Wales national netball team
National netball team
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The Wales national netball team, also known as the Welsh Feathers, represents Wales Netball in international netball competitions such as the Netball World Cup, the Commonwealth Games, the Netball Europe Open Championships, Netball World Cup Qualifiers and the Netball Singapore Nations Cup. Since 2005–06, Wales has also effectively competed in the Netball Super League, initially playing as Celtic Dragons and more recently as Cardiff Dragons. As of March 2026, Wales are listed 7th on the World Netball Rankings, making the squad the highest ranked international sport in Wales.
| |||
| Nickname(s) | Welsh Feathers[1] | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Wales Netball | ||
| Confederation | Europe Netball | ||
| Head coach | Emily Handyside | ||
| Captain | Bethan Dyke | ||
| Most caps | Suzy Drane (125) | ||
| World ranking | 7th[2] | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 Wales 14–13  ScotlandGEC Ground, Wembley, 7 May 1949 | |||
| Netball World Cup | |||
| Appearances | 14 (Debuted in 1963) | ||
| 2023 placing | 9th | ||
| Best result | 6th (1975, 1979) | ||
| Commonwealth Games | |||
| Appearances | 5 (Debuted in 2002) | ||
| 2022 placing | 8th | ||
| Best result | 6th (2002) | ||
History
Early tests
Wales made their Test debut on 7 May 1949 with a 14–13 win against Scotland. The match was played at the General Electric Company ground on Preston Road, Wembley during the 1949 England Scotland Wales Netball Series. Wales also played England for the first time on the same day, losing 25–3.[3][4][5][6][7] In 1951, as part of the Festival of Britain celebrations, Wales hosted their first home international match, played outdoors at Cathays High School, Cardiff. Wales lost to England by 26–7. In April 1957, Wales hosted their first indoor home international matches at Sophia Gardens Pavilion. Wales lost to both England (34–5) and to Scotland (16–9).[4][7] In 1980, with a team coached by Wendy White, Wales defeated England 33–29 in Plymouth. This was the first time Wales had defeated England.[4][8]
Netball Super League
Since 2005–06, Wales has also effectively competed in the Netball Super League, initially playing as Celtic Dragons. Since the 2024 season, they have played as Cardiff Dragons.[9] Melissa Hyndman, Trish Wilcox and Julie Hoornweg all served as joint head coach of both Dragons and Wales.[10][11][12][13] At the 2018 Commonwealth Games eleven of the squad were Dragons players and the twelfth, Chelsea Lewis was a former player.[14][15] Dragons players continue to make up the majority of the Wales team.[16]
World Netball Rankings
Between 2008 and 2024, Wales averaged 9th in the World Netball Rankings.[2][17] In September 2017, they were listed 7th.[18] In March 2022, they qualified for the 2022 Commonwealth Games after being ranked 8th.[19][20] In March 2025 they were listed 6th for the first time.[17][21][22]
Tournament history
Major tournaments
Netball World Cup
Wales have been regular participants in World Netball Championships and Netball World Cups. They didn’t travel to the 1967 tournament and failed to qualify in 2019. The highest position they have finished is 6th which they achieved on twice, in 1975 and 1979.[4][8][23]
Commonwealth Games
Wales have been regular participants in Netball at the Commonwealth Games. Their highest ever finish came in 2002 when they finished 6th.[41]
World Games
| Tournaments | Place |
|---|---|
| 1993 World Games[54] | 6th |
European tournaments
Netball Europe Open Championships
Wales have regularly played in the Netball Europe Open Championships.[55] They have won the tournament on three occasions. In 2001 with a team coached by Raewyn Henry they clinched the title when they defeated England 59–58 in Canterbury.[8][56][57] In 2013, with a team featuring Suzy Drane, Sara Hale and Chelsea Lewis and coached by Melissa Hyndman, Wales won the title after defeating England 37–33.[58][59][60] In 2014, Wales retained the title and qualified for the 2015 Netball World Cup.[61][62]
| Tournaments | Place |
|---|---|
| 1998 FENA Open[63] | |
| 1999 FENA Open[64] | |
| 2000 FENA Open[65] | |
| 2001 FENA Open[8][56][57] | 1st |
| 2002 FENA Open[56][57] | |
