Head Coach Natalie Lawrence says her Cymru WU17 side must embrace the challenge ahead as they prepare to kick off their Round 2 League A 2025/26 UEFA U17 EURO qualifying campaign.
Lawrence’s side will face the Netherlands, Poland and Slovakia at venues across South Wales this month as they bid to qualify for their first U17 EURO finals.
Cymru secured promotion to League A back in October after finishing top of a competitive group that included Azerbaijan, Moldova and Kosovo.
“It was a great occasion for the players,” Lawrence reflected. “They were very clear when I first joined that this was their number one aim for the first half of our season and they worked really hard to make sure that happened.
“They were very professional in how they handled the games. They know now that even harder work begins. League A is where they want to be and where we deserve to be, to compete with the top teams in the world. We know we have to push ourselves even harder to ensure we stay competitive and reach our goals.”
Under the competition format, the seven League A group winners will qualify automatically for the finals, while the seven teams finishing fourth in their League A groups will be relegated to League B for Round One of the next edition.
Cymru open their campaign against the Netherlands at Rodney Parade in Newport on Wednesday 11 March (2pm), before facing Poland at the Cardiff International Sports Stadium on Saturday 14 March (7pm). The final fixture will see Cymru take on Slovakia at Dragon Park on Tuesday 17 March (2pm).
Lawrence is expecting tough tests against Europe’s elite opposition but believes the stronger the opposition, the better it will be for the development of her team.
“We expect each opponent to bring us different challenges,” she admitted. “We had some really good preparation in Spain in February that will set us up well to learn from those games as we head into qualifiers.
“We know the quality that all the teams have and we can’t take any of them lightly. On the flip side, we can’t show them too much respect either, especially on our home turf. This is the part of the season everyone especially wants to do well in and show where they are at, not only to stay in League A but to qualify for the finals tournament.
“We want to start well and show how we can be consistent in League A. We then have two other games, so we know that a good start performance-wise will put us in a great position heading into those equally important remaining games. As a team and staff, we are really excited and ready to push ourselves in this tournament.”
All three of Cymru’s matches will be live streamed by the FAW on it’s RedWall+ streaming service and YouTube platform.
Cymru WU17: Amalie BAKER (Fulham FC), Poppy LYONS-WALKER (Manchester United FC), Bethan JONES (Liverpool FC), Katie WHITEWAY (FAW Girls Regional Programme – North), Molly STROUD (WBB Boys), Holly CLARK (Bristol City FC), Emily HOWSON (Liverpool FC), Daisy JAMES (FAW Girls Regional Programme – South), Amelia COLLINS (FAW Girls Regional Programme – South), Ava REES (FAW Girls Regional Programme – South), Suki YAU (FAW Girls Regional Programme – South), Pippa ELLIS (Liverpool FC), Sophie BATTERS (Liverpool FC), Ellen MARSH (Manchester United FC), Emily GIDDINGS (Bristol City FC), Cadi GRIFFITHS (FAW Girls Regional Programme – North), Ava BOULD (Aston Villa FC), Nancy WALES (Arsenal FC), Isabel ROBERTS (Arsenal FC), Anya GRUNEWALD (Barry Town United FC), Ffion DAVIES (Aston Villa FC), Maizie STEINS (Briton Ferry Llansawel A.F.C.).
