Warren Gatland Quotations

A lot of coaching is about results and if you don't get the right results, you're going to get criticism, but if all things are going well then you can enjoy yourself.

I get on well with people and I have really good relationships with the other coaches around me. I don't know everything about the games and I'm still learning all the time, so it's important to have an open mind.

Having a social appetite for knowledge and wanting to develop and improve as a coach is important, but I believe in empowering people, particularly the other coaches that work with the team, giving them ownership and responsibility.

Attitude is really important to me and I talk about that with the players. Often players don't realise that if they've missed out on selection, the most important thing is how they respond to that. Of course they're going to be really disappointed, but if they're positive they're really supportive of the rest of the team.

The attitude in terms of how players work both on and off the field has a massive impact on us as coaches but also the performance and how the team does as well.

There are times when players have got to feel that if they work hard and they give everything, they get the carrot, but they also need to know that there's a stick. If performance, discipline or attitude isn't good enough, there is a bit of the stick and there will be a punishment.

In some ways the players are no different to kids as you've got to set boundaries and you've got to work within those boundaries. If you work hard and you do everything that's asked of you, there's great reward afterwards.

For me coaching was all about being involved, and taking the best qualities from the coaches I had as a player and moulding them into my own personality.

Coaching is about not being afraid to be challenged and, above all, trying to enjoy the experience.

If you play the game and you think about coaching, you should know it's about listening to people and learning.