Sometimes you have to put your balls on the line.

We've all seen talented young players who get to a certain level but there comes a point where that talent will only take you so far. The great players go away and work on extra things. They work harder on their skills, they start having early nights and they think about their diet and training. That is what takes them to the next level.

There's no better feeling than sitting on the team bus travelling to the Millennium Stadium knowing that the team will be playing in front of 74,500 people. You're driven through the crowds where you see the smiles on people's faces and I get a huge buzz out of that.

There are times when players have got to feel that if they work hard and they give everything, they get the carrot, but they also need to know that there's a stick. If performance, discipline or attitude isn't good enough, there is a bit of the stick and there will be a punishment.

If you play the game and you think about coaching, you should know it's about listening to people and learning.

Rugby has always been a game for all shapes and sizes. You have the superstars and the fast guys who score the tries, but you also need the workhorses and the people who play all the other roles. Unless they all work together as a team then it's really going to affect the performance. Everyone's got to rely on everyone else.

In some ways the players are no different to kids as you've got to set boundaries and you've got to work within those boundaries. If you work hard and you do everything that's asked of you, there's great reward afterwards.