Matt Sherratt's reasons for taking Wales job and three questions he asked players
Cardiff Rugby boss Matt Sherratt is in charge on an interim basis this summer in Japan
Wales interim head coach Matt Sherratt
(Image: Huw Evans Picture Agency Ltd )
Wales interim head coach Matt Sherratt says surveying the players, listening to his family and harbouring one major regret from the Six Nations were all behind taking on the job once again for the summer tour of Japan.
The Cardiff boss was parachuted in as interim for the final three matches of the Six Nations, following Warren Gatland's mid-tournament departure following a difficult second spell in charge. While Sherratt wasn't able to end the lengthy losing run, he did instil some much-needed positivity as life after Gatland began for the second time around.
With no replacement for the Kiwi in place, Sherratt has once again assumed the interim role - filling his coaching ticket with a trusted team of lieutenants.
However, it wasn't a given that Sherratt would have accepted the role - something he explained to the travelling press in Japan as he outlined his reasons for doing the job again.
Earlier this week, it was revealed by assistant coach T. Rhys Thomas that Sherratt has given a questionnaire to his squad, with Joe Roberts confirming on WalesOnline's Welsh Rugby Podcast that the vast majority of the squad - 30 out of 33 - said the target was nothing less than two victories in Japan.
After naming his team, Sherratt revealed the feedback he'd received from his player survey, saying: "I spoke to the players before we came away. I wondered what their motivation was and why they were coming here.
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"The short answer was they want to win for Wales. For the future, it's probably the end of something, this tour. Let's hope it's the start of something and they can start on a level playing field." Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack for the exclusive five-week tour diary from Japan and Australia.
However, when he was asked after his live press conference whether the feedback he got from his playing squad had achieved the desired effect, he admitted it was more to do with confirming he wanted to lead Wales in Japan this summer.
"Do you know why I did it? I'll be brutally honest," said Sherratt as he launched into the lengthy answer.
"When I got asked to do it again, it was the decision for me. Obviously doing Cardiff, having some family time is important in this job.
"I knew I'd miss that. Career-wise as well, it's a tough challenge. We know Wales are in a little bit of a rebuild.
"But when I really considered it, my family really wanted me to do it. They loved the Six Nations, which is why we all do our jobs really - for other people.
"I really enjoyed working with different players, getting to know Scarlets and Dragons players, boys in the Prem as well. And probably my biggest regret was not getting a win for Wales.
"I've obviously seen it from the outside before, and during the autumn, but the support during a Six Nations from the general public, just walking through Cardiff, the passion of the nation was pretty humbling. I really regretted not being able to win for the country.
"So probably the three things that hit home for me were giving my family a really good experience, I really enjoyed working with other people and regretting not getting a win. I kind of thought I wonder why the players wanted to go.
"I asked Toby if he wanted to go. He said yes straight away. Josh Adams was determined to go. Dewi Lake, boys who could have had a bit of a break.
"So I just sent the players - it wasn't anything wordy, just three questions. What motivates you to play, what do you want to get out of the trip and what are you going to bring?
"Literally everyone was I play for my family, I want to enjoy the trip and I want to win for Wales. So we've built everything around that.
"It just hit home that we're all doing it for the same reason. Rather than think about the baggage around playing for Wales and the win/loss ratio at the moment, let's just strip it back and go there for the right reasons in terms of why we all want to be there.
"That's how we've themed the tour really, we've just stuck to those three things. Make sure we enjoy it, remember why we're doing it and I think it's really important we start laying some foundations.
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"What I mean by that is I'd love the next guy to come in and no one's talking about the 17. I'd love to do that for whoever comes in. If I'm honest, when I think about the Six Nations, I came in and changed the shape, some of the intricate parts of the game.
"But I just felt it was a time to go back, I wouldn't say hard to beat, but making sure that our defence is important. Our contact area, our kicking game.
"So making sure that whoever comes in next - and it's not all about who comes in next, it's about the now as well - can build of that, if they're looking at a team where the set-piece, defence, contact area and kicking game is good. We've really decided to go back to laying the foundation."