| 2003 FENA Open[66] | |
| 2004 FENA Open[66] | |
| 2005 FENA Open[67][68] | 2nd |
| 2006 FENA Open[69] | 2nd |
| 2007 FENA Open[70] | 2nd |
| 2008 FENA Open[71][72] | 4th |
| 2009 Netball Europe Open Championships[73][74] | 4th |
| 2010 Netball Europe Open Championships[75] | 2nd |
| 2011 Netball Europe Open Championships[76] | 2nd |
| 2012 Netball Europe Open Championships[77][78] | 3rd |
| 2013 Netball Europe Open Championships[8][58][59][60] | 1st |
| 2014 Netball Europe Open Championships[61][62] | 1st |
| 2015 Netball Europe Open Championships[79] | 3rd |
| 2016 Netball Europe Open Championships[80][81][82] | 2nd |
| 2017 Netball Europe Open Championships[50][83][84] | 4th |
| 2019 Netball Europe Open Championships[85] | 2nd |
Netball World Cup Qualifiers
| Tournaments | Place |
|---|---|
| 2007 World Netball Championships Qualifier – Europe[86] | 1st |
| 2011 World Netball Championships Qualifier – Europe[87][88] | 2nd |
| 2014 Netball Europe Open Championships[61][62] | 1st |
| 2019 Netball World Cup Regional Qualifier – Europe[23][89][50] | 3rd |
| 2023 Netball World Cup Regional Qualifier – Europe[90][91][92][52] | 1st |
Source:[55]
Invitational tournaments
Celtic Cup
The Celtic Cup series is hosted and organised by Netball Northern Ireland, Netball Scotland and Wales Netball. The series features Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales playing a series of test matches against each other and visiting national teams.[93][94][95] Wales won the inaugural 2024 series.[96][97]
| Tournaments | Place |
|---|---|
| 2024 Celtic Cup[96][97] | 1st |
| 2025 Celtic Cup[98][99] | 3rd |
Wendy White Trophy Series
Wales Netball introduced the Wendy White Trophy Series in honour of Wendy White, a former Wales player and head coach. In February 2017, the inaugural series saw Wales host New Zealand.[100] Since the series has featured Samoa and South Africa.[101][102] In 2022, the series saw Wales host Gibraltar, the Isle of Man and the Republic of Ireland.[103]
Netball Singapore Nations Cup
In 2010, with a team featuring Suzy Drane, Sara Hale and Chelsea Lewis and coached by Melissa Hyndman, Wales won the Netball Singapore Nations Cup. In the final they defeated Scotland 53–30.[107][108][109][110]
Notable players
Current Squad
| Wales 2025–26 roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Physiotherapist: Luke Ford
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Source:[111]
Captains
| Captains | Years |
|---|---|
| Sybil Nest Butler-Jones[3] | 1949 |
| Patrica Willett | 1963 |
| Anne Lucas | 1971 |
| Jennifer Sealey[112] | 1975 |
| Maria Gornell | 1987, 1991 |
| Helen Weston[113][57] | 1999, 2002 |
| Joanna Griffiths[42][43] | 2002, 2003 |
| Ursula Bowers[34][114][115][116] | 2006–2007 |
| Suzy Drane[35][41][48][51][117][118] | 2010–2022 |
| Sara Hale[35][119] | 2011 |
| Nia Jones[16][118][120][121][122] | 2022–2025 |
| Bethan Dyke[16][122][123] | 2023– |
Source:[124]
Welsh Sports Hall of Fame
The following Wales netball internationals have been inducted into the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame.[125]
| Inducted | Player | Appearances | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Helen Weston[113][126] | 111 | 1982–2002 |
| 2019 | Wendy White[127][128] | 7 | 1963 |
| 2023 | Suzy Drane[125][129] | 125 | 2005–2022 |
Former players
- Anna Mayes,[66][130] former head coach of England
- Liz Nicholl,[131][132] president of World Netball
Head coaches
| Coach | Years |
|---|---|
| Edith Parry[4] | 1959– |
| Wendy White[81][128] | 1968–1980 |
| Jennifer Sealey[112] | 1983 |
| Mary French[133] | 1984–1986 |
| Beverley Ryan | 1987 |
| Julia Longville[134] | 1991, 2006 |
| Avril Roper | 1995 |
| Jean Watson[32] | 1999 |
| Raewyn Henry[42][33][56] | 2002–2003 |
| Julia Harding[67] | 2005 |
| Denise Ellis[34][72] | 2007–2008 |
| Melissa Hyndman[10][35][135] | 2010–2014 |
| Laura Williams[62][136] | 2014 |
| Trish Wilcox[11][12][137] | 2014–2018 |
| Julie Hoornweg[13][51][138][139] | 2018–2019 |
| Sara Hale[52][119][140][141][142] | 2020–2023 |
| Emily Handyside[52][120][143][144] | 2023– |
Source:[124]
Honours
- Celtic Cup
- Winners: 2024
- Netball Europe Open Championships
- Winners: 2001, 2013, 2014
- Netball World Cup Qualifiers
- Netball Singapore Nations Cup
- Winners: 2010