Wales women's national rugby union team

For the men's team, see Wales national rugby union team. For the women's sevens team, see Wales women's national rugby sevens team.

Wales
Shirt badge/Association crest
EmblemPrince of Wales's feathers
UnionWelsh Rugby Union
Head coachSean Lynn[1]
CaptainAlex Callender & Kate Williams[2]
Home stadiumVarious across Wales
First colours
Second colours
World Rugby ranking
Current10 (as of 28 October 2024)
Highest3 (24 August 2009)
Lowest10 (2024)
First international
  4–22 England 
(Pontypool, Wales; 5 April 1987)
Biggest win
 Germany 0–77  
(Barcelona, Spain; 17 May 2002)
Biggest defeat
  0–81 England 
(Cardiff, Wales; 4 February 2005)
World Cup
Appearances6 (First in 1991)
Best result4th place, 1994
Women's
World Rugby Rankings
Top 20 rankings as of 4 August 2025[3]
Rank Change* Team Points
1 Steady  England 97.56
2 Steady  Canada 89.77
3 Steady  New Zealand 88.74
4 Steady  France 85.92
5 Steady  Ireland 79.17
6 Increase2  Australia 76.31
7 Decrease2  Italy 76.06
8 Decrease2  Scotland 75.33
9 Steady   72.18
10 Steady  United States 72.05
11 Steady  Japan 68.83
12 Steady  South Africa 68.04
13 Steady  Spain 63.31
14 Steady  Fiji 59.98
15 Steady  Samoa 59.72
16 Steady  Hong Kong 57.56
17 Steady  Netherlands 57.42
18 Steady  Russia 55.10
19 Steady  Kazakhstan 53.88
20 Steady  Kenya 50.68
*Change from the previous week

The Wales women's national rugby union team first played in 1987. Wales plays in the Women's Rugby World Cup and the Women's Six Nations Championship. Their current head coach, as of January 2025, is Sean Lynn.[1]

History

As far back as the nineteenth century, the Welsh game was a notable for the high levels of female interest. As such, the newly constructed stand at Cardiff Arms Park had to be renovated for "the comfort of the ladies", with another reporter stating that "fully a third" of the spectators at Stradey Park, Llanelli were female. In 1905, an English journalist from the Daily Mail reporting on The Original All Blacks game against Newport RFC at Rodney Parade, reported: "The average woman in Newport, judging from the expert feminine criticisms punctuating Saturday’s play, apparently knows as much of the science of rugby as any man."[4]

While it is still a subject of debate as to when the first female Welsh teams played, women's rugby would gain great prominence during the First World War, as many male players were called into service. One of the most notable matches took place at Cardiff Arms Park on 16 December 1917, when Cardiff Ladies (made up entirely of workers from Hancocks Brewery) beat Newport Ladies 6–0.[5] Maria Eley played full-back for Cardiff and went on to become probably the oldest women's rugby player[6] before she died in Cardiff in 2007 at the age of 106.[7] A photograph of the Cardiff team is believed to be the oldest known image of a women's rugby team and is part of the collection at Cardiff Rugby Museum.

The Cardiff Ladies. Taken on 15 December 1917, it is believed to be the oldest image of a women's rugby team

The first official Wales Women team first played on 5 April 1987 when led by Liza Burgess, they took on an England Women side at Pontypool Park.[8] Prior to 1987, Welsh players were selected to represent Great Britain with the first representative side featuring players from Wales running against France at Richmond Athletic Ground in 1986. Great Britain played as a team on several occasions until 1990, beating Italy in their final match. Wales have played England every year since 1987.

Wales hosted the first Women's Rugby World Cup in Cardiff in 1991 and since then they have participated in a further four of the five tournaments finishing fourth in 1994, their highest ever finish.[9] The IRB adopted the competition in 1998, which was won by the New Zealand Black Ferns.

The Welsh Women's Rugby Union was created in 1994 charged with promoting and governing the development and practice of Women's Rugby in Wales; the other three home unions also took charge of their own administration effectively ending the function of the WRFU in the process. The WWRU also became affiliated to the Welsh Rugby Union at the same time.

The creation of four separate home unions for Women's Rugby in Great Britain also saw the introduction of the Women's Home Nations competition with the first set of internationals taking place in 1995. Wales Women's early years in the tournament saw victories only against Ireland. Wales Women also remain the only touring team from Wales to have won a Test series in South Africa, beating the Bokkies by two Test to nil back in 1994.

From 2004 to 2006 a policy of selecting only players based in Wales resulted in a series of poor results – and failure to qualify for the 2006 World Cup. When the policy was reversed the team immediately recorded their best Six Nations performance, with a victory over France in 2006, wins over Scotland in 2006 & 2007, ending a ten-year drought of wins against their Celtic opponents, and culminating with victory over England in 2009 on their way to a Triple Crown. The National 7s squad lifted the European 7s title in 2006, beating England in the final but narrowly failed to secure a place in the 2009 Rugby World Cup 7s. In 2007 Wales also re-entered the FIRA Championship, using the tournament to give tournament experience to its development team.