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South Wales Argus
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Sherratt urges Wales to use latest defeat by Japan as ‘fuel'
Sherratt's side led 19-7 at the interval in Kitakyushu through tries from Ben Thomas and Tom Rogers, as well as a penalty try, and were in sight of claiming Wales' first win for 21 months. But Eddie Jones' Brave Blossoms stormed back in sweltering conditions, where the temperatures reached 34 degrees Celsius alongside a very high humidity reading, to win 24-19 and register only their second ever victory over Wales. 'I think you could see the feelings pitchside (at the final whistle), not just the squad but the whole staff,' said interim head coach Sherratt. 'To have a 19-7 lead in the first half and to lose the game at the end is obviously very disappointing. It hurts. 'Already we've got to quickly use that hurt to fuel next week. The great thing about this tour is we get a chance next week to put it right.' The second Test of the two-match series takes place in Kobe next Saturday, and Wales will certainly hope for cooler conditions than the stifling heat of Kitakyushu. Water breaks were taken in each half and there was also an extended interval under World Rugby's updated heat and air quality guidelines, to provide support to players playing in hot conditions. But Sherratt, who has now overseen four defeats since replacing Warren Gatland during the Six Nations Championship in February, insisted the oppressive heat was not a factor in Wales' latest loss. He added: 'If I'm honest I'd be making excuses if I said that. First half we took pretty much every chance we got bar one in their 22. 'Every ball that hit the floor bounced for us and we rolled the right side of the penalty count. 'In the second half there were some really big moments. We had a line-out around 45 minutes to take the game to three scores, and it was a really tough call from the referee in terms of penalising us. 'It's a young group and we've not had a win for a while, those little scars can start to run deep. 'In the second half every bounce went for them in the aerial battle, and the penalty count went away from us. 'Maybe the conditions added to that as well, but my instincts (say) not so much.' There were worrying scenes inside the opening 30 seconds as lock forward Ben Carter suffered a head injury making a tackle. Carter was prone on the ground after contact and treated for several minutes before leaving the field on a stretcher. Although the Wales camp reported later that Carter had not suffered a serious injury, Sherratt said: 'Ben will be unavailable next week. 'We'll have a discussion with the staff to see what we'll do about that. But we've got cover here with Freddie (Thomas) and Ted (Williams).'
Leader Live
an hour ago
- Leader Live
It hurts – Matt Sherratt urges Wales to use latest defeat by Japan as ‘fuel'
Sherratt's side led 19-7 at the interval in Kitakyushu through tries from Ben Thomas and Tom Rogers, as well as a penalty try, and were in sight of claiming Wales' first win for 21 months. But Eddie Jones' Brave Blossoms stormed back in sweltering conditions, where the temperatures reached 34 degrees Celsius alongside a very high humidity reading, to win 24-19 and register only their second ever victory over Wales. 🚨 𝙎𝙜ô𝙧 𝙏𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙡 | 🇯🇵24-19🏴#WelshRugby | #JPNvWAL — Welsh Rugby Union 🏴 (@WelshRugbyUnion) July 5, 2025 'I think you could see the feelings pitchside (at the final whistle), not just the squad but the whole staff,' said interim head coach Sherratt. 'To have a 19-7 lead in the first half and to lose the game at the end is obviously very disappointing. It hurts. 'Already we've got to quickly use that hurt to fuel next week. The great thing about this tour is we get a chance next week to put it right.' The second Test of the two-match series takes place in Kobe next Saturday, and Wales will certainly hope for cooler conditions than the stifling heat of Kitakyushu. Water breaks were taken in each half and there was also an extended interval under World Rugby's updated heat and air quality guidelines, to provide support to players playing in hot conditions. But Sherratt, who has now overseen four defeats since replacing Warren Gatland during the Six Nations Championship in February, insisted the oppressive heat was not a factor in Wales' latest loss. He added: 'If I'm honest I'd be making excuses if I said that. First half we took pretty much every chance we got bar one in their 22. 'Every ball that hit the floor bounced for us and we rolled the right side of the penalty count. Great crowd here in Kitakyushu! 🙌 Thank you so much to everyone for bringing the vibes ✨#JPNvWAL — Japan Rugby (@JRFURugby) July 5, 2025 'In the second half there were some really big moments. We had a line-out around 45 minutes to take the game to three scores, and it was a really tough call from the referee in terms of penalising us. 'It's a young group and we've not had a win for a while, those little scars can start to run deep. 'In the second half every bounce went for them in the aerial battle, and the penalty count went away from us. 'Maybe the conditions added to that as well, but my instincts (say) not so much.' There were worrying scenes inside the opening 30 seconds as lock forward Ben Carter suffered a head injury making a tackle. Carter was prone on the ground after contact and treated for several minutes before leaving the field on a stretcher. Although the Wales camp reported later that Carter had not suffered a serious injury, Sherratt said: 'Ben will be unavailable next week. 'We'll have a discussion with the staff to see what we'll do about that. But we've got cover here with Freddie (Thomas) and Ted (Williams).'
