One of the most tantalising Genero Adran Premier fixtures is imminent – a top-of-the-table clash between first-place Cardiff City and third-place Wrexham on Sunday 21st January.
Not only is it live on S4C, it is also being hosted at the Cardiff City Stadium – with thousands of fans set to enjoy what’s bound to be a thrilling encounter.
It is not the first time the Bluebirds have been welcomed to the club’s main stadium. They smashed what was then a record attendance for a domestic women’s game in Wales in November 2022 when 5,175 spectators enjoyed their 9-0 win over Abergavenny, and they also played Barry Town United there earlier this season.
“We always look forward to playing in the stadium anyway so the fact that it’s against Wrexham, no motivation is needed,” says skipper Siobhan Walsh. “We’ll go out and want to win the game, and win it comfortably.”
Currently flying high with 28 points from a possible 30 this season, Walsh says that their start to the campaign has been “almost perfect”.
“We knew there would be different pressure on us this year because we had such a successful season last season,” she says, referring to their league title and Bute Energy Welsh Cup win. “We’ve taken it game by game and we want to win everything we can. That’s the plan.”
The matchday routine is different at the Cardiff City Stadium, with both squads filing through the players’ entrance, where fans will await them and ask for autographs and selfies.
“It’s a massive occasion for fans as well,” adds midfielder Emma Beynon. “We’ve had great support this season and it’ll be great for them to experience it.”
With over a decade of experience in Wales’s top flight, Beynon has seen rapid development of the domestic league, and she is looking forward to even more.
“There’s been massive growth since I started playing in the league,” she says. “There are a lot more attendances at the games, which is positive, it’s improving and going in the right direction.”
And she thinks that these kind of showpiece occasions show the future potential of the league.
“It’s good for the young fans to be able to see that they might be able to play there in a couple of years,” she says.