In November 2021, the Welsh Rugby Union announced that they would be offering 12-month contracts to Wales Women for the first time in its history. The contracts took effect on 1 January 2022.[10]

Players

Current squad

Wales named their final 32-player squad on 11 August for the 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup.[11][12]

Note: The age and number of caps listed for each player is as of 22 August 2025, the first day of the tournament.

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Club/province
Kelsey Jones Hooker (1997-09-04)4 September 1997 (aged 27) 50 England Gloucester–Hartpury
Carys Phillips Hooker (1992-11-12)12 November 1992 (aged 32) 84 England Harlequins
Molly Reardon Hooker (2003-09-22)22 September 2003 (aged 21) 9 Wales Gwalia Lightning
Katherine Baverstock Prop (2002-09-17)17 September 2002 (aged 22) 1 England Leicester Tigers
Maisie Davies Prop (2005-08-17)17 August 2005 (aged 20) 8 England Bristol Bears
Gwenllian Pyrs Prop (1997-11-28)28 November 1997 (aged 27) 47 England Sale Sharks
Donna Rose Prop (1991-06-05)5 June 1991 (aged 34) 35 England Saracens
Jenni Scoble Prop (1993-03-28)28 March 1993 (aged 32) 6 Wales Gwalia Lightning
Sisilia Tuipulotu Prop (2003-08-14)14 August 2003 (aged 22) 26 England Gloucester–Hartpury
Gwen Crabb Second row (1999-06-28)28 June 1999 (aged 26) 34 England Gloucester–Hartpury / Wales Brython Thunder
Abbie Fleming Second row (1996-03-31)31 March 1996 (aged 29) 28 England Harlequins
Alaw Pyrs Second row (2005-10-12)12 October 2005 (aged 19) 8 England Gloucester–Hartpury
Tilly Vucaj Second row (2005-11-03)3 November 2005 (aged 19) 1 Wales Gwalia Lightning
Kate Williams (cc) Flanker (2000-04-05)5 April 2000 (aged 25) 21 England Gloucester–Hartpury
Alex Callender (cc) Back row (2000-07-29)29 July 2000 (aged 25) 44 England Harlequins
Georgia Evans Back row (1997-01-29)29 January 1997 (aged 28) 39 England Saracens
Bryonie King Back row (2003-08-14)14 August 2003 (aged 22) 10 Wales Gwalia Lightning
Bethan Lewis Back row (1999-02-19)19 February 1999 (aged 26) 57 England Gloucester–Hartpury
Branwen Metcalfe Back row 0 England Hartpury University
Keira Bevan Scrum-half (1997-04-28)28 April 1997 (aged 28) 74 England Bristol Bears
Megan Davies Scrum-half (2002-01-19)19 January 2002 (aged 23) 8 England Gloucester–Hartpury / Wales Gwalia Lightning
Seren Lockwood Scrum-half (2006-10-28)28 October 2006 (aged 18) 1 England Gloucester–Hartpury / Wales Gwalia Lightning
Lleucu George Fly-half (2000-01-12)12 January 2000 (aged 25) 32 England Gloucester–Hartpury
Kayleigh Powell Fly-half (1999-02-18)18 February 1999 (aged 26) 24 England Harlequins
Carys Cox Centre (1998-11-05)5 November 1998 (aged 26) 19 England Trailfinders
Hannah Dallavalle Centre (1996-11-14)14 November 1996 (aged 28) 66 England Gloucester–Hartpury
Courtney Keight Centre (1997-12-27)27 December 1997 (aged 27) 23 England Sale Sharks
Kerin Lake Centre (1990-05-24)24 May 1990 (aged 35) 53 Wales Gwalia Lightning
Jasmine Joyce-Butchers Wing (1995-10-09)9 October 1995 (aged 29) 49 England Bristol Bears
Lisa Neumann Wing (1993-12-23)23 December 1993 (aged 31) 48 England Harlequins
Catherine Richards Wing (2000-10-21)21 October 2000 (aged 24) 4 England Gloucester–Hartpury / Wales Gwalia Lightning
Nel Metcalfe Fullback (2004-12-17)17 December 2004 (aged 20) 11 England Gloucester–Hartpury

Contracted players

On 26 September 2024, the Welsh Rugby Union confirmed it had awarded full-time contracts to 37 Wales senior players for the 2024–25 season.[13]

Wales Contracted Players (2024–25)

Props

Hookers

Locks

Back row

Scrum-halves

Fly-halves

Centres

Wings

Full-backs

Previous squads

Notable players

Award winners

World Rugby Awards

The following Wales players have been recognised at the World Rugby Awards since 2001:[16]

