Lleucu George will not have fond memories of the Wales-Scotland Women’s Six Nations game in Cardiff two years ago and she is determined to make better ones this time around.
In 2024 at Cardiff Arms Park in the tournament opener, Scotland just got over the line for a 20-18 triumph after stand-off George – the back-up kicker to subbed scrum-half Keira Bevan – missed a late conversion which would have given her side a draw.
This Saturday the same sides will be clashing in the Principality Stadium next door as the 2026 competition gets going and George, now 26 and a big player for top English PWR side Gloucester Hartpury, is likely to be key if Sean Lynn’s side are to arrest a run of four defeats on the trot to the Scots in all competitions, including at last year’s Rugby World Cup.
“Coming into camp is completely fresh, it’s almost stripping it back and starting from the beginning,” George told the BBC.
“Hopefully we can get more hands on ball because in the last few campaigns we’ve struggled to have that ‘go forward’ and express ourselves as a backline.
“We’ve got powerful, pacey players that we can move the ball to and, with the shape we’re going in with, that’s the aim.
“It doesn’t matter who we’re coming up against in the first week, it’s the first game, so we really want to try and put a stamp down.
“It’s a fresh start, we’ve got new [assistant] coaches coming in and a different style of playing.
“It’s the same for Scotland, they’ve got new coaches. We don’t really know what they’re going to bring, but we’re concentrating on ourselves as much as we can. Obviously, we’ll look a little bit at them, but the onus is on us.”
Lynn, the former Gloucester Hartpury head coach, has been in charge of Wales for 12 months after coming into the job just a week ahead of last year’s Six Nations in which they finished bottom.
He has led Wales to just one win in 10 Test matches so far, but George added: “Obviously you want to win every game, but if we put the performance down then we put ourselves in with a shot with winning.
“We need to be playing in the right areas. We create opportunities, but probably just need to stay switched on in every little moment so we can take them.
“We’ve got a strong pack and exciting players in the backline. The biggest thing is to work hard for each other and opportunities will arise off the back of that – and always play with smiles on faces, Sean has always been big on that.”
Lleucu George is pictured
The Women’s Six Nations is here and the 2026 event runs from April 11 to May 17 and, between April 6 and May 20, GH Media will be covering Scotland’s campaign and the wider tournament – keep an eye out for content and thanks to everyone who supports GH Media’s work within women’s rugby