Two favourites for Wales job collide in PRO14 - but which Kiwi is the best candidate to succeed Gatland

Dave Rennie and Wayne Pivac are the leading candidates to replace Warren Gatland when he steps down as Wales head coach at the end of the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

Gatland has been in charge of Wales since 2007 and in that time he’s led them to three Six Nations titles, including two Grand Slams. He also guided Wales to the semi-finals of the 2011 World Cup.

Rob Howley has stepped up to take charge of Wales when Gatland has taken sabbaticals to coach the British and Irish Lions, but it appears he’s going to be overlooked for the full-time role.

Another Welsh contender, Dai Young, effectively ruled himself out when he signed a long-term contract extension with Wasps in January.

The WRU have publically stated they’d like to name the new man by this summer, so the countdown is on.

It was suggested that a trio of Kiwi’s were on the shortlist, one of those – Chris Boyd – is taking over the Northampton Saints next season, which leaves Rennie and Pivac in a straight fight for the job.

The duo face each other in the PRO14 on Saturday, when the Scarlets host Glasgow Warriors.

Rennie took over Glasgow at the start of this season and crucially for Wales he only signed a two-year deal, which would leave him available at the end of the 2018/19 season. Rennie is also being spoken about as a possible replacement for Steve Hansen with the All Blacks, such is his reputation back home.

In terms of international pedigree, the 54-year-old can boast three U20 World Championships with New Zealand, while he claimed two Super Rugby titles with the Chiefs, in 2012 and 2013. The brand of rugby played by the Chiefs under Rennie will also be admired by rugby purists in Wales, and that style of play has been incorporated by Glasgow too with Rennie, continuing where Gregor Townsend left off.

Although Glasgow hold a 12 point advantage at the top of Conference A in the PRO14, in the Champions Cup they were hugely disappointing, finishing bottom of Pool 3 and registering just one win and five defeats.

In contrast Wayne Pivac has steered the Scarlets to the semi-finals of the Champions Cup this season, having recovered from losing their opening two pool 5 games to qualify for the knockout stage.

Another advantage that Pivac has over Rennie is the fact he’s been coaching in Wales since 2014, he knows the landscape both in terms of players and structure. He was initially brought in as an assistant to Simon Easterby, before being handed the head coach role a few months later when Easterby left for Ireland. He’s made steady progress, a 6th place finish in 2015 was followed by a 5th in 2016 and last year his swashbuckling attacking side won the PRO12 title, blasting past Munster 46-22 in the final.

The former policeman also has senior international experience with Fiji, whom he led to the 2004 Pacific Tri-Nations, while in 2005 he helped Fiji’s seven’s side to Rugby World Cup Sevens title.

Back in New Zealand he’s coached Northland, Auckland and North Harbour.

Only last October Pivac signed a new Scarlets contract until 2020, but this week he revealed that the WRU had enquired about him.

“There has been nothing formal, just discussions around my contract here, which I recently signed.  As you would expect, I am pretty sure most coaches in Wales at the highest levels would have those conversations.”

If it is down to these two the WRU will have a difficult decision to make, but with Ireland potentially seeking a replacement for Joe Schmidt too in 2019, they may want to act fast.