Latest news with #MatchoftheDayWales
BBC News
04-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Holland to be assessed in hospital after leaving field on stretcher
Wales midfielder Ceri Holland will be assessed in hospital after leaving the field on a stretcher in Wales 2-1 Nations League defeat to Denmark at the Cardiff City received treatment for close to 10 minutes and was taken straight to hospital with her right leg in a protective boot after a heavy scored Wales' goal and was their player of the match as they performed admirably against Denmark with boss Rhian Wilkinson admitting the injury is a concern."I don't know. It looked like a really big tackle. We are hoping for a bone bruise, but we don't know anything at this point so we won't speculate," Wilkinson said."She has gone to hospital to get checked out and is with our fabulous medical team."She was excellent tonight. She has been for the last few games. She gives everything and puts her body on the line. We hope it is just one of those that hurt a lot. Fingers crossed that is what it will be." Holland was in tears as she was stretchered off."I saw the tackle quickly on my Ipad, to me it looked like two women fully committed to a tackle," Wilkinson added."We will make sure we get updates as soon as possible. I am concerned, of course."But I don't want us to be guessing. She was obviously in a lot of pain and discomfort. We don't know anything at this time. We will deal with it when we know."Former Wales international Nia Jones told Match of the Day Wales that Holland's injury overshadowed the whole game."I am sure Rhian Wilkinson will say there's plenty to take from that game but it's really difficult to look beyond what happened to Ceri Holland," she said."We are all hoping it's not as bad as it looked."Wales international Sophie Ingle, who is currently sidelined after ACL surgery, says Holland is a vital component in the Wales side."She is such a key player for us. She's on the trajectory of being really strong and always being a starter," Ingle told Match of the Day Wales."It didn't look nice. It was contact. I didn't really see a twist or anything."Sometimes it is better if it's straight contact but the fact she was upset and stayed down is not like her. She usually gets up pretty much straight away." Wilkinson said she was a "proud coach," after a performance where Wales again went toe-to-toe with a nation ranked far higher than them in world football, with Denmark ranked 12th and Wales might have led moments before Denmark scored their winning goal as Hannah Cain missed a big chance and Wilkinson says the experience can only help her side."I've always said results are one measure. The other is a commitment to playing in a way we can be proud of," she added."I can look at these women and see them going toe-to-toe with these top nations."Not long ago losing 2-1 to Denmark would have been seen as a positive result. But we've come away feeling we missed a chance and they scored a chance. I think probably Denmark deserved the three points… but we went for it and we can only be proud of the performance."
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'Mr Calm' Bellamy looks to Skopje after opening win
2026 World Cup qualifying: North Macedonia v Wales Venue: National Arena Todor Proeski, Skopje Date: Tuesday, 25 March Kick-off: 19:45 GMT Coverage: Watch on BBC One Wales, iPlayer, BBC Sport website & app, plus S4C via iPlayer. Text commentary and highlights on BBC Sport website & app. Listen live on BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru, BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra Wales captain Ben Davies described head coach Craig Bellamy as "Mr Calm" after his side made hard work of their opening World Cup qualifier to beat Kazakhstan. Wales were well below their best but won 3-1 against a stubborn Kazakhstan side, who are ranked 110th in the world, in Cardiff on Saturday. Bellamy had a reputation for being a fiery character during a successful but often controversial playing career at clubs such as Liverpool, Newcastle United and Manchester City. Since taking charge of Wales last year, however, the former Wales captain has shown himself to be more mature and considered. "They made it really difficult for us, they were compact. You could see in the first half we forced a lot of balls when we didn't really need to," Davies, who scored Wales' second goal, told Match of the Day Wales. "In the second half we were much more disciplined and we got the job done, which is the most important thing. The goal [Davies scored] came at such a perfect time for us, the longer it goes on at 1-1 it makes it a bit of a tense game. "We've all been in games like that where you go into it as favourites, you have a lot of expectations to walk all over a team, but you know it's never the case. They're a proud nation that's out on the pitch trying to win a game just like us. "The players were the ones that were the most frustrated at half-time, whereas Bellamy came in Mr Calm, he came in with a plan, was clear in the messaging he gave us and what he expected in the second half, he simply asked for more energy and keep doing what we're doing." Next for Wales is Tuesday's trip to North Macedonia, who started their campaign with a 3-0 win over Group J's bottom seeds Liechtenstein. That was North Macedonia's sixth successive victory and, while Wales may start as slight favourites in Skopje, they will need a vast improvement on their performances against Kazakhstan to make it six points from six. Belgium, who are yet to play, are Group J's top seeds, with Wales second and North Macedonia third seeds, while lowly Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein complete the group. Only the group winners will qualify automatically for the World Cup, with the runners-up entering the play-offs. Wales have already all but guaranteed themselves a play-off place by winning their Nations League group, and could give their hopes of automatic qualification a significant early boost by beating North Macedonia. "They're a good team," said Bellamy. "We have to be at our best. Do I have sleepless nights over it? No. There's more important things. "I like the challenge of being able to prepare a team to go to somewhere like North Macedonia. I would like the opportunity to prepare a team to go to Brazil. I want to improve and I want the players to improve. "I don't look at everything like living with a knife between my teeth. It's the challenge you have to embrace and be excited about. North Macedonia leaves a lot to be excited about."
