Six Nations 2026: Wales coach Steve Tandy searches for optimism

Wales captain Dewey Lake agreed with Tandy’s assessment that his side had performed better.

“It’s weird to say considering the score, but we were a lot better than we were last week for large parts of that game,” Lake said.

“France is a team that is close to the top of the world and can create things out of absolutely nothing.

“They have scored some world-class tries and have some world-class personnel.

“We know there are things to take away but we won’t hide from that fact, or be disappointed with the scoreboard.

“But overall, we were much more positive.”

Lake says the character of his team cannot be questioned.

“The boys would never give up a result, a Test match, a ground ball, anything like that,” Lake said.

“As captain, I don’t need to say anything. These boys are ready to go anyway.”

Welsh fans will not question the players’ hearts.

However, they are right to question the quality of the national team and the Football Association’s management of the game in Wales.

Record defeats have become the norm, and the global rugby public feels pity for this once-proud nation.

This is where Welsh rugby currently stands. It is difficult to be optimistic about that.