Slammed: Some of the highlights from dramatic Welsh rugby documentary

Welsh rugby has a rich and often turbulent history, and the 10 years between 1998 and 2008 were arguably its most dramatic.

You can watch all three episodes now on BBC iPlayer. Here are some of the series’ many memorable moments.

Rock bottom

The first episode starts with Wales at their lowest ebb.

In 1998, Wales lost 96-13 in South Africa, with Springboks coach Nick Mallet describing the tourists as the worst team in the world.

It completed a miserable year in which Wales lost 51-0 to France at Twickenham and coach Kevin Bowring left.

“There were some dark and painful times,” former Wales flanker Colin Charvis recalls in episode one.

Things needed to change. Graham Henry was brought in from New Zealand as Bowring’s successor and was quickly hailed as the ‘Great Redeemer’.

In 1999, Henry guided Wales to Six Nations victories over France and England before masterminding a first win over South Africa in the first game at the Millennium Stadium, just 12 months after they had shipped almost 100 points against the Springboks.

Williams and Hansen’s feud

After Henry had left and fellow New Zealander Steve Hansen took over, Wales lost 10 straight matches between November 2002 and August 2003, the worst run in the team’s history.

Hansen did not pick Shane Williams in his first season in charge.

In the first episode of Slammed, Williams says: “I remember one of my first meetings with Steve and the conversation was basically: ‘You’re not big enough, you’re not physical enough, your defence isn’t quite good enough and I’m not going to select you in this Welsh team’.

“My heart just sank. I thought I was doing all right and you’re taking this dream away from me. You’ve come over from New Zealand and taken this dream away from me, how dare you.

“I was watching the Six Nations, Wales weren’t doing particularly well and I was quite happy. I hated the Welsh team, hated everything associated with it, hated Steve Hansen with a passion.”

Williams was recalled to face Romania in Wrexham just before the 2003 World Cup and impressed enough to be selected to go to Australia.

His superb performance against New Zealand in the 53-37 pool defeat kickstarted his international career, and he went on to become Wales’ record try scorer – with 58 – before retiring in 2011.

Grand Slam glory after 27 years of hurt

After Hansen also returned to New Zealand, Wales turned to a homegrown coach, Mike Ruddock, who handed a young talent by the name of Gavin Henson a central role.

“He wore silver or golden boots, he was the first person who made sure he was all tanned and hair was perfect,” Henson’s midfield partner Tom Shanklin says in the second episode of Slammed.

“His motto was look good, play good.”

Henson stepped up with a matchwinning penalty in the opening match against England.

“I remember Gav saying to me ‘We’re going out in Cardiff tonight! Gav, we haven’t won the game yet, mate!’,” Shane Williams recalls.

A comfortable victory against Italy followed, before a brilliant fightback against France to win in Paris. It would be bittersweet for inspirational captain Gareth Thomas who broke his thumb in the first half.

“That moment was the worst moment of my career as a rugby player,” he says.

“I couldn’t go and be with the boys. I burst into tears, I was crying my guts out, because I realised that I’ve been a part of this process.”

Wales brushed aside Scotland before clinching the Grand Slam – their first for 27 years – against Ireland on a gloriously sunny Saturday in March.

“It’s difficult to put into words how confident we all were, subconsciously more than anything,” Ruddock recalls.

“The big thing was the Welsh public will be united for a great cause. If that cause is the national team and it’s playing good rugby, I just felt it was an unstoppable force.”

Rancour, rumours and Ruddock’s departure

The drama goes up a notch in the third episode. Less than a year after winning the Grand Slam, Wales were in turmoil again when head coach Mike Ruddock left his job just two games into the 2006 Six Nations.

Ruddock’s reasons for leaving were vague, while reports suggested senior players had rebelled against him and forced his departure.

The situation came to a head when captain Gareth Thomas sought to clear his and his team-mates’ names with a now infamous appearance on BBC Wales’ flagship rugby TV programme, Scrum V.

When fellow studio guest and former Wales skipper Eddie Butler told Thomas he had heard about player unrest from “sources” within the squad, Thomas threw his arms in the air and exclaimed: “I’ve got sources! We all have rumours!”

Thomas was so stressed that it was later revealed he was taken to hospital after his Scrum V appearance having suffered what was described as a “mini stroke”.

He recovered to continue playing but, for Wales, the whole episode left them even deeper in the mire.

Jenkins comes and goes

With Ruddock gone, Wales turned to another popular Welsh coach to fill the void: Gareth Jenkins.

The former Llanelli boss endeared himself to players with his enthusiasm and old-school approach to training and tactics – but the results were disastrous.

After finishing fifth in the 2007 Six Nations, Wales were dumped out of the World Cup by Fiji later that year and Jenkins was sacked in a car park.

“What happened to Gareth, being sacked on the spot in front of the players, was heartbreaking,” Shane Williams recalls in the third episode of Slammed.

“I just remember looking at him and it absolutely broke me. That was it, that was the end of Gareth Jenkins and Wales.”

Gatland the redeemer

Having hit another low and in need of a lift, Wales turned to another New Zealander in the form of Warren Gatland.

A gruff disciplinarian who put his players through a punishing training regime, Gatland demanded high standards.

“It was a bit of a dictatorship when he came in, and I think we needed that,” says Tom Shanklin.

“My initial impression of Shaun [Edwards, defence coach] was ‘This guy is a psycho – he should be in a boxing ring.”

Gatland and his coaches got the desired results immediately, and the third episode of Slammed tells the story of how the New Zealander led Wales to a Grand Slam in his first Six Nations campaign.

That was the start of a new golden era for Wales, who won two more Grand Slams – as well as another Six Nations title and a stint as the world’s number one-ranked side – during Gatland’s glittering 12-year reign.

The third episode of Slammed is on BBC One Wales at 21:00 GMT on Wednesday, 5 January. You can watch all three episodes now on BBC iPlayer.