Shaun Edwards has ‘ambition to win a Rugby Championship’

A feted former Great Britain rugby league captain, Edwards’ prolific rugby union coaching career began with a trophy-laden spell at Wasps, before joining Warren Gatland’s Wales staff in 2008 where he won four Six Nations Championships in a 12-year period.

Since moving to France following the 2019 World Cup, Edwards helped the French win a Grand Slam in 2022 as well as back-to-back titles in 2025 and 2026.

However, he says he never received any offer to coach his native country, despite regular calls for the Rugby Football Union to bring the 59-year-old home.

“One thing I have learned over the years is you have to be asked if you are going to go to a club or a union,” Edwards said.

“They have to telephone you and ask you. After the next World Cup, we will see what happens.”

Known as one of the best defence coaches in the game, Edwards’ Welsh defence went four games in a row without conceding a try en route to winning the Six Nations in 2013.

However, with France conceding 96 points in their past two games, and with a record number of tries scored in this year’s tournament, Edwards says the game has changed significantly.

“World Rugby want more points, and a lot of the rules have changed in favour of the attack,” he explained.

“Back in 2010 you could have two or three people contesting in the ruck all at one time, and for two or three times. Now you can contest the ball once, with one player, who can only have one attempt.

“Another reason is the quality of the pitches. They are unrecognisable [from what they were].

“Most people when they go to watch rugby don’t go to watch defence, they go to watch attack.

“I used to say [you need to] keep them to under 20 points. So 16, 17 points. But now, a good day at the office for defence is 21, 22 points.

“We defended really strongly in the first three games, but when we played against the top teams – I think Scotland are one of the best attacking teams in the world and England are a very well-coached attacking team – then obviously we did struggle.”