Wales coach Warren Gatland was not surprised when centre George North told him he would retire from international rugby, but to lose a player with 13 years and 120 caps at the highest level adds to the size of the rebuild of his squad.

North, 31, will quit the national team after Saturday’s final Six Nations clash with Italy in Cardiff and ahead of a move to French second-tier side Provence at the end of this season, another stalwart lost to Gatland as he develops a squad for the 2027 World Cup in Australia.

“It’s not completely a surprise to me,” Gatland told reporters on Thursday. “We have had a couple of conversations about when was the right time to retire. He’s been playing since he was 18 and he doesn’t miss many training sessions.

“We would love him to still be involved, but the conversation with him was that he didn’t want to continue playing then leave us in a hole maybe a year out from the World Cup.

“I didn’t really try stopping him, I completely understood his decision. He’s going to France with his family. If he wanted to continue with Wales, he’d want to give his all.”

Wales are facing the grim prospect of five defeats in this year’s Six Nations for the first time since 2003 as they host an Italy side buoyed by a draw with France and victory over Scotland in their last two games.

But Gatland has no regrets over blooding youngsters and believes it is the best course of action for Wales in the long run, even if the immediate results are painful.

“You can go back as far as 2003, which probably wasn’t the best year for Welsh rugby, but two years later that team wins the Grand Slam,” he said.

“Players go out and make mistakes, but it’s how you rectify those. These players have worked incredibly hard and I can’t question the effort.

“Looking at the GPS data, there’s no way they’re not trying out there. That’s what you can hang your hat on.”

Gatland is aware of the challenge presented by Italy at the Principality Stadium.

“They look really good physically. They’ve got depth to their game. They’re more balanced with their kicking game and that’s kept them in the fight.”

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