Warren Gatland was the most hated man in Ireland on the week leading up to July 6th 2013.
He surely couldn't have envisaged himself returning to his former place of residence and appearing on the State broadcaster to explain one of his selection decisions, and yet that was the fate that would subsequently meet the soon-to-be two-time Lions coach not weeks after guiding his side to a historic victory.
It wasn't Brian O'Driscoll's #UnceremoniousAxing which plagued Gatland days before the third and final test, however, but the result of the series itself, and the ridicule he felt he would have faced had the Lions lost 2-1 having taken the opener.
Speaking in Edinburgh today, Gatland explained his thought process ahead of 'the big one' in Sydney:
It was a tough week that last one. I don’t think there is any pressure on the players. It is tough, but if you fail as a Lion it doesn’t have an impact on your international selection or club team, even if you’ve not been successful or performed.
You fail as a coach and have a poor tour… look at previous coaches; the impact it has had on them post-Lions tour has not been positive.
I learnt a lot that last week. The biggest lesson is that you have to be true to yourself.
Gatland's being true to himself was ultimately vindicated by a resounding third test victory over the Wallabies, hence his selection for next year's tour to New Zealand. But the former Ireland head coach explained how he genuinely feared for his coaching future were he to have lost that final showdown in OZ:
When I interviewed in 2013, one of the questions was, ‘What are your ambitions when you head to Australia?’ and I said, ‘Well, I wouldn’t mind being the first Lions coach in five tours that’s in a job within 12 months of the Lions tour’, because all of the others had lost their jobs within 12 months.
So, it wasn’t the safest environment to be in as a coach, coaching the Lions, because if you lost the series things didn’t look pretty afterwards.
I knew how tough it was going to be and you’ve got to be successful, because if you’re not then probably a lot of you guys here [the media] turn on you, you know?
That’s the nature of the beast, isn’t it? I experienced part of that in 2013, but it makes you tougher, it makes you strong. I’m one of those people who doesn’t dwell on the negatives, I always look at the positives.
We're sure all will be forgiven if the Lions don't quite manage to topple the invincible New Zealanders next summer. Unless Dan Biggar starts over Johnny Sexton, that is.
