Alan Quinlan feels Wales will be struggling again during this year’s Six Nations and revealed what they have to do to become competitive in the Championship.

Wales will head into this year’s Six Nations as underdogs – alongside Italy – as they have struggled in the Championship in recent years.

They are currently on an 11-match losing streak in the Six Nations and finished their 2024 and 2025 campaigns in the tournament with the wooden spoon after losing all their matches in each of those years.

Welsh rugby struggling at the moment

Welsh rugby has been in the doldrums for some time now and the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) is trying to reduce the number of professional men’s clubs in the country from four to three.

The WRU were hoping to find a resolution to that conundrum before the end of 2025 but are yet to make a decision on who of the Ospreys, Dragons, Scarlets and Cardiff would be consigned to the scrapheap.

Cardiff are currently the best performing Welsh team in the United Rugby Championship as they are currently in fourth position in that tournament’s standings while the Ospreys are in ninth place with the Dragons occupying 13th spot and the Scarlets firmly rooted to the bottom of the 16-team competition.

Quinlan believes it’s going to be another difficult Six Nations for Steve Tandy’s troops, who come into the Championship low on confidence after finishing their 2025 Autumn Nations Series campaign with a humiliating 73-0 defeat against the Springboks in Cardiff.

“They won one game in the last 15 Six Nations matches. It’s a really tough place. Cardiff and Ospreys might give them some hope, but they lack massive depth, quality, and power,” he told BOYLE Sports, who offer the latest Six Nations odds.

“The structures and the whole system have been questioned.

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“I’m not sure how they get out of it in the Six Nations. The first game is at Twickenham. Then they’ve got France at home, Scotland at home, away to Ireland.

‘It was frightening what happened against South Africa’

“I don’t see results for them. It was frightening what happened against South Africa – it was dangerous. It’s going to be another difficult Six Nations for them, unfortunately.”
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Quinlan, who represented Ireland as a loose forward in 27 Tests between 1999 and 2008, feels it’s important that all Wales‘ players will be available for selection if they want to test their opponents in the Six Nations and identified star back-rower Jac Morgan as player who will be vital to the cause.

“If they can get all players available, they can possibly turn it around and be a dangerous team to play against,” he said. “They need to dig in and hopefully bring some players through, but it will be difficult.

“Jac Morgan’s a real leader. I think back to the France-Wales game last year – France won 43-0, but I was looking at him as player of the match. He was so good in defeat. He inspires people around him.

Will they get him back for the Six Nations? Apparently, they are hopeful. He will help them, of course.

“Every neutral rugby person would love to see Wales winning again. Who knows, maybe a big result is around the corner that might change the picture for them.”

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