England 19 - Wales 26
Little did he know, as he shared a beer of the warm canned variety with a Middle Eastern Welsh rugby afficionado, that he was set to start his coaching career in the Principality off in such a spectacular fashion. He got his mate Shaun a job, and got stuck in. that probably cost him another warm beer or ten.
The jokes about "Ospreylia" rebounded massively as a core of players dug in deep (so deep...) before half time to stop the game becoming a rout, and as the second half developed the collective will of the English failed and the street fighting qualities of Phillipps et al came to the fore.

Cheer up, Gat !

So things are looking up for the Gat (I'd call him "Fat Gat" except it's been done before, plus the fact that I'd be too scared...)
The Blues and Ospreys negotiate their respective groups, giving the Welsh regions continued exposure to the extreme demands of the Heineken.
And both sides delivered away from home - the Blues in the muddy bearpit that is the Memorial Ground, Lyn Jones' multi talented Ospreys at Bourgoin. He will reflect on the fact that the Scarlets' failure to progress is possibly down to the fact that their forwards were simply not up to the task. They need to dig deep in to the coffers to buy in at least 2 core forwards, as the Blues have done with Tito and the Ospreys have with Holah. Far from restricting Gatland's choice by taking up Welsh playing spaces, these players are visibly lifting standards around them and, crucially, bringing a harder edge, a winning edge, to the teams.

And Don't Dilly-Dallaglio On The Way...

So how will the big man from Wasps be remembered ?
A certainty that he won't fade away, mind you, as he will certainly go down as one of the most media savvy player of the modern age. As England's coach, Andy Robinson's freedom to select was fatally undermined by the Big D's ready supply of sound bites. As Brian Ashton discovered, Our Lol didn't take kindly to others suggesting that he should sit on the bench, much less retire from the game.
An objective view of his rugby would have to concede that he should have jumped ship back in 2004. The square jawed bloody mindedness is still there week in week out, but he has been short of gas, a deficiency thrown in to some relief by the power of the emerging James Haskell. How England could have done with his ball carrying prowess in the second half against the Springboks.
He will be remembered in Wales for being everything that his Welsh contemporaries were not, a player with power to spare, and a winner's mentality. Who could forget the way he carried the Welsh back row, plus both half backs, to score off the back of that scrum?
At the end, however, the rugby fan still finds it hard to accept some of the nonsense that went on after the World Cup. For all his accolades, and his status in the game, the manner in which he has cashed in on the backroom rumblings (and as he was put on the bench in the early stages after some indifferent displays, it has to be said that he was probably a key source of those rumblings) has diminished him as a person.

Happy Christmas, Mr Henson

So Henson’s year ends as it started, under an injury cloud, with doubts over his team ethic, but in the news.

This time he’s accused of being involved in some oafish behaviour on the train back from the victory over Harlequins that put the Ospreys in to the semi finals of the EDF. Good thing, too, or the suffix “Anglo-Welsh Cup” would have looked a little foolish.

Before our Gav is hung out to dry by the loose alliance of hangers and floggers who follow his every move (ranging from the Osprey supporters who say “We’ve got Hook, we’ve got Parker – do we need him ?” to the rugby men of past generations who distrust any player who has the time and the means to worry about waxing his legs), let us pause, in a festive display of goodwill to all, and consider…

Question 1 – why on earth was he NOT on the team bus ? Gatland, a man who inculcated a fierce sense of pride in the team ethic at Wasps, will wonder how well he is being managed, on a day to day basis.

Question 2 – perhaps more fundamentally – in a week when a squad player from Man Utd has been accused of rape during the course of a “Christmas Party” costing £4000 per head (cough, splutter…), how bad are our rugby stars ? Really ??

As our most news worthy rugby star in Wales, he’d still be unlikely to be able to splash out £4000 on a night out on the town with the spotty apprentices at Old Trafford. And they’d be highly unlikely to travel by train…

Besides which, would our Gav be allowed to go to a do where WAGS are banned ??

Heart and Soul from the new man

There's something about Gatland's face that urges caution. If he was my coach, I'd listen pretty intently. If I'd been an opponent, I'd have been watchful. It's the face of a front row forward who's done the hard yards. Now, as the Welsh coach, he will have an all too short period of time to pull his squad together, players and coaches, before we head in to the 6 Nations, desperate to put that game in Nantes behind us.
We face that competition without Martyn Williams, probably our best player in the past three years, and Alfie Thomas, our most charismatic individual. Our "Welsh Way" has, apparently, turned out to be a cul de sac. Our Regions have struggled in the Heineken thus far (ironically, only the perennial under achievers, the Cardiff Blues, look good for the next round) and the Ospreys have been the only team to advance in the EDF.
So Gatland himself need not be cautious. He can afford to be choosey. His squad members need to deliver in training - he will be seeking players who have the "right stuff", physically and mentally. Players who will make the right decisions under duress, who can deliver in conditions of extreme physical and mental pressure.
But please, oh please, let's stay interesting. Let's not become robots. Let's not become obsessed with the big hit, the physique, the weights. Let's have power where we need it, when we have the ball in hand. As the Springboks showed this autumn, you have to have the whole package to come up trumps.

After the ball...

Refreshing the parts that other Cups can't reach, the Heineken has replaced the Webb Ellis, and fans can forget dreams of national glory and concentrate on the local picture.
But we can't in Wales, of course.
Gatland has been crowned the new king of the WRU, the latest Great Redeemer. He's a good appointment, a surprisingly well considered one in the context of the hasty exit of poor old Gareth.
If you want an insight in to his legacy, take another look at a recording of that Wasps match against the Scarlets. A balance of fury and patience in defence (will he try to get us to play the rush defence as early as the 6 Nations ?), power and balance in attack. If the Wales team manage to strike that balance, they could be right up there in 4 years' time. He will hope, however, that the Heineken Cup form will improve. The Welsh teams are dominating phases, without coming away with points. Friday's defeat of the star spangled Ospreys by Gloucester was a case in point.