Sam Warburton believes success for Wales against Ireland this weekend is losing by less than two tries.
The former Wales and Lions skipper has urged fans to keep their hopes realistic and not expect miracles from new interim head coach Matt Sherratt, who took over from Warren Gatland at the start of the week.
Wales, last Guinness Six Nations winners in 2021, are on a 14-game losing streak, the worst in their history.
Ireland, meanwhile, are the back-to-back defending champions and impressed in convincing wins over England and Scotland.
"I think they've made some good quick fixes but I don’t think Welsh fans should get their hopes up too much," Warburton told The Ruck podcast ahead of Saturday's game at the Principality Stadium (2.15pm).
"I hate even saying this but if we lost by two tries, that is a success for us, from where we are.
"Fans have to understand that, we are on a slow trajectory back up and there’s going to be hurt and pain but as long as we can see small nuggets of progress then we’ll be happy."
Warburton, who won 79 international caps between 2009 and 2017, added that he was somewhat surprised by Ireland’s form in the opening two rounds after they underwhelmed in the Autumn Nations Series.
"I thought Ireland might be coming down from the crest of a wave they’ve been on for the last couple of years but they were just ruthlessly brilliant," said the 36-year-old former flanker of the opening two games.
"It wasn’t necessarily high entertainment, thrilling rugby, it was such efficient rugby, breakdown, kicking, physicality. They were brilliant."
The Welsh Rugby Union are on the lookout for a new permanent head coach with current Ireland interim boss Simon Easterby, who lives in Wales, among those mentioned.
However, it's considered unlikely that the former Ireland wing forward, who has been an assistant with the international team since 2014, would take on the position.
"Simon Easterby has been a bit of an unsung hero for Ireland," added Warburton (above).
"[He was] head coach at Scarlets, played at Scarlets, lives about five miles from the training ground. All these factors you think that he’s a very good candidate.
"He is immersed in Welsh rugby, he knows the landscape.
"But I think you’ve got to look at someone who suits the player profile that we’ve got and that’s likely to come through in the next five years."
Watch England v Scotland in the Under-20 Six Nations on Friday from 7.05pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player
Watch England v Scotland in the Six Nations on Saturday from 4.15pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player
Follow a live blog on Wales v Ireland in the Six Nations on Saturday from 2.15pm on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app. Listen to live commentary with Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1
