Women’s Six Nations: Wales v Italy
Venue: Principality Stadium Date: Saturday, 27 April Kick off: 12:15 BST
Wales will play their Women’s Six Nations finale against Italy in front of a record crowd at Principality Stadium on Saturday.
Almost 10,000 tickets have been sold as Wales look for their first win of the campaign.
The previous record for a stand-alone women’s Test match was 8,500 when Wales hosted England at Cardiff Arms Park last year.
Wales’ women last played at the nation’s national stadium in a Barbarians double header in 2019.
Wales captain Hannah Jones has thanked fans for “sticking with them” after a disappointing run of results for her professional side.
It is a stark contrast to Wales rounding off last year’s championship with an emphatic victory in Italy.
Since then Wales have lost seven successive games, their last taste of victory coming against USA in a friendly last summer.
“This is when we need them [the fans] most,” said Jones. “We need their support because these are tough times.
“Losing hurts us and we want to put that right, and we are determined to do so against Italy this weekend.”
Wales and Italy’s match will be followed by the Welsh Rugby Union’s national women’s finals day, with teams contesting the cup, plate and bowl competitions.
Wales head coach Ioan Cunningham said it will be a “celebration of rugby for women and girls in Wales”.
But he says all their focus will be on getting the bonus-point win, which is the least Wales need if they are to avoid finishing last.
“It is focusing on our performance and not letting the occasion or the venue get the better of us,” Cunningham said.
“We have to win, it’s as simple as that, we’ve had a short turnaround from the France game and it’s basically ‘how can we win one game of rugby?’
“That’s what we’ve discussed as a team and hopefully we can put it on the pitch on Saturday.”