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Further despair as Wales feel the heat in Japan
Summer tour second Test: Japan v WalesVenue: Noevir (Misaki Park) Stadium, Kobe Date: Saturday, 12 July Kick-off: 06:50 BSTCoverage: Watch live on S4C and BBC iPlayer; listen live on BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru & BBC Sounds; text commentary and highlights on BBC Sport website and app. Wales revealed their devastation at wilting in the Kitakyushu heat to lose 24-19 to Japan and suffer a record 18th successive Test tries from Ben Thomas and Tom Rogers, as well as a penalty try, gave Wales a 19-7 half-time lead and hopes of a first victory since beating Georgia at the 2023 World Cup in October Japan dominated the second half as Wales suffered in the extreme heat and from Takuro Matsunaga, Ichigo Nakakusu and Halatoa Vailea, plus nine points from the boot of Seungsin Lee, piled on more misery for captain Dewi Lake was close to tears after the final whistle with Wales' 21-month wait for an international victory continuing."I don't want to speak for everyone but we are gutted," said Lake."It's very tough to take because we have worked hard. "We take nothing away from Japan for the way they played and coming out on top, but we had moments to win that game and put it to bed." Wales interim head coach Matt Sherratt says the whole squad had been affected."You could see the feelings not just from the squad but the whole staff as well," said Sherratt."They are a very passionate group. We had a lead going into half-time so to lose the game at the end is very disappointing." Wales slump to new low The defeat means Wales have again slumped to a new all-time low as they are still searching for a first Test win in 21 months. Wales have slipped two places to a lowest place ever of 14th in the world rankings, now below Japan and says Wales can not feel sorry for themselves with the second Test in Kobe next Saturday."Already we have got to quickly use the hurt to fuel us for next week," said Sherratt."The great thing about this tour is we get the chance to put it right."Japan head coach Eddie Jones warned Wales they will face an improved side next weekend."We're really happy with the win," said Jones."We will enjoy it and get ready to go again in Kobe, where we'll need to play much better than today."Sherratt confirmed Wales lock Ben Carter will miss that game after he took a heavy hit to the side of the head after just 34 slumped to the ground after attempting to make a tackle and there was a lengthy stoppage before the second row was taken away on a Dragons captain was up and about in the changing room afterwards but will not be available next weekend. Wales not blaming the conditions The oppressive conditions - with the temperature above 30 degrees Celsius as well as high humidity - meant a three-minute water break in each half and an extended interval of 20 minutes were faded badly in the second half as Japan scored 19 unanswered points but Sherratt refused to blame the heat and humidity for the tourists' demise."I would be making excuses if I said that [conditions played a part]," said Sherratt."If you look at the game, we took pretty much every chance we got bar one in their 22."Every ball that hit the floor bounced for us and we were on the right side of the penalty count."In the second half there were some big moments. We had a lineout around 45 minutes to take the game to three scores and it was a tough call by the referee to penalise us."We have a young group, we have not had a win for a while and those little scars can start to run deep."In the second half every bounce went for them, we had some key lineout positions we did not make the most of and the penalty decisions went away from us."Maybe the conditions added to that also but my instinct is not so much."Lake says Wales will look at themselves first."Conditions are going to play a factor but we're not blaming that," said Lake. "We weren't clinical enough in the 22 and we didn't come away with points."Jones was proved right when he said before the match the team that coped with conditions would win the game, but the Australian also praised his opposition."For Wales to come from the northern hemisphere into those conditions is difficult," said Jones. "Like every Wales team, they were always tough to beat. They're a proud rugby nation and produce tough, good players." Second success for Jones and Japan Jones, who masterminded a second success against Wales for Japan following the win in 2013, praised his side's resilience after a slow start."For a young team's perspective, that's a very good win," said Jones"In the first-half, we were getting beaten in territory and possession. "We had a lot of nerves and frequently gave the ball back early in the phase count. "As a result, we were being beaten fair and square. But I sensed at half-time the players knew what to do."Jones praised the leadership of his captain Michael Leitch."With Mike's leadership in the second half, I thought they played a good 40 minutes of rugby and were really tough," said Jones."At times, we were able to break the Wales defence and our set-piece was absolutely outstanding. "I can't remember the last time I saw a front-row play 80 minutes in a Test match, especially in difficult conditions."
