The Welsh team were nowhere near good enough for international rugby in a first-half that was appalling
18:45, 07 Feb 2026Updated 19:01, 07 Feb 2026
Henry Pollock of England celebrates scoring a try, which is later awarded as a penalty try(Image: 2026 Getty Images)
It has now been 1,064 days since Wales last won a game in the Six Nations.
There have been 12 defeats in a row and on the evidence of a pitiful 80 minutes at the Allianz Stadium in Twickenham it isn’t going to end anytime soon. The final score of 48-7 could have been a lot worse.
For all the positivity coming out of the Wales camp, international rugby is about winning and while it was always going to take time to turn around a team at rock bottom, this side doesn’t look capable of even competing with other tier one nations let alone emerging victorious.
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How can even the most one-eyed Welshman or woman be positive after conceding 48 points and seven tries?
It’s true all the off-field turmoil won’t have helped matters but it cannot be used as an excuse either.
Such one-sided defeats will do nothing to dissuade the Welsh Rugby Union that radical change isn’t needed.
The vast majority of these players are not used to playing in games of this magnitude at club level, with the gap between the bottom half of the United Rugby Championship and Test rugby far too wide.
This is why the WRU wants to concentrate talent into fewer sides; to improve the overall standard and create more competition for places.
For all the misty-eyed romanticism often associated with Welsh rugby, the best Wales sides, no matter how thrilling they were to watch, always had a strong pack of forwards and an adequate set-piece at the very least.
The Wales class of 2026 have neither of those things.
There is a serious lack of power in this Wales side and they concede points far too easily when put under sustained pressure.
England’s Ben Earl celebrates scoring(Image: 2026 CameraSport)
Yes, they were up against an England side who put the All Blacks to the sword last November but Welsh rugby’s soft underbelly was yet again exposed in ruthless fashion.
When asked in the week whether Wales could win enough possession for their attack to fire some shots given the strength of the England pack, Tandy pointed out there was more than one way to skin a cat with the aerial game and the breakdown two ways.
But as things stand Wales’ pack is not up to international standard. Against the big boys they have been blown away.
That’s not to say they haven’t got any good forwards but evidently they do not have the power to even compete with the better sides.
This was always going to be akin to climbing Mount Everest for this Wales side but they were their own worst enemies at times and that is what will frustrate the coaching team.
You can bet your bottom dollar on Tandy hammering home the importance of discipline in his pre-match team talk.
But within the first 10 minutes of this Test match Wales conceded no fewer than four penalties, with one for obstruction at a maul five metres out of the England line particularly frustrating.
To their credit Wales rolled up their sleeves in the second-half and showed character but the game was already over as a contest by this point as England took their foot off the gas.
Wales have been blown away(Image: Huw Evans Picture Agency)
The prospect of a France side, who brushed Ireland aside with ease on Thursday night, rocking up at the Principality Stadium is a frightening one.
France bullied an Ireland pack that contained five British & Irish Lions despite injuries to several front-line players.
Wales will hope to improve as the championship goes on, with Scotland and Italy their best chance of ending this wretched run of form in the Six Nations.
But if as is likely they suffer another heavy defeat against France next Sunday Tandy will have a tough job lifting his players off the floor.
Victory at Twickenham was always going to be beyond this Wales side but they would have hoped to have something positive to build on.
But it is difficult to see where Wales goes from here.
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Tandy does need to consider making some changes to his side.
If fit, abrasive Leicester Tigers No 8 Olly Cracknell needs to come into the backrow while there is an argument for a change at hooker, even if Dewi Lake is captain.
The midfield also needs shoring up and while they may prefer a second playmaker in the number 12 shirt Wales need more power in this area of the field.
Ospreys centre Owen Watkin must surely be considered for a starting place.
But even with a handful of personnel changes there will be more pain to come for Tandy’s side.