At some point or another, the spotlight tends to fall on any of the Welsh coaches.
While Wayne Pivac, and Warren Gatland before him, would catch bullets regardless, the targets beyond them would almost work on a rotation basis.
If the attack floundered, then it was Stephen Jones, or Rob Howley previously, who got it in the neck.
Lineout goes awry, and it's Jonathan Humphreys carrying the can. Robin McBryde will certainly be able to sympathise with that.
And while few took potshots at Shaun Edwards, it didn't take long for his successor Byron Hayward to receive flak for defensive issues. Gethin Jenkins is likely all too aware a similar situation is never too far around the corner.
But, there's one area of the game that, on the whole, tends not to have a face to apportion blame too.
It's one that can all too easily be overlooked, one that can fall through the cracks when it comes to wrapping things up in a neat little bow, but it's perhaps as important an area as any of the above.
More than that, it largely ties all of them together. It is, of course, the breakdown.
That's not to say there isn't a specialist dealing with it in camp. Former Wales captain Sam Warburton was involved for the first Six Nations campaign under Pivac before deciding to depart.
Once Warburton moved on, Gareth Williams took over the job - first combining the duties with his Wales U20s job, then moving into the role full-time last summer.
Speaking about Williams this week, Pivac was full of praise for him and his work on the breakdown.
"Already in camp, we've been paying attention to that area of the game and Gareth's doing a good job," said Wales' head coach.
"He's well respected by the players and he's very likeable as a member of management. He's working very hard in that area."
And it's with good reason that Wales are dealing with it.
It's often noted, particularly given Wales' recent woes in the area, that when a lineout goes awry, it's the hooker who cops the blame.
The same can be said when it comes to identifying the key areas of the game.
When Wales lose, the usual reasons are blunt attack, porous defence or faulty set-piece. The truth is often much more nuanced and largely depends on the breakdown.
The whole of 2021 was largely defined by how Wales' breakdown fared - on both sides of the ball.
When people think of the breakdown, they tend to think of the likes of Warburton jackalling, pilfering turnover ball and slowing things down.
That's a big part of it, undoubtedly - especially when you think of Wales' last Six Nations trip to Dublin when Pivac's first loss as Wales coach came from failing to live with Ireland's ruck speed.
But it's also how efficiently you clear out when in possession - particularly with how Wales are trying to play in attack.
The use of a 1-3-2-2 formation - the numbers representing how Wales typically split their forwards across different sections of the pitch - is one that, when functioning, allows Wales to play a fast-paced game that gets the ball into their most dangerous players' hands in the wider channels.
However, if Wales are forced to over-commit at the breakdown due to poor clearout work, as was the case in some of the autumn fixtures, you lose the shape needed in order to execute.
"We have a couple of hundred breakdowns in a game," added Pivac.
"If you compare that to scrums and lineouts, it's such an important part of the game - not only with the ball, but without it.
"Trying to turn the ball over, take possession over, slow them down and realign in defence so we can come on the offence with our defence if you like.
"It's a vastly important part of the game."
It's perhaps a little strange why it doesn't grab as much attention as other parts of the game.
Speaking to people who have been in and around coaching tickets with a breakdown specialist, they've noted that, as a general rule, coaches want to look after main KPIs - key performance indicators.
Now, if you've got different coaches pushing work-ons for that facet of the game, the breakdown can be something that tends to fall between each of their remit.
You'd hope Williams has been there long enough to get his point across.
Perhaps the bigger issue is the lack of senior figures around to drive home his messages. Clearing out rucks is as much mindset as it is technique.
Senior figures like Josh Navidi and Justin Tipuric understand what breakdown work is all about. They'd be the ones driving the standards in training.
Wales are missing that with their spate of injuries. Pivac spoke about his excitement over younger players being forced to step into leadership roles during the upcoming campaign, while new captain Dan Biggar stressed the importance of more voices coming forward in camp.
That's certainly the case around the breakdown.
“You should only ever have a two clearout players maximum in an attacking ruck," o ne former international told WalesOnline after the autumn.
"Absolute maximum. If you have three, it’s only because the first guy hasn’t done his job and you need two more to clean up his mess.
"If it’s a ball carrier plus two maximum, then you have 12 players on their feet ready to attack. Around the touchlines, the goal should be just one-man rucks.”
They added that, as soon as contact is made, the best players flick a switch and go into kill mode. Some call it ‘Triple-T’ - ‘Tackle the tackler’. It's all about identifying the threat and taking him out of the game.
This former player bemoaned the fact that it's a skilset that isn’t highlighted by most. Quite simply, the best don’t get the plaudits for it, and the others don’t get pulled for it either.
That's why having Ross Moriarty will be key. If you're not sure why Wales are so keen to get him back fit for the trip to Dublin, go watch the first 30 minutes of Wales' autumn clash with New Zealand.
It probably wasn't a performance that Moriarty would think much of, particularly as he went off injured. But what he did do, as noted above, isn't the sort of thing to get plaudits.
Time and time again, when there was a ruck to hit, he shifted the black jersey without a moment's hesitation. If there was a threat of a turnover, he smoked them.
If there wasn't, he'd sit on the ruck and seal it. As much as it's a mindset of 'going into kill mode', it's also about smart decision-making - otherwise you get guys flying off their feet at rucks with no threat, allowing the opposition to just walk through for easy turnovers.
With no Navidi or Dan Lydiate in the squad, Moriarty is the only physically destructive option they have on the blindside.
The likes of Christ Tshiunza and Seb Davies are being groomed to play there as second-row/back-row hybrids, but for what Wales need, there's no one else in the squad who provides it bar Moriarty.
As for the other side of the ball, Wales will need to find a suitable way of slowing down Ireland in phase play.
If they don't have the jackal threat to do so in the starting XV, depending on who starts on the openside, then it could come down to tackle choice.
Last year in Cardiff, Wales were really smart in extending the length of tackles - soaking up contact - in order to slow Ireland down in attack.
These will all be things Williams will have drilling home since the players arrived in camp on Monday.
To the wider public, Williams probably won't receive the level of scrutiny as some of the other coaches - not that he'll mind that. Breakdown isn't a buzz word in the same way attack, defence or set-piece all are.
But he'll know that If Wales are to get off to a fast start in the Six Nations, it's likely going to be down to what happens at the breakdown.
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