Monday 30 September 2019 06:31, UK
Warren Gatland says Wales "deserve to celebrate" their 25-29 victory over Australia, and has praised his side's game management during the Pool D clash in Tokyo.
Rhys Patchell's late penalty secured a win for Wales after Australia clawed back to within a point of drawing level after going 26-8 down.
It was Wales' second successive win against Australia in all competitions but their first in a World Cup campaign against the Wallabies since 1987.
The 56-year-old, who is enjoying his third World Cup campaign as Wales boss, says his players deserved to relish their victory in Tokyo.
"I would like to see them (Wales players) celebrate tonight," Gatland said.
"They deserve to celebrate - it was a tough game and a great win.
"Australia were really good in the second half, put us under a lot of pressure and had a lot of ball.
"And it became a typical Wales-Australia clash, going right down to the wire. To win that is very pleasing, and that means the pool is our own destiny.
"Our game management has improved significantly. It was good in the autumn last year, and particularly in the Six Nations. We've learnt a lot from those experiences.
"Even though we were under a lot of pressure in that second half, I thought our composure and fitness were really good and we soaked up a lot of pressure.
Gatland confirmed after the game that Dan Biggar failed a head injury assessment, who was replaced by Patchell in the first half, and that Liam Williams suffered a knock to his ankle.
"Dan failed an HIA," Gatland added.
"He's disappointed he had to come off, but it is important we go through the (HIA) protocols.
"Rhys (Patchell) did a fantastic job for us. He's been criticised a lot for his defence in the past. We changed a few things about the way he defended, and I though his line speed was excellent.
"He made some big tackles for us and controlled the game pretty well. It was a big match for him to come on early and get the win, and he will get a lot of confidence from that.
"It was one of the toughest Test matches they've played in a long, long time. We need to make sure we recover. It's nice getting a decent break before getting our next game against Fiji."
Wales now have nine days before they face Fiji in Oita on October 9, prior to their encounter with Uruguay in Kumamoto on October 13 in their final Pool D game.
