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Wales head into the Six Nations hoping that the aerial game can act as a springboard for their attacking plan
Wales head coach Steve Tandy says he would consider hiring a specialist coach to look after his team’s aerial game as he bids to make it a key part of their attacking philosophy.
Changes to the law have made contestable kicks more of a necessity, with the inability to provide as much protection in the backfield meaning less are being taken cleanly – allowing teams to them attack from the loose balls. Wales showed signs they could create try-scoring opportunities from kicking to compete in Tandy’s first campaign in charge, particularly against New Zealand.
The trend of aerial battles is only going to continue in the upcoming Six Nations – with Tandy’s squad reflecting that.
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The likes of Gabriel Hamer-Webb, Josh Adams, Tom Rogers and Louis Rees-Zammit are all very comfortable under the high ball, with England coach Steve Borthwick having already predicted Wales will put up around 50 contestable kicks in their Six Nations opener next month.
At the moment though, Wales are working with a temporary coaching staff.
Tandy’s assistants Matt Sherratt and Danny Wilson are there on a permanent basis, but once again the trio of former Wales internationals Duncan Jones, Dan Lydiate and Rhys Patchell are only on secondment from their clubs.
Following the Six Nations, Wales will likely move ahead with finding a permanent coaching ticket – with it feasible someone will now look after the aerial game.
Patchell, as a former Test fly-half, has been helping out with the kicking in his coaching role, but the aerial responsibilities don’t solely fall upon the former Cardiff and Scarlets playmaker.
“Rhys does a bit,” said Tandy. “We’ve all played a part.
“Danny and Jockey (Sherratt) are head coaches. We see the game and the players are influences as well.
“We’re all working on it together and there’s a lot of research that goes into it. Going forward, with the way the game’s going, there’s also how you make it more bespoke to the needs of the players.”
After the number of rucks in the game skyrocketed, teams started hiring coaches to specifically look after the breakdown – with Sam Warburton, Jonathan Thomas and Gareth Williams all filling that post at some point.
And Tandy is open to a specialist coach to look after the aerial game – pointing to the success Arsenal have had in football with Nicolas Jover working exclusively on their set-pieces.
“That’s where the game (is),” added Tandy on the likelihood of aerial-focused coaches in rugby. “You look at football, they’ve got set-piece coaches and throw-in coaches.
“That’s the beauty of the game. You’ve got to adapt.
“For us, we have to catch-up faster than any other nation because we’re at the start of the journey and other teams are further down the track. So I’d look into anything that we feel can get us closer to being the team we want to be.”
Other sports, such as Australian Football League and Gaelic Football, are renowned for their aerial skills.
The All Blacks’ World Cup wins in 2011 and 2015 was helped by the presence of former Aussie Rules player Mick Byrne in their coaching staff, who looked after their kicking and aerial game – with Byrne going on to coach Fiji to victory over Wales in 2024.
And Tandy, who spent time in Sydney coaching with the Waratahs earlier in his career, is open to looking at other sports to tap into their knowledge.
“I went into AFL and some of that is crazy stuff,” says Tandy. “It was awesome.
“But the learning of that, that’s where the beauty of rugby is. Opening up that, it’s not necessarily the field of rugby that is the expertise.
“You see it with lots of demands, whether that’s S&C. But I’m open-minded enough to tap into whatever we can benefit from, I’ll look at it.”
Blair Murray has been Wales’ first-choice full-back in recent campaigns, having established himself as a regular following his first season in Welsh rugby.
However, the autumn saw Murray exposed at times under the high ball, prompting suggestions that Rees-Zammit – having played there for Bristol recently – could start the Six Nations as Wales’ full-back.
Confirming that Murray had only suffered a “bit of a dead leg” on the weekend during the Scarlets’ win over Ulster, Tandy played down any fears over the former Canterbury man wearing the 15 jersey.
“Zammo playing full-back for Bristol opens up that world,” said Tandy. “But people look at the ones they don’t win back, but it’s not just Blair.
“Even someone like Freddie Steward. There are no clean catches anymore.
“It’s maybe one in four. It doesn’t matter what size you are, how high you can get your arms and frame plays a part.
“But you can’t have the expectation to cleanly win every ball. Now, there’s a free run to attack the ball.
“The defensive catch is harder than ever. The size of players does make a bit of a difference.
“But it’s something we’re working around. When the carnage unfolds, it’s making sure you win the ball on the floor.”
