Warren Gatland admitted that Cory Hill should not have been made captain for Waless final game on tour in Australia, after Hill pulled out of the game against the Queensland Reds for personal reasons.
Hills appointment to lead the side was scrutinised earlier this week, given he was previously part of a group of individuals who damaged a womans house back in 2021.
Hill was not arrested or charged following the incident but his actions received heavy criticism at the time and again this week after he was named captain, with the second-row addressing his actions and apologising on Wednesday.
However it was revealed before kick-off that Hill had withdrawn from the match for personal reasons after speaking with Gatland. Scrum-half Gareth Davies took over the captaincy and Dafydd Jenkins came into the second row.
Gatland, speaking after Waless 36-35 win over the Reds in Brisbane, put his hand up that he had underestimated the backlash to Hills appointment for the fixture.
I probably shouldnt have put him in that position, Gatland admitted. What hes been doing out here in terms of experience, it was a rugby decision that I made. It probably doesnt help when you do get some negativity thrown at you, it makes things difficult. I probably could have negated that by not selecting him in that position. I need to hold my hand up in terms of that.
What I can say is that hes been absolutely brilliant since hes been out here in terms of his leadership, his experience, how hes helped and worked with the young players. I probably looked at it from a rugby decision and didnt appreciate there was going to be some negativity about making that call.
Gatland also highlighted how other high-profile athletes had come back from misdemeanours, asking how long do you have to wait before people stop throwing things at you?
He added: The facts are that he wasnt arrested, he wasnt charged, but hes put his hand up and was genuine about the fact that hed made a mistake.
Hill, 32, currently plays for Secom Rugguts in Japans third tier and has a further season to go on his contract, having previously won 34 caps for Wales.
Asked if Hill could still feature for Wales building up to the next Rugby World Cup in Australia in 2027, Gatland replied: Its probably [a case of] having a chat to him about where he is. He has a one-year contract in Japan and its then assessing it from there. He would potentially have to come back to Wales to one of the regions and if thats the case then he has that experience that he could get back into the fold.
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