Warren Gatland has a book out about the Lions tour, a diary entitled In The Line of Fire, which chronicles his deeply difficult month in his homeland as the Lions coach. Gatland had to deal with persistent criticism that often strayed too far, with the NZ Herald mocking him up as a clown ahead of the first Test. In the publicity tour for the book, however, Gatland has had to deal with more recent criticism, coming from somewhere even closer than his home nation: his dressing room.
Sean O'Brien was brutally honest in his assessment of the tour, claiming that the squad over-trained for the first Test and criticised attacking coach Rob Howley, claiming that the game plan was devised and executed by Owen Farrell and Johnny Sexton.
All interviews with Gatland since have naturally zoned in on this criticism, with Gatland keen to refute it. Today, he has sat down with Vincent Hogan of The Irish Independent, and once again provided a breakdown of his training schedule and the reasons for it in response to O'Brien's comments.
What is different this time, however, is that Gatland has gone to a further length to explain the effect O'Brien's criticism had on Rob Howley's family.
I'm not sure people always realise the impact of this stuff. It was Rob Howley's daughter's first week at University. What's it they call it, 'Fresher's Week?' Supposed to be the highlight of going to college and she's crying all week because of what's in the newspapers. You think of the impact that has on a family when one person is highlighted. I mean Sean was complaining that Johnny and Owen drove everything attacking-wise the week of the second Test. But that's surely what you want, it's exactly what you're trying to do.
The full interview is well worth a read in today's paper.
