Cymru head coach Rhian Wilkinson will deservedly receive the praise and plaudits in the coming days, weeks and months for leading Cymru to a first major women’s finals, but there is so much more behind this incredible achievement.
Success against the Republic of Ireland booked Cymru the final place at EURO 2025, but while Wilkinson will divert the attention to her squad and staff, there are so many deeper stories behind the headlines that dominate the national media as Cymru enjoy their moment in the spotlight.
To reflect on the journey this team has been on, here are a few of those individual stories that have shaped the mentality and character of this incredible group of players.
Hannah Cain – The Comeback Queen
Still only 25, Hannah Cain has already been through the emotional wringer during her professional playing career, and her moment of glory on Tuesday night could have remained a dream if not for her own steely determination and self-belief. On the face of it, Cain looked the calmest person at the Aviva Stadium as she converted from the penalty spot to give Cymru the lead, but that single moment was justification for all the long hard months of pain, doubt and despair on her road to recovery.
Commonly known as an ACL, anterior cruciate ligament injuries are far too familiar in the women’s game. They require months and months of rehabilitation, and have brought too many playing careers to an early end. Cain has suffered two such injuries. The first in November 2021 when it she was sidelined for over a year. Then, cruelly, a second in November 2023. Cain only returned to play her first match for Leicester City in October this year.
Having experienced the long journey back to fitness following such an injury the first time around, Cain was prepared for what was to come. Devastated, she issued a moving statement. “On day one of camp I picked up a book called ‘Hidden Potential’,” she said following confirmation of her injury. “I was instantly captured by one of the first quotes I read. It wasn’t until the day after I realised much importance that one quote would have on my potential perspective for the foreseeable future.
The quote read: ‘Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experiences of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired and success achieved.’ I never thought I’d have to go through this experience and heartbreak again in my life. However, it is exactly that – an experience. A chance to grow and another chance to work on me.
“I’ve learned above all, you cannot control life but you can embrace both its light and its dark stages. I will be glancing back one day soon, knowing I’ve enjoyed this chapter for the person its about to make me, even through the challenges I’d do anything to erase.” Her mindset meant that there would be more chapters in her story to come.
Named on the bench for the 1st leg against the Republic of Ireland, Cain was handed a place in the starting line-up for the decisive match in Dublin. With just a handful of games for Leicester City since her return under her belt, this physical encounter would test every element of her body and mind. Destiny was delivered on 50 minutes when Jess Fishlock handed her the ball. Whether the intervention was divine or just through VAR, this was the moment that made everything worthwhile. That release of emotion erased the months of painful rehabilitation as Hannah Cain became a Cymru hero against the odds.
Jess Fishlock – Forever chasing Cymru success
Few individuals define the Cymru national team like Jess Fishlock. A talismanic figure for almost two decades, she will go down in history with the likes of Gareth Bale and John Charles as one of our nations true sporting icons. Fishlock has simply conquered the women’s game across all corners of the world, but there was always one success missing, until now. “It’s the proudest moment of my life,” she explained in the emotional aftermath of the win in Dublin.
The longest serving player in the squad, Fishlock is the all-time record Cymru appearance holder and record goalscorer, and she is far from done yet. Despite turning 38 next month, age continues to be just a number for the Seattle Reign star as she shines as one of the leading players in the NWSL. The post-match recovery may take a little longer these days, as does the jet lag, while the niggling injuries niggle more than they should, but Fishlock will make sure she is in peak physical condition for Switzerland next summer.
Because this is what Fishlock has only ever wanted, this was her professional dream. Making her Cymru international debut as a teenager against Switzerland in 2006, the landscape of the women’s game in Wales was completely different then and a million miles away from the current setup that has finally delivered this success. She will not admit it, but Fishlock is more than a player to this group. She is the inspiration. She is the player that every new call-up looks to for guidance, advice and acceptance. Through the ups and downs, Fishlock has carried the weight of a nation on her shoulders.
Now she has her moment. Like many others, Fishlock has her own ACL story to tell from 2019, but while there was more to achieve with club and country she was never about to give up. “Wales will qualify for a tournament soon, I’m sure of it,” she told Inside FIFA back in 2021. “But if I was to end my career without being a part of getting us to one, it would be a massive regret.” Fuelled by the love and support of a close family who follow her every move, Fishlock can now prepare to live her dream, and few deserve it more.
Helen Ward – Family success a heartbreak tonic
There have been many players who have played a pivotal part in Cymru’s success over the course of the last decade, but few have made the same contribution both on and off the field as Helen Ward. The former striker announced her international retirement shortly after the cruel World Cup Play-Off defeat to Switzerland in October 2022. This was her last chance to represent Cymru at a major tournament. Sometimes, not every dream will come true.
“I stood for the anthem and suddenly, it became more than just a game,” she said upon her retirement in March 2023. “Never did I imagine that that honour would be bestowed upon me more than 100 times over. I was part of a family. As an outsider from across the bridge, I was welcomed into the most special group of people and I never looked back. Those girls, that team and Cymru became everything to me.
“Playing for Wales became my why. It’s the reason I kept going and wanting to improve, the reason I came back after having my children, why I didn’t let Covid be the end and why I realise that it’s not where you are born that counts, but where you feel like you belong, and I’ve never felt more at home than when I’m with my team, in Wales. It breaks my heart that I didn’t make it to a major tournament with this team, that I wasn’t at my peak when so many of my team-mates were and are.