World Rugby Women's 15s Dream Team of the Year
Year Forwards Backs Total
No. Players No. Players
2021 — 15. Jasmine Joyce-Butchers 1

Six Nations Awards

The following Wales players have been recognised in the Women's Six Nations Awards since 2020:[17][18][19]

Records

World Cup

Rugby World Cup
Year Round Position GP W D L PF PA
Wales 1991 Plate quarter-finals N/A 3 0 1 2 18 39
Scotland 1994 3rd Place Playoff 4th 5 3 0 2 63 96
Netherlands 1998 11th Place Playoff 11th 5 3 0 2 181 75
Spain 2002 9th Place Playoff 10th 4 2 0 2 126 50
Canada 2006 Did not participate
England 2010 9th Place Playoff 9th 5 2 0 3 91 109
France 2014 7th Place Playoff 8th 5 1 0 4 48 147
Ireland 2017 7th Place Playoff 7th 5 2 0 3 78 143
New Zealand 2021 Quarter-final — 4 1 0 3 40 139
England 2025 Qualified
Australia 2029 TBD
United States 2033
Total 8/9 4th 36 14 1 21 645 798
  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place Home venue

Overall

See also: List of Wales women's national rugby union team matches

(Full internationals only)
Correct as of 13 April 2024

Rugby: Wales internationals 1987–
Opponent First game Played Won Drawn Lost Percentage
 Australia 2002 6 0 0 6 0.00%
 Canada 1991 14 2 2 10 14.29%
 England 1987 41 2 0 39 4.88%
 France 1994 29 4 0 25 13.79%
 Germany 1998 2 2 0 0 100.00%
 Hong Kong 2017 2 2 0 0 100.00%
 Japan 2017 2 1 0 1 50.00%
 Ireland 1996 31 17 0 14 54.84%
 Italy 1998 22 13 1 8 59.09%
 Kazakhstan 1994 5 3 0 2 60.00%
 Netherlands 1988 5 2 0 3 40.00%
 New Zealand 1991 7 0 0 7 0.00%
 Russia 1998 2 2 0 0 100.00%
 Samoa 2002 1 0 0 1 0.00%
 Scotland 1993 36 20 0 16 55.56%
 South Africa 2004 8 6 0 2 75.00%
 Spain 1991 11 4 0 7 36.36%
 Sweden 2007 3 2 0 1 66.67%
 United States 1993 6 2 0 4 33.33%
Summary 1987 244 81 3 151 33.20%

References

  1. ^ a b "Sean Lynn named Wales women's new head coach". BBC Sport. 20 January 2025. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  2. ^ "Williams and Callender named Wales co-captains". BBC Sport. 7 July 2025. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  3. ^ "Women's World Rankings". World Rugby. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  4. ^ Hitt, Carolyn (6 November 2021). "Carolyn Hitt: Wales Women contracts announcement might finally turn despair into hope for Welsh women's rugby". Wales Online. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  5. ^ Davies, D.E. (1975). Cardiff Rugby Club, History and Statistics 1876–1975. Risca: The Starling Press. pp. 70–71. ISBN 0-9504421-0-0.
  6. ^ Rugby is the secret of 106-year-old's longevity, Penarth Times, 23 January 2006
  7. ^ Maria remained a keen player until she married her husband, Hector, and concentrated on bringing up eight children. She attributed her longevity to a love of rugby and an aversion to cigarettes and alcohol. Away from rugby and family duties she chaired the senior citizens club at her native Cogan for 24 years and was still calling bingo until she was 101.
  8. ^ "Historic day for England Women's Rugby". rfu.com. 5 April 2012. Archived from the original on 9 July 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
  9. ^ "Women's Rugby World Cup". RugbyFootballHistory.com. p. 1. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
  10. ^ Southcombe, Matthew (3 November 2021). "Wales Women to be offered professional contracts for the first time". WalesOnline. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  11. ^ "Women's Rugby World Cup: Alex Callender in Wales squad despite injury". BBC Sport. 11 August 2025. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
  12. ^ "Lynn names Wales squad for Rugby World Cup 2025". Welsh Rugby Union. 11 August 2025. Archived from the original on 11 August 2025. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
  13. ^ "New professional contracts for Wales Women". Welsh Rugby Union. 26 September 2024. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
  14. ^ "Liza Burgess: "The sky's the limit for women's rugby"". www.world.rugby. 20 September 2018. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  15. ^ "World Rugby - Hall of Fame". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  16. ^ "Awards Roll of Honour - World Rugby". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  17. ^ "Women's Six Nations Player of the Championship". Six Nations Rugby. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
  18. ^ "2022 TikTok Women's Six Nations Team of the Championship revealed". Six Nations Rugby. 14 May 2022. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  19. ^ "Revealed: The Fans' 2024 Team of the Championship". Six Nations Rugby. 16 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
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