Wales centre Nick Tompkins has paid tribute to Wales head coach Warren Gatland and has backed the team’s younger stars to “step out of the shadow”. Wales begin their Six Nations campaign by hosting Scotland on Saturday.
“It’s the tried and tested method of getting you working hard, getting you together and bringing you closer and giving you that confidence,” Tompkins told TNT Sports as he spoke about Gatland. “I’ve said earlier, what he does really well – and I hadn’t really noticed because I haven’t spent that much time with Warren – he creates this proper belief in you and the team.
“He gets [thinking] you’re fit enough, you’re good enough, now just go out and work hard for each other and be relentless with it. If we can have that as our foundation, we can start growing these younger lads, start talking and owning it more and hopefully they can start stepping out the shadow and really shine because there’s a lot of talent here.
