At a meeting of the Board of the WRU, the Group Chief Executive Roger Lewis, Chairman David Pickering and Board member Gerald Davies were charged with mounting the search.

They will aim, if possible, to identify and recruit a new Head Coach to be in place before the 2008 Six Nations Championship. The Board also decided the new coach should be appointed under a contract which takes him through to the next Rugby World Cup in 2011.

The current coaching team which worked with Gareth Jenkins will be asked to continue to help prepare the Wales team for an Autumn international against South Africa. A caretaker coach will be put in place for this match.

The Group Chief Executive, Roger Lewis, said: "Today we fully debriefed the WRU Board on the events of the weekend surrounding the departure of Gareth Jenkins.

"There was a full and detailed discussion about what we must now do and that includes a full review of all aspects of elite rugby in Wales.

"The task of finding a new head coach is now our priority and has started in earnest this evening."