CARDIFF – Wales coach Warren Gatland warned that a planned Netflix documentary on the 2023 Six Nations tournament may feature some strong language from the dressing room.

Netflix will produce a “behind the scenes” documentary on the event along the lines of those recently aired for Formula One and tennis.

It will be released in 2024.

Gatland, who took charge of Wales for a second time in December following the departure of Wayne Pivac, said he had learnt from experience that it was important to build up a good relationship with film crews.

Yet he was concerned by a lack of editorial control over the show.

“It is almost like (them) being invisible, so you find yourself just carrying on with your normal routine in terms of their involvement and the trust you build up with them,” Gatland told British media.

“The challenge with the Netflix team is that my understanding... is that we don’t have any editorial rights and that is maybe a little bit of a concern.

“You want to make sure that you’re able to protect yourself because I can tell you now that in a rugby environment when you are talking about creating emotion, the language and the phrases used aren’t always appropriate.

Gatland added that strong language is used on occasion during team talks to get the best out of players.

“When you are talking about nations playing each other, some of the things that are said in the changing room might not be something that is always believed (by the person saying it), but it is about getting the best out of the performance.

“There’s a few things we need to be conscious of and iron out.

“The last thing that we need is to be bland in the way it comes across, but I’m also conscious that we need to protect ourselves too.

“That is pretty important.”

The Six Nations championship begins on Saturday with Wales taking on world No. 1 Ireland at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. Holders France are away to Italy the next day.

Meanwhile, Steve Phillips has resigned as chief executive office of the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), the governing body said on Sunday. He had come under pressure for the handling of allegations of misogyny, sexism and racism within the WRU.

In a BBC Wales documentary, several female former WRU employees made allegations about comments and behaviour they said were sexist and discriminatory.

WRU chairman Ieuan Evans had also said he would set up an external task force to examine accusations.

Phillips had until now remained in the role despite calls from politicians for him to leave. REUTERS