After months of speculation, the WFU have finally announced that Rowland Phillips has left his role as head coach of Wales Women.
Ever since Phillips named his squad for last year’s Autumn internationals, he has been notably absent from the Welsh setup and seemingly disappeared off the radar entirely.
His non-showing at this year’s Six Nations further added fuel to the fire that he had left his role as head coach, but this was not confirmed until now.
Wales endured a torrid Six Nations this year, losing all four of their matches, including a 66-7 thumping by England in front of a record crowd at the Twickenham Stoop.
In a statement the WFU revealed that Phillips has departed as he wishes to pursue alternative opportunities elsewhere. Having been in the role since July 2016, Wales were seemingly improving under Phillips, finishing third in last year’s Six Nations Championship. Now though, following their performances this year, and the departure of Phillips, it appears to be back to square one.
Phillips won 10 caps for the Welsh Rugby Union side between 1987 and 1989 and also played for the Rugby League side in the 1990’s. He will be a huge loss for a side which was heading in the right direction.
Wales' next match is away to Japan on June 27th before they face the almost impossible task of dethroning New Zealand in their home country in July.