Wales Women’s head Coach Kevin Johnson has announced his 26 player senior women’s squad for this forthcoming year:
Beth Bingham © Ella Jackson
Hannah Cozens Sarah Jones
Amy Cradden Eloise Laity
Sophia Crawshay Jess Lea
Lucie Daman Megan Lewis-Williams
Rebecca Daniel Holly Munro
Emily Drysdale Phoebe Richards
Maddie Goodman Maisie Riley
Millie Holme Lauren Roberts
Livvy Hoskins Emily Rowlands
Izzie Howell Betsan Thomas
Xenna Hughes Rose Thomas
Caro Hulme Izzy Webb
Following the recent retirements of Leah Wilkinson and Sian French, Beth Bingham has previously been announced as the new Wales Women’s captain and will lead the squad for the 2023 season.
Having equalled their best ever Commonwealth finish of 8th place at last year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, 14 of last summer’s selected team remain in the squad.
However, we do see some new names enter the mix as six players vie for their first senior international caps including 19-year-old Betsan Thomas who was also named in the Great Britain Elite Development Programme earlier this year alongside Millie Holme.
The squad also retains great experience with Sarah Jones, Phoebe Richards, Beth Bingham and Xenna Hughes possessing over 100 international caps for Wales. Sarah Jones also continues to play for Great Britain following her bronze medal success at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Three goalkeepers are named in Rose Thomas, Ella Jackson and Lauren Roberts.
Commenting on his squad announcement, Women’s Head Coach Kevin Johnson said:
“After a number of retirements or temporary step-aways from the programme, this is a group in transition and building towards the longer term and in particular the next Commonwealth Games in 2026. As a result, there is a fresh look to this squad selection and a promising balance of experience and youth but most importantly, potential to improve. There are 10 players in the panel of 26 who are aged 23 and under, which is a credit to all those who have been involved and invested in the development of our junior and sub-senior teams. We are looking forward to getting straight into the action at Easter with some training matches in Scotland as we build towards the Euros in July.”
The squad will travel to Edinburgh over the Easter weekend to face Scotland in a series of friendly matches before their tour to Uruguay in June to play in a tri-nations Test series against Uruguay and Chile.
The pinnacle of their season will see them compete in the second division European Championships in Prague this July with the aim of joining the men’s national side in Europe’s A division.