Thursday 31 October 2019 14:34, UK
Warren Gatland has been hailed for leaving "a fantastic legacy" by assistant coach Neil Jenkins ahead of his farewell game as Wales head coach.
Gatland's 12-year reign will end in Tokyo on Friday when Wales meet World Cup bronze medal match opponents New Zealand.
Both teams are on the back of mentally crushing semi-final defeats, with Wales being edged out by South Africa and the All Blacks losing comprehensively to England.
But it will also be the final time in their respective jobs for Gatland and his New Zealand counterpart Steve Hansen.
Wales' degree of difficulty is underlined by the fact they have not beaten New Zealand since 1953, losing 30 successive games.
Gatland will be succeeded by Wayne Pivac after the tournament, with the curtain falling on an era that realised four Six Nations titles, three Grand Slams, two World Cup semi-final appearances and Wales briefly enjoying world No 1 status.
"Warren is an incredible man," Wales assistant coach Neil Jenkins said. "Not just his rugby ability and knowledge, but as a person.
"I would like to think he has left a fantastic legacy in terms of his results and successes since he's been here since 2008, and the development of a lot of good young players coming through.
"Maybe there are a couple [of players] at their last World Cup - who knows? - but there are a lot of players who will be here at the next World Cup and hopefully the one after that.
"His knowledge and what he has done for our game is immense, really, and 'thank you' is certainly not enough as far as I am concerned.
"He is a god, a god of the game as far as I am concerned."
Wales have been hit by injuries for their last game in Japan, with full-back Leigh Halfpenny (concussion), wing George North (hamstring), prop Tomas Francis (shoulder) and flanker Aaron Wainwright (hamstring) all sidelined.
Wales were already without Liam Williams and Josh Navidi due to injuries, so their selection options have been stretched for what will be a considerable challenge.
Paying tribute to Gatland, Wales fly-half Rhys Patchell said: "The biggest thing you find with Warren is that he has an uncanny ability to work out what people need.
"Whether somebody needs an arm around the shoulder, needs their tyres pumped up or if someone needs a pin to take a bit out of them to give them a bit of a rocket for the weekend.
"He has been great for me over the past couple of years when I've been a bit more involved with the national squad.
"Hopefully, he carries on with the success he has had here wherever he goes. He certainly deserves that."
