Rhian Wilkinson Announces Her 26 Player Wales Squad For UEFA Nations League Matches
Rachel Rowe returns to Rhian Wilkinson's 26-player squad ahead of Wales Women's Nations League matches against Denmark and Sweden in April.
After qualifying for the 2025 European Championships, the first major tournament qualification for the side, Wilkinson's Wales will be looking to kick on and continue to impress with the highly ranked England, France and the Netherlands waiting for them in the summer. A 1-0 loss to Italy and a 1-1 draw to 6th-ranked Sweden opened the Nations League campaign for 'The Dragons'.
Amongst the announced squad, the return of Rachel Rowe is most prominent, with the 32-year-old missing out on the previous set of fixtures in this competition through injury. Rowe picked up three goals in ten matches en route to European qualification and, with some difficult fixtures to play, provides a much-needed level of experience to an otherwise youthful squad.
Youngsters Poppy Soper and Tianna Teisar are yet to make their debuts for the national team, yet both are included in the 26 players involved. With two difficult tests in front of Cyrmu, Wilkinson may treat the tournament as an opportunity to blood some of her younger talent ahead of the summer.
The first match for the side is to be hosted at the Cardiff City Stadium on Friday 4 April, kicking off at 19:45 against Denmark, before they travel to Gothenburg to face Sweden at the Gamla Ullevi Stadium on Tuesday 8 April at 18:00. The full squad for the games can be found below.
The Squad
Goalkeepers: Olivia Clarke (Leicester City), Laura O'Sullivan-Jones (Gwalia United), Safia Middleton-Patel (Manchester United), Poppy Soper (Blackburn Rovers)
Defenders: Rhiannon Roberts (Real Betis), Josie Green (Crystal Palace), Charlie Estcourt (DC Power), Hayley Ladd (Everton), Gemma Evans (Liverpool), Mayzee Davies (Manchester City), Lily Woodham (Crystal Palace - On Loan from Seattle Reign), Ella Powell (Bristol City), Esther Morgan (Sheffield United)
Midfielders: Alice Griffiths (Durham - On Loan from Southampton), Angharad James (Seattle Reign), Lois Joel (Newcastle United), Carrie Jones (IFK Norrkoping), Jess Fishlock (Seattle Reign), Ceri Holland (Liverpool)
Forwards: Ffion Morgan (Bristol City), Rachel Rowe (Southampton), Kayleigh Barton (Charlton Athletic), Mary McAteer (Sunderland), Tianna Teisar (Bristol City), Hannah Cain (Leicester City), Elise Hughes (Crystal Palace)