Once, a 1990s Wales player told how he’d try to avoid the fallout from a Test defeat by staying at home with curtains closed and the telephone left off the hook for several days.
Newspapers wouldn’t be looked at. There'd be no walks through the park with his dog — perhaps for fear other mutts might bite him after some of the lamentable team efforts in those days.
You wonder how that particular chap and others would have coped in the internet age, where feedback can be instant and beyond bruising?
Certainly, Wales players on Saturday evening would have been advised to stay away from their devices.
How much heed will Warren Gatland have taken from the reaction to the defeat? The New Zealander tends to be a man who makes up his own mind, but he would not be human if some of the comment and criticism didn’t affect his thought processes.
We will see. Anyway, he faces some important calls ahead of naming his Wales side to face Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday. It's potentially the toughest selection yet Gatland has made as Wales coach. In his previous reign, the majority of the team would often pick itself.
This one is significant as it will give an indication of Gatland’s direction of travel ahead of the next World Cup. His choice is whether to give the old guard a chance to redeem themselves or whether to give youth a fling. Or is there a middle route?
Whichever direction Gatland goes in, there are tough calls to be made.
Here are some of the positions that he is mulling over prior to final decisions being made and the team officially announced on Thursday.
Back row shake-up
Barely three weeks ago, after his performance against Montpellier, Justin Tipuric was being called “absolutely magnificent”. But after Wales’ defeat by Ireland the whole world and his wife seemed to be queuing up to offer the view that it’s time for him to be dropped. One day you're a rooster, the next you're a feather duster, as an old Australian coach used to say.
In 54 minutes against the Irish, Tipuric made 14 tackles without missing one but he wasn’t at his best, unable to impose himself. The shepherd’s crook came out after he was stripped of possession near Ireland’s line and then threw a high pass that Rio Dyer couldn’t take. With Wales not short of openside options, the Osprey is now under pressure for his place.
Axing the 90-cap player would be doing away with vast experience and quality, but Gatland’s call to replace him so early against Ireland didn’t augur well.
Alternatives? Wales could switch Jac Morgan to seven and go with a bigger six in Christ Tshiunza or Rhys Davies.
Or they could just draft in Tommy Reffell at openside flanker.
Reffell is a turnover specialist who is also good at slowing opposition ball. When he played alongside Dan Lydiate against South Africa in the summer, the Springboks could have been forgiven for wondering where he’d come from. He was outstanding.
A radical back row would see Tshiunza at six, Reffell at seven and Morgan at No. 8. But that would mean Taulupe Faletau being left out after the penalties he gave away against Ireland.
That couldn’t happen.
Could it? Rule nothing out at this stage might be the best approach.
Young guns or old guard at lock
Adam Beard is another Wales player who’s been in the line of fire this week. The charge is he doesn’t carry enough.
Alun Wyn Jones has also copped flak. There are plenty out there who feel the 37-year-old is too old for Test rugby.
Beard knows he has scope to improve with ball in hand and questions will always be asked of someone of Jones’ age if things go wrong in the front five.
A fortnight earlier the pair had performed superbly for the Ospreys against Leicester, but against Ireland they found it hard to put a stamp on the game.
What does Gatland do? His starting point presumably will be to only make changes if there are better players as alternatives. Rhys Davies is physical, competes for turnovers and piles up tackles. He will come into the conversation, along with Dafydd Jenkins, whose 20-metre ball carry late on against the Irish showed that Wales do have in their ranks a second row capable of eating up ground with ball in hand. Christ Tshiunza can do the same.
The question for Gatland is whether he feels the young brigade are ready.
Has Webb done enough at nine?
Anyone watching Gareth Davies play for the Scarlets against the Bulls recently would raise an eyebrow as to why he’s not in Wales’ Six Nations squad.
But he isn’t and the choice at No. 9 this weekend sees Tomos Williams, Rhys Webb and Kieran Hardy vying for the position.
Williams started badly against Ireland by failing to find touch in the early seconds, an error that allowed the Irish to secure the platform from where they scored their first try. He didn’t do a lot wrong thereafter, but didn’t light up the game, either.
Rhys Webb scragged Craig Casey at one point and was on the field when Wales enjoyed an edge in possession and territory. He didn’t produce too much that was eye-catching and there were mixed reviews about his effort. Some suggested he was slow getting the ball away from rucks, but at least two national newspapers commented positively on his effort, with one noting, when assessing Williams, that ‘Webb looked a lot sharper when he came on’.
All about opinions.
Hardy did well in South Africa last summer. Gatland’s looking for someone to put his hand up here.
Dealing with Duhan
How do you solve a problem like Duhan van der Merwe?
That will be the question for Gatland and his coaches after the Scottish wing's performance against England. The 6ft 4in, 16st 9lb wing rampaged through the home team’s rearguard at Twickenham, a Gulliver swatting aside Lilliputians, with the big man beating 11 defenders all told and including a try for the ages among his brace of touchdowns.
Do Wales pick Alex Cuthbert on the right wing for a marking job? Cuthbert made a favourable impression off the bench on Saturday, rounding off his effort with a try-saving tackle, and has much experience. His would be a horses-for-courses selection.
Or do they reward Rio Dyer’s appetite for work, with the youngster setting aside the odd setback against Ireland to look for the ball and take on the opposition defence?
What will happen in Wales v Scotland? Cast your vote now
There is also the option of shifting George North out wide and using either Nick Tompkins or Mason Grady at outside centre.
Whatever they decide, the selectors will want to warn Wales’ players about the dangers of kicking loosely.
With van der Merwen on the field, it can have consequences.
What to do with North at 13
Is there an issue here? North ran hard against Ireland and is a proven Test match player, but he was a mixed bag.
Gatland has Nick Tompkins as an option and a useful up-and-comer in Mason Grady.
On the credit side, North achieved a possession steal and did his bit in trying to dent Ireland’s defence.
The debits involved missing three of his seven tackle attempts and coughing up ball three times. It is worth noting that Joe Hawkins returned similar figures when it came to hits and turnovers, but the youngster caught the eye with his creativity and ability to mix play up.
There were plenty of others who were hot and cold against Ireland and Gatland will think twice about leaving out one of his potential strike weapons. Even so, a strong game from the big man at Murrayfield, should he be retained, would be timely from a Welsh perspective.
What Wales XV would you pick? Have your say in our comments section below
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