Is Steve Tandy struggling balancing two roles as Wales brace to face reigning champions?

Friday, 13 February 2026 at 18:00

byHarry Tovey

Steve Tandy has a reputation forged on having a strong, defensive-minded set-up. That has warranted being selected in the role for the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa in 2021, and the 46-year-old spent six years as Scotland's defence coach as well.

However, since becoming Wales’ new head coach, taking over from arguably the nation’s greatest coach, Warren Gatland, Tandy has not entirely stepped away from the role that defines him as a coach.

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Perhaps he was brought in as Wales head coach due to his expertise in an area where the bruised national side has been struggling. It’s a fine balancing act to say the least, but doing it internationally is a big ask for any coach.

He’s the head coach of a nation which has not claimed a victory in the Six Nations since March 2023; he should be scanning from afar, but a defence coach has to stare at the detail. And following a thumping 48-7 loss against England to kick-off their Six Nations, there’s a lot for Tandy to look into.

Doing two jobs at once is hard enough, but being a head coach and doing it is a real test of character. It’s consuming to do just one role at international level, so it leaves a great deal of speculation about how much time the head coach has with overseeing his side’s attack, and everything which surrounds Welsh rugby.

Wales’ identity is not shining through at the moment, but there were signs in the autumn, despite the concession of 121 points in their last two Test matches.

Once, his sole purpose in Test match rugby was applauded for strong defensive displays and turnover counts, but he is now being judged on the full picture. Selection calls are the biggest as a head coach, but he also has the responsibility of steering Welsh rugby through a demanding period.

There can be an argument here that the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) are overreaching when it comes to Tandy’s responsibilities. When questioned on whether a defence coach should be appointed, Tandy added: “It's something we've been looking into for a while, making sure we get the right people in our team.

“At the start, we had Matt (Sherratt) and Danny (Wilson) come in. We went through a process there, and it is something that we are looking into and something we are hopefully going to get in place for the Nations Cup.

“It is a lot. When I first came in it was making sure I had the right people in the room. I am really passionate about defence, and I've really enjoyed doing it – and doing it with the head coaching role.

“But then it is about making sure you don't spread yourself too thinly. We are constantly assessing and reviewing it, and it is a big demand.”

His tenure as head coach has been turbulent so far, as he is still attempting to find his equilibrium. It’s a long road ahead for Welsh rugby, so if Tandy can get the balance on point for the rest of the 2026 Six Nations, that may define his reign.

That reign continues on Sunday afternoon as his side entertains France at Principality Stadium. Les Bleus head to the Welsh capital after a convincing, one-sided 36-14 victory over Ireland.

On wanting to improve on last week’s ‘unacceptable’ loss to England, according to attack coach Sherratt, Tandy highlighted the importance of a performance against the reigning champions.

“Our aim is always to produce a performance, and again, we're in a different place to some of the teams we've played over the last four or five games.

“We are striving to be there and to get to those windows. The only thing we can focus on is our performance and how we can accelerate that to try and catch up quicker.”