“But I know they will make it soon and they will shine on the biggest stage of all and I cannot wait to be their best cheerleader when that happens. It’s not always been easy, but it’s been the best ride of my life and I couldn’t have done it without my girls. Some of you have been there from day one and plenty more have joined along the way. They’re a special bunch and they’re my family.”
A one-time leading goalscorer in Cymru history, Ward scored 44 goals in 105 games for her country following her debut in 2008. But her contribution was matched off the field as the senior figure of the squad, and the advice and guidance she has offered to so many players that she inspired has no doubt played a part in how their own careers have reached this point of success. Ward cut an emotional figure in Dublin when the final whistle blew, this means everything to her, and her role in this journey cannot be underestimated.
Rhiannon Roberts – What if the call hadn’t come?
Hannah Cain and Carrie Jones will be remembered as the goalscorers as Cymru claimed a famous 2-1 victory over the Republic of Ireland on Tuesday night to qualify for EURO 2025, but two defensive blocks from Rhiannon Roberts in added time were just as decisive. Now 34, Roberts has been one of the unsung heroes in recent years, but things could have been very different if the call from Cymru had not been made while she was representing England at U23 level.
“I always wanted to play for Wales,” she explained to FAW.cymru back in 2019. “It wasn’t a decision, I just hadn’t had the call. When I was growing up and playing at Blackburn Rovers there were no Welsh scouts out there. I thought I must not be good enough or I would have been picked, but England had scouts. My brother actually said to me – ‘You’ve got to put your name out there; you’ve got to let them know that you’re Welsh!’ – I said ‘No, people don’t do that, I’ve got a Welsh name!’. It’s nice to see that the system has changed.”
Now playing her club football in Spain with Real Betis, Roberts has established herself as a key defensive figure in this Cymru side, and her contribution on Tuesday night was absolutely huge for what was another intense and physical battle. It was former manager Jayne Ludlow who recognised her potential and brought her in to the Cymru setup at the start of the 2017 EURO qualifying campaign. It was the start of a new era, and Roberts has grown as a player and a person to achieve this success.
Sophie Ingle – The intense road to recovery
The post-match party in Dublin did not begin until Sophie Ingle had been lifted away from punditry duty and carried into the centre of the on-field celebrations. That is the respect the squad has for another defining figure of this generation, and recognition of her contribution as one of the technically best players in the history of this Cymru team. However, Ingle was a pundit and not a player on Tuesday night as she continues her recovery from a recent ACL injury.
Ingle is a positive person and now has a confirmed target for her recovery. Cymru will head to Switzerland for the EURO finals in July 2025 and it is difficult to imagine Ingle not being a part of the squad. After leading the team as captain for almost a decade, Ingle has witnessed and been involved in the transitions that have taken place under former managers Jarmo Matikainen, Jayne Ludlow and Gemma Grainger, and has maintained her impeccably high standards throughout her international career.
An influential figure in the success enjoyed by Chelsea in recent years, Ingle is one of the stars of the women’s game for club and country. Voluntarily relinquishing the captaincy back in March this year, the decision spoke volumes about her selfless character. “I think it’s right to pass it on to someone else and let them experience what I’ve experienced over the last nine years,” Ingle explained. “I want them to experience everything I did, the highs and the lows and the leadership that comes with that, and the responsibility that they now take from being the new captain of Wales.”
In a cruel twist, a few months later Ingle would suffer the ACL injury during a pre-season friendly that will demand a long, hard road to recovery for the 33-year old. Angharad James inherited the armband and was the first to ensure Ingle was part of the celebration party on Tuesday night, it is now Ingle’s target to ensure she is part of the EURO 2025 squad as her quality and experience will be needed like never before in Switzerland next summer.
Cymru – The collective
Of course, these are just four individual stories, and there are hundreds more involving current members of the Cymru squad and those that have played their own part in the journey. Hayley Ladd made her 99th senior international appearance in Dublin and put in an incredible performance despite finding her opportunities limited for Manchester United recently.
Head coach Rhian Wilkinson made sure that she recognised the contribution of her assistant Jon Grey in her post-match press conference, such is the collective nature of this group. There are also players like Rachel Rowe and Gemma Evans who both began their careers playing in the domestic game in Wales. Such stories show how connected they are to football in their country, and would they have ever believed where it would eventually take them? Striker Ellise Hughes is still completing her own ACL rehabilitation.
We could talk about Carrie Jones, scorer of what would be the winning goal on the night and her international journey that began in the Faroe Islands as a 15-year old. We could mention goalkeeper Laura O’Sullivan-Jones and her seven clean sheets in the 2019 World Cup qualifying campaign that shifted the dynamic of the national team. From that campaign onwards, the media attention changed, the national respect for the women’s game altered, and the belief that something special could happen was born.
Finally, we could also talk about The Red Wall, as Cymru is a now a collective entity. Fans of the men’s national team have transferred their support over to the women’s game and a new record attendance of 16,845 was set against the Republic of Ireland in the 1st leg last Friday night. Each and every individual, from the fans, staff, players, and the many others who have been a part of this journey, deserve this moment.
We are all in it together, and the success in Dublin has indeed shown that Together we are Stronger.
