³ÉÈËÂÛ̳

Raise Your Game: How did you turn it around at half time when Wales went on to beat England at Twickenham for the first time in 20 years?

Shaun Edwards: The players started being accurate in the second half and they started putting pressure on the England team. We also kept the ball in play a lot longer which suited us.

RYG: When the chips are down and your back's against the wall how do you get back up and turn things around?

SE: You've got to persevere. There's a very famous saying that I often think about which is 'If anything in life is worth achieving, the person who's achieved it, during the process of arriving at that goal, they'll have wanted to give up at some stage'. It's a really good lesson in life because if there's no pain, there's no gain. You have to suffer a little bit if you really want to reach your goals. You have to be prepared to push yourself and you have to be prepared to do uncomfortable things - things you don't really want to do. If you can do this and you persevere, the world's your oyster.

RYG: What's more important attitude or talent?

SE: Obviously it's great to have both, but if I had to take one without the other, it would be attitude. If you've got attitude but not a huge amount of talent you may get there with hard work and sacrifices. You can still make yourself into a better rugby player but if you have talent without the right attitude I don't think you've got much chance at all.

RYG: What's the difference between a good and a great player?

SE:That's the million dollar question I suppose (laughs). You need size, speed, talent, athletic ability and vision. Refusing to give in is the mark of many great champions coupled with an unbelievable drive to be as good as they can possibly be.

RYG: If you were looking for three things in a person for them to be a part of your team, what would those qualities be?

SE: Attitude is the first thing I'd look for and then it depends what position they play. If it was a prop you'd want size, strength and power. If it was a fly half you'd want vision and a bit of kicking ability.

One of the main things we've started to concentrate on is the defensive side of the game. We want good defensive players because we know that throughout the last five World Cups the teams with the best defence have won the competition. It might seem a little bit negative but it's not negative because rugby is different to games like football. People can play defensively in football by putting five or six players at the back and that might harm their attacking game.

It's the other way around in rugby. A good defence will actually help your attacking game because you get the ball back quicker. You can also attack through your defence and get tries, as we did during the recent game against England. The winning try came from our defence which goes to show that defence can be just as exciting as attacking.

RYG: Would you say rugby is a thinking man's game?

SE: Absolutely. There's a perception that some rugby players aren't very well educated, but rugby is very much a thinking game. Often the smartest team will win the match.

RYG: What advice would you give to young people wanting to play for their country when they grow up?

SE: You've got to start playing rugby at the local clubs and you need to make sure you listen to the coaches. If you're a young back I'd tell you that players with speed have an advantage over other players, so join your local athletics club and go sprint training once a week. Finally, you should live a life that is dedicated to sport. By doing that you might make yourself unpopular with other people who want to go out drinking and partying but don't be scared to be different to other people.