Women’s World Cup Qualification Play-off Semi Final 

Stadiumi Loro Boriçi

Friday 9th October 2026

Cymru’s Women are back and the first game of the season is a World Cup Play-off Semi Final. Qualification for this World Cup has been one of the most complicated in the history of sport. There needs to be an Open University course to help understand it, but I will give it a go but don’t quote me on it! After a group stage that also featured Albania. Cymru won the group with four wins and two draws. Now you would think that would be enough to go through to the World Cup, but no! Its on to this playoff with Albania, who came third in the group with half the points of Cymru, with Rhian Wilkinson’s team beat them twice in the group, 1-0 away and 4-0 at home.

Over complicated but you’ve seen worse, you say? Sit back down there’s more, if Cymru makes the Play-off final (against Romania or Norway) a win could see them through to the World Cup Finals or it could not! There may be another Play-off match with a team from another federation. The best thing to do is hope Cymru wins every match and celebrate when we see a World Cup Chart!

So for now it was Albania away (in case you are wondering Albania borders Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Greece). Not the greatest of build-ups for Rhian Wilkinson with nine players missing from the squad, but thankfully there was only need to make three changes to the First VI with Easter Morgan, Rachel Rowe and Elise Hughes replacing Ceri Holland, Rhiannon Roberts and Hannah Cain.

The match, which on paper and with the pervious two matches against today’s opponents this should have been a nailed on Cymru win. But as usual, things never go to plan. The game started off well for Cymru, with Albania looking a lot stronger than in the group stages.

It was Cymru made the break through in the 21st minute when a corner from Mared Griffiths caused all sorts of problems in the centre of the penalty area with the ball hitting the back of the unfortunate Ezmiralda Franja and going in to give Cymru the lead.

There was plenty of back and forth in the first half with both sides just not clinical enough with their chances, Cymru having six shots on target out of seven, with no more goals to show for it.

Albania really came to life in the second half and give the travelling Y Wal Goch a nervous 45 minutes. Would it be a Cymru match if you didn’t age ten years while watching?

The home team will regret not scoring at least twice in the second half but for a mixture of poor finishing and saves from Safia Middleton-Patel. With the second half coming to an end there were more chances falling Albania’s way. Many of those attacks were stopped by the impressive Scarlett Hill who came off the bench on her 19th birthday. The young Manchester United defender helped Cymru on many occasions get that rare clean sheet.

With the final whistle there was a massive sigh of relief from Y Wal Goch. We have an advantage going into the second leg in Llanelli, it will be another nervous night with the Albanian women knowing they are more than capable of breaking through the Cymru defence and only need to take one of those chances to make it a very nervy night for all of us watching.

C’mon Cymru! Just a couple more wins

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