Warren Gatland: I don’t think I’m undervalued

When he was sacked as Ireland coach in November 2001, there weren’t many who would have predicted the sort of success Warren Gatland has gone on to achieve.

Not this side of the Irish Sea, at least.

On Saturday, Gatland will return to Dublin to face his former employers once again. It will be a milestone game for the New Zealander as he coaches Wales for the 100th time. The 54-year-old remains as motivated as ever to succeed against the men in green, still determined to prove a point over what he will always see as his unfair dismissal from the Ireland job. If he’s wanted to prove a point to the Irish Rugby Football Union, Gatland has done a pretty good job. Stints with Wasps, Waikato, and the Chiefs have followed, but it’s with Wales and the British & Irish Lions where he’s gone to the next level. Gatland still has his critics, but his longevity and success can’t be questioned. Former New Zealand boss Sir Graham Henry (103) is the only other international coach to record a century of matches in charge of one nation.