The former Wales captain on the welcome challenges of preparing the Barbarians, understanding what makes players tick and the growing potential of the women’s game“We were having some good conversations this week, Warren Gatland and I,” says Rachel Taylor with a laugh. “We were talking about coaching a team to play one you’ve been part of a long time. Welsh women’s rugby has always been close to my heart and it’s going to be a surreal experience to come up against them at the Principality.”
This weekend Gatland, as the coach of the Barbarians, is preparing to face the team he managed for 12 years and took to a
World Cup semi-final only last month. For Taylor, the connection is even more intense. Coaching the women’s Barbarians in only their third international fixture, the 36-year-old is facing a side with whom she earned 67 caps during her career, a team she also captained. As she says: “I know their game.”