Siwan Lillicrap epitomises the idiom ‘never give up’ to the tee.
At the age of 28, the back-row forward was handed her first international cap for Wales – after spending almost five years on the peripheral of the squad. She never looked back.
Four years later, Lillicrap was named Wales captain ahead of the 2020 Women’s Guinness Six Nations to complete a momentous rise for the Swansea-born flanker.
The Bristol Bears star is now aiming to take Wales forward under new head coach Warren Abrahams as they look to improve on last year’s sixth-placed Championship finish.
And the Wales skipper is the latest Championship star to feature in our new ‘My Rugby Life’ series, featuring one player from each team looking back at their rugby story through the photos that mean the most, shaping who they are today and exploring their drive for success on the pitch.
Stay tuned to the Women’s Six Nations website and social channels throughout the Championship to see Lillicrap’s fellow stars share their stories in ‘My Rugby Life’.
Kathryn Dane, Jessy Tremouliere, Lana Skeldon and Michela Sillari will also be taking trips down memory lane as we discover the moments that have shaped some of the competition’s leading lights.
FROM THE GROUND UP
Lillicrap grew up surrounded by rugby, spending every weekend at Waunarlwydd RFC – the same club Liam Williams started out – where her father coached and brother played.
It was a place where her “love for the game grew and developed”.
Now a portrait of Lillicrap sits in the clubhouse next to Williams. The local club had no girl’s side so she settled in the role of water girl for the men’s team.
It wasn’t until she was 17 when she could join the women’s set-up, attending her first training session a week after her birthday. The rest, as they say, is history.
While at Swansea University, she was usually found in the backline but she eventually found her home in the back row when she joined Neath RFC in 2011.
From there she began to train with the senior Wales squad but remained on the fringes during what she described as a “rollercoaster” time for her on and off the pitch.
Ireland scrum-half Dane “feeling up for an upset”
And Lillicrap admitted dealing with rejection was “hard” and “took its toll” as she considered giving up on her dram but her perseverance to continue has certainly paid dividends.
Her international debut finally arrived in 2016, coming on as a replacement against Ireland.
She started two of the next four games for Wales and has donned the famous red jersey for her country in all of their Women’s Guinness Six Nations matches since.
LEADING THE FUTURE
In 2019, Lillicrap became a woman for the occasion when her first Women’s Six Nations try gave Wales a dramatic last-minute victory away in Scotland.
In the last play of the game, Lillicrap crossed over to level the scores at 15-15 before Lleucu George kicked the conversion with the clock in the red for a memorable win.
Later that year, Lillicrap was named captain for their autumn matches as they picked up Test victories over Ireland and Scotland.
Despite former skipper Carys Phillips’ return to the squad, new head coach Abrahams has kept faith in the 33-year-old for the 2021 Women’s Six Nations.
Abrahams paid tribute to Lillicrap’s “incredible leadership” and described her as a role model to the rest of the players, leading the squad both on and off the field.
JUGGLING CAREERS
The 33-year-old combines her leadership role on the pitch, with a similar position off it.
In 2017, Lillicrap was appointed Head of Rugby at Swansea University, a position responsible for more than 300 players in both the male and female programmes.
Elisa Giordano: Italy’s superhero on and off the pitch
Previously, she was the university’s Sport Development Officer – a role she previously held at Cardiff University for just over a year before returning to Swansea.
Currently a member of Bristol Bears Women’s squad, Lillicrap says balancing the two roles doesn’t leave her with much time but says the sacrifices are “definitely worth it”.
With the return of the Women’s Six Nations and a Rugby World Cup in New Zealand looming on the horizon, she will certainly be kept busy on and off campus over the next 18 months.
