Pointless Wales crushed by France as Antoine Dupont decision says it all
It was as bad as everyone feared as Wales fell to a resounding 43-0 defeat to tournament favourites France in Paris.
Wales justified their ranking of 11th in the world and if anyone needed any proof of how far they had fallen it came in the 49th minute. With France leading 28-0, Fabien Galthie saw fit to take off his best player Antoine Dupont with the game already won.
Galthie was looking ahead to tougher tests over the next couple of months and there was no need to risk injury to his most valuable player because the game was in the bag with 30 minutes to go. Wales were never going to beat France but more worryingly they showed no signs whatsoever they are close to turning the corner.
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This was Wales' heaviest ever defeat to France in Paris while it is the first time they have been nilled in a Test match since losing 31-0 to Australia in Brisbane under Gareth Jenkins back in 2007. Never before have they failed to score a point in a Six Nations match. Wales failed to fire a single shot in the French capital and the pressure on Warren Gatland must be close to breaking point.
The absolute must-win game of the Six Nations comes in Rome next Saturday and on the basis of a rough 80 minutes in Paris, the Azzurri will fancy their chances. There were some minor positives for Wales to cling onto with the scrum going well and the odd decent individual performance, namely from Jac Morgan and Tom Rogers, but this is a desperate case of clutching at straws.
Under Gatland Wales have now lost 13 consecutive Test matches and the visitors were never really in the game against a far superior outfit in an 80 minutes which almost resembled a training session for the hosts. Wales do not have the same level of experience as the French team but they looked like a side devoid of ideas and Gatland has a serious job on his hands if they are to enjoy at least one victory in this Six Nations.
Wales did not win a single Test match last year in part due to their inability to get off the gainline and that same old Achilles heel resurfaced again at the Stade de France. Despite the odd period of pressure France were never truly under any real stress and Wales have eight days before facing Italy in Rome which could ultimately decide Gatland's future as Wales coach.
Nobody can question Wales' effort but this was a walk in the park for Fabien Galthié's side who were levels above their visitors. This was always going to be a case of whether Wales could stop France on the gainline but they were thrown around from pillar to post.
France were physically superior but they also had far too much class behind the scrum. It is easier said than done but Wales allowed the world's best player Antoine Dupont too much time on the ball.
But Wales weren't the only ones showing Dupont too much respect with the officials missing a blatant forward pass for one of France's tries and a clear knock on over the line for another. It wouldn't have made a difference to the end result but you would expect better from such an experienced team of officials especially with the benefit of technology.
Wales started with plenty of energy and purpose but the opening exchanges also highlighted their biggest shortcoming. Wales enjoyed an early period of possession but for all the early spark they struggled to get over the gainline.
France on the other hand had no such problems. Whenever the hosts had the ball they made significant metres. Wales had to work their backsides off to make any inroads, whereas the French made headway almost at will.
This was again evident midway through the first-half when Gatland's side enjoyed a rare period of pressure in the France half. They huffed and they puffed but they could find no way of getting over the gainline and created the quick ruck ball they so desperately craved.
On one particular occasion Wales ran out of ideas, frustrated scrum-half Tomos Williams kicked the ball aimlessly away. Dupont had the easiest of armchair rides whereas Williams found himself behind a pack which was brutally exposed at times
You could see the frustration on the faces of the Wales players and it is going to be difficult to pick themselves back up in Nice this coming week as they prepare to take on an Italy side which beat them comfortably in Cardiff last season. This isn't purely about the lack of experience nor the quality of coaching but the lack of confidence in this side.
The vast majority of these players have not tasted victory often enough at club level let alone in the international arena. Indeed it has been 482 days since Wales beat Georgia at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, their last victory in a Test match.
Gatland's side have forgotten how to win. Yes, Wales have the players to win in Rome but the squad is bound to be short of belief and are stuck in the deepest of holes.
One particular stat sums up Wales' problems up perfectly. They have failed to score a single point in five of their last 11 halves in the Six Nations.
It is very hard to see where the next victory comes from because on the basis of this performance it won't be in Rome next Saturday.