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Wales head coach Sean Lynn: ‘I knew this was going to be a difficult job’
By Lucy Lomax
On Sunday afternoon, as the Women’s Six Nations Championship came to a close, it was the first time in Wales Women’s history that the team in red had come away from a campaign having lost every match.
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Consigned to the wooden spoon for the second year running, the second half against Italy in Parma, (which saw Wales give up a half-time lead to concede five unanswered tries), perhaps mirrored the wider situation Wales are in.
Having started matches strongly this tournament, scoring first against Italy, England and Ireland, and after heading into the tournament filled with enthusiasm (both captain Hannah Jones and new coach Sean Lynn coming off the back of a domestic three-peat with Gloucester-Hartpury in arguably the most competitive domestic league in the world), spirits were high.
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However, despite running Scotland close in round one, results would not go their way, especially in the second half of games where opponents would dig the knife in- on the final day in the rearranged fixture in northern Italy, it was confirmed the work that is still to be done, ahead of rugby’s showpiece event in England this summer.
Lynn reflected on the second 40 against the Azzurri: “In the second half, Italy played more of a territorial game and we (were punished) for our discipline.
“I said it before the game, you can’t play international rugby, giving 18 penalties away, and we just didn’t adapt to the referee in the second half at the breakdown.
“I just think work rate from everyone needs to improve, and we’re not skilful enough at international level at the moment.”
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Having taken the Wales role whilst still in charge of Gloucester-Hartpury, Lynn won the league with the Cherry and Whites and the following day was in the WRU offices in Cardiff beginning the next chapter, with the Six Nations starting the following weekend.
The drawn-out departure of Lynn’s predecessor Ioan Cunningham, and the treatment of Wales players over contract negotiations at the end of last year, proved it is not just on-field problems which need to be resolved, with Lynn acknowledging the mountain to climb to get Wales back to the team who finished third in the Six Nations table in 2023.
“I knew it was going to be a difficult job,” said Lynn. “And the lack of time I had (with the players), but it’s been a very valuable experience for me, the learnings I’ve had.
“It’s tough (earning just one point from the Championship), I’ve taken a lot of learnings from it and where we need to be going, heading into the World Cup and I’ve said to the group of players and staff, we will be looking to change and we will be working hard in that preseason (going into the World Cup).”
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Within his coaching arsenal, Lynn has worked his way up international level, having weathered adversity whilst coaching Hartpury University men’s first XV in the BUCS league before taking the reigns at Premiership Women’s Rugby history-makers Gloucester-Hartpury.
“I’ve been there coaching a university men’s team. We went seven losses on the bounce, and we turned it around and came back and won the championship.
“I’ve been there and in these adverse moments, it’s all about everyone pulling together.
“It hurts, it hurts me massively, hurts the players, and it hurts the staff. But together we will put this right.”
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