Young Wales stars ready and prepared to take on Europe’s best
LLANELLI, WALES - 02 APRIL 2025: Wales team photo Wales’ Scarlett Hill, Wales' Amy Richardson, Wales' Teagan Scarlett, Wales' goalkeeper Soffia Kelly, Wales’ Charlotte Salisbury-Williams, Wales' Ffion Bowen, Wales’ Gwen Zimmerman, Wales' Casi Evans, Wales' Elena Cole, Wales’ Mared Griffiths, Wales' Olivia Francis during the 2025 European Women's Under-19 Championship - Round 2 qualification fixture between Wales U19 women & France U19 women at Stebonheath Park, Llanelli, Wales (Pic by John Smith/FAW)
A sunny Llanelli was the location for Wales U19s’ first foray into their League A group, as they attempt to qualify for their first ever European Championships.
The set up to this tournament came at the beginning of December, with a solid set of results in League B.
Opening with a 4-0 win against Lithuania, Cymru’s youngsters then went on to defeat Georgia by the same scoreline, before ending with a narrow 2-1 triumph over Bosnia and Herzegovina. Nine points from nine, top of the group, and a shot at some of Europe’s top teams once again beckoned.
But, like the senior side, whilst the opportunity of playing top nations in League A is enticing, it can also be an unforgiving place.
Wales were in the top tier last time they tried to reach the Euros last summer, but ultimately, they came away empty handed. 3-0 losses to Czechia and Greece, coupled with a 6-1 defeat to talented England team was a steep learning curve for manager Nia Davies and her team.
“What we’ve learned over our last few campaigns, even at U17 level, is that we can compete at this level. The girls turn up and they’re always motivated, and if we do that, we can compete against some of the best teams in Europe. Hopefully, that will give them more belief, but even in this game, we will learn a lot. Yes, it’s disappointing to lose, but we had a lot of positives in that game.”
However, there’s one clear change from U19 sides of old compared to this one, and it’s certainly a change for the better. More and more of these youngsters are having experience with senior squads.
Mared Griffiths has a senior cap for both Wales and Manchester United, Liv Francis has been involved in Rhian Wilkinson’s squads and is on loan at third tier Liverpool Feds, Amy Richardson has been a part of Celtic’s Champions League squads, Ania Denham is a regular at Wolves. The list goes on!
And for a player like Griffiths, those senior surroundings are having a major effect on her performances for Wales.
EXCLUSIVE: Former Arsenal youngster opens up on her exit ahead of Wales clash
“I think it’s good that the girls here can get those challenges at club level playing against women rather than just against girls their own age. The fact that they have to compete in physical tests at club level allows them to come into international games like these and we do compete better from a physical standpoint because of it.”
And that bravery and experience was on show against France in their opening game on Wednesday afternoon. Les Bleus were semi-finalists in the Euros last summer, losing to eventual runners-up The Netherlands, and the eleven they put out at Stebonheath Park have bucket loads of experience.
Striker Chancelle Effa Effa is a regular for French topflight outfit Le Havre, along with defender Wassa Sangaré. Winger Noalia Traoré has recently signed her first professional contract with PSG, and Julie Swierot is the starting holding midfielder for Reims.
And yet, for large swathes of the game, Wales frustrated the French and found gaps in their defence. So much so, the French analyst alongside me began to lose his composure. Mutterings of ‘Mon Dieu’ and ‘Sacre Blue’, coupled with a trademark gallic shrug was the ultimate sign that France were finding it difficult against a much-improved Wales. Despite losing 1-0, Wales could certainly take a lot from the game.
“I’m really proud of the girls,” Davies stated. “They stuck to the gameplan really well. We knew we couldn’t maybe go out and press all the time against a team where all of their players play in France’s top league, but they stuck to the plan, and we had a lot of chances on the counter. Overall, I was really pleased.”
Whenever we talk about youth football, the inevitable buzzword of “pathway” comes around sooner rather than later. Wilkinson has often talked about it feeling like a big chain at Wales between the senior side, the U19s, and the U17s, and for a coach like Davies, open dialogue with a senior coach only makes her job easier.
“It’s been brilliant having Rhian there as senior coach. She has so much respect for the young players coming through, and she knows when to drop them in at the right time. That’s been shown today with the girls who have been with the seniors and have come back down.
“That helps with younger age groups because that experience spreads through the team. It’s brilliant how we work out camps, who’s with which group, everything has been seamless, and Rhian has played a huge part in that.”
Wales reacts as World Cup set to be hosted in the nation in 2035
A coach can say plenty of words, but sometimes for players, actions speaker louder than what’s being said. But for these Wales players, it’s clear to see that, if you perform, there is a clear path to the senior team.
Griffiths and Francis have been there multiple times, Scarlett Hill and Charlotte Lee have been there once, while the likes of Mayzee Davies and Carrie Jones have shown how much faith the setup has in these youngsters, something that only encourages Griffiths.
“That’s been the good thing about having Rhian Wilkinson in charge of the senior team and Nia in charge of us here with the U19s. Everyone involved in the seniors down to the U19s and U17s work together, and even though we played in Llanelli, we know there’s senior staff watching us on the TV back on their camp.
“They give a lot of feedback too in order for them to let us know the pathway is definitely there, and it’s a way mentally for us girls to keep working hard and knuckling down, because we then know what we have to do in order to progress in the pathway. Everyone of us has a chance of getting into the senior team because we all have different talents.”
Cymru’s sights now move onto a clash against the Republic of Ireland on Saturday afternoon in Llanelli, before ending with a game against Serbia on Tuesday at the same venue.
While France may have been the top seeds in the group, the performance levels have now been set, and Davies doesn’t want her side to let up in any way, shape, or form.
“The important thing now is that we don’t drop our levels. We knew that France were the top seed in this group, but we can’t think that they were going to be our hardest game.
“Ireland are going to be just as physical and they are a technical team. We are going to go at it with the same attitude and determination, but we know it will be a different game.”
