Having written his name into British & Irish Lions folklore Warren Gatland is now turning his attentions to taking the reins back at Wales again.
And the Kiwi coach is urging his Welsh Lions contingent to build on their success Down Under when they don a different red jersey moving forward.
Wales contributed 16 players to the Lions’ cause this summer with ten starting the decisive third Test demolition of the Qantas Wallabies in Sydney.
Gatland and his Welsh players will now turn their attentions to difficult-looking autumn Tests that see South Africa, Argentina, Tonga and Australia all travel to the Millennium Stadium.
But Gatland believes Wales will be just fine, as long as they take the momentum of the Lions victory with them to Cardiff.
“We should be really proud of what our Welsh players have achieved and we need to make sure that those players who have done well with Wales and the Lions recently kick on from that,” Gatland told Wales Online. “We need to have a good autumn series.
“I think those players involved would have gained a huge amount of confidence from the tour.
“They all came away with a lot of credit. They were in great shape physically and a lot of those players were key components in the Test side.
“It’s always a challenge post-Lions. The players will be excited and motivated but we must make sure we keep them fresh.
“With Wales the last three times we played Australia it’s gone right down to the wire.
“We have led into the last couple of minutes, only to have the heartbreak at the end but I’m a great believer in learning from those scenarios.
“The players who went through those experiences have learnt and developed from it and a prime example was the performance in the last game of the Six Nations against England, where they played so well.
“It will be great for the team to be back at the Millennium Stadium in the autumn, back in front of their home fans and to return to the scene of where they clinched the RBS 6 Nations title earlier this year.”
