Warren Gatland reveals Wales players' request during strike talks in bid to protect everyone

Warren Gatland believes the players selected would have been the target of severe criticism if he had named his Wales side to face England on Tuesday as originally planned.

Wales' Six Nations clash will go ahead as scheduled on Saturday after a potential player strike was successfully averted on Wednesday. Gatland unveiled his team on Thursday, making nine changes in a bid to secure Wales' first win of the tournament.

Gatland had originally planned to name his matchday 23 on Tuesday but postponed it on the day, and has now revealed that players had requested he delay it to protect them.

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"I was asked by the players not to name the team on Tuesday, and that was about as much as protecting them as well," said Gatland. "If the game did get called off with naming a 23, then all of a sudden those 23 players are in the spotlight and almost being accused of calling the game off.

"I know what happens after that. You guys [the media] go around and ask them if they wanted the game to go ahead, and they potentially get isolated. So it was as much about protecting the players in the squad until we had confirmation that the game was going ahead."

Gatland revealed he had to make a call on his England-based players on Tuesday or they would have had to release them back to their Premiership clubs. Five England-based players are in Wales' matchday 23, plus Dan Biggar who is now with Toulon.

"We had to make a call on that because if we didn't name the team on Tuesday or didn't notify their clubs they were involved, then they would have all had to go back to the English clubs on Tuesday," he said.

The New Zealander also insists the experienced players will be crucial in ensuring the squad are able to put the off-field distractions to one side.

"Some of those experienced players have been through a lot of big situations, Grand Slams, winning Six Nations and World Cup semi-finals," he said.

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