.
After Wales’ first loss of the autumn against Fiji, Phillips said his former coach “deserves to be kicked out” and he was “laughing all the way to the bank”. The 42-year-old went on to say that Gatland “is only out for himself” and branded the Welsh Rugby Union’s decision to rehire him in 2022 as “nuts”.
“You’re on £600k a year and don’t even have to win!,” he wrote on X at the time. “How the WRU bring this guy back is just nuts! Laughing all the way to the bank.
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“When I see this guy talking about family it makes me cringe. Did he speak to me at the end of my career, did he f***! I won for this guy. This bloke is only out for himself, and it kills me to see all this bull**** praise he’s getting,” Phillips added. “He deserves to be kicked out, like he did to so many quality Welsh players!”
Now, the 94-cap international says he does not regret his criticism of Gatland but adds that he should stay on as head coach until after the Six Nations, to allow more time for planning and finding “the very best fit for Wales.”
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“No, because I haven’t deleted it,” he said when asked if he regretted his X post in an interview with the Telegraph. “I’m an emotional person, I’m not perfect by any means, everyone knows that. I care about the game and what’s best for the game.
“I think Warren knows me better than most. I’m very emotional and I played rugby in an emotional way. I played it all on that. It is what it is. I care, we care for the game for Wales.
“I think if you actually know me, there was no malice in that,” he added. “It’s from a good heart and we want everyone to be successful.”
Gatland snapped back at Phillips’ comments a few days after he made them, remarking that while he will be remembered as a Welsh rugby great, “probably some of the things that have happened to him have been a little bit sad”.
The ex-Cardiff, Ospreys and Scarlets man was confused by the coach’s remarks, saying he has been through “good times and tough times” over the course of his career and adding: “There are many sad things that have happened to me. I don’t know what he is referring to there.”
However, he went on to say that he has “nothing but respect” for Gatland, but believes it will soon be time to bring in someone with a “different viewpoint” to help turn around the fortunes of a side on a record losing run. The coach’s fate is set to be decided before Christmas but Phillips says bringing in a successor should now have to wait until after next year’s Six Nations.
“We should really plan and get the next group of coaches, whoever the best fit is who is out there and is hungry and perhaps wants to improve Wales that’s what we need to do,” he said. I definitely think he needs to stay until the end of the Six Nations because it’s too short a time to get the next person in really and planning to get the very best fit for Wales.”
