'Amazing' boss Lynn backed to turn Wales around

Co-captain Kate Williams believes boss Sean Lynn is the perfect fit to turn around Wales' fortunes after their Women's Rugby World Cup nightmare.

The semi-finals of the tournament took place this weekend but Williams & Co. endured a group stage exit after a costly opening defeat to Scotland, a heavy loss to Canada and a shock upset at the hands of Fiji.

Lynn took over as national boss in January after leading Gloucester-Hartpury to three successive Premiership Women's Rugby titles.

He has won just one of 10 Tests – July's stunning triumph against Australia in Brisbane – but Williams is confident her old club boss can turn around Wales' fortunes.

"Sean is an amazing coach and his biggest driver for us is that he believes in us as players and believes in us as a team," said the back-row forward.

"That's so important for us to move forward, to take the learnings we have from this year and believe we can do this.

"The way that he sees the game really suits us as a team with the way that we want to attack and defend. Once we get better at doing that together we will see improvement next year."

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Williams has won two league titles with Gloucester-Hartpury since moving from New Zealand in 2023, scoring a try in this year's final success against Saracens.

Lynn has played a big role in her growth and the 25-year-old believes the head coach has the attributes to lead the climb from 12th in the world rankings.

"He coaches from an emotional place but is also excellent tactically, he brings that passion and that's what we tap into as Welsh people," she said.

"Lynny pumped so much confidence into me at Gloucester-Hartpury and believed in me, when maybe I didn't believe in myself at the time.

"I know that he is the right man for the job and he will help see us through to better times in this next year."

Lynn has already stressed that his squad needs to play more minutes for their PWR clubs and is keen to use the Celtic Challenge to get them game time.

Williams is confident that such an approach will lead to quick gains in 2026.

"There is no shying away from the fact that it was a disappointing World Cup with performances and results but we have a lot of direction going into the Six Nations next year," she said.

"We know we need to work on playing more rugby with our clubs and in the Celtic Challenge to get that game fitness and game IQ.

"That's where we will improve coming into the Six Nations – it will improve fitness, skills and connections.

"There is so much growth in the next year through our Celtic Challenge teams. That's where we can get massive growth and competitiveness from the girls in the under-20s and under-18s.

"They are really pushing us and are playing a fresh way of rugby that will really align with how we want to play."

Big gains and awards double

Williams has enjoyed a rapid rise and her exploits in 2024-25 led to her being named as Welsh Rugby Writers' Association women's player of the year.

That honour comes after being named as players' player of the season by her clubmates after their title triumph.

"I am just loving playing my rugby at the minute and that showed with how I played in the Six Nations and for Gloucester-Hartpury," said Williams, who served in the New Zealand Navy before moving to chase her rugby dream with Wales.

"All of the opportunities that I have had have been unbelievable and I feel really lucky to play with the players that I do.

"Looking back at my journey over the last three years I have made some big gains in my game and also big gains in how I am off the field. Around the environment I feel more confident, which is translating into my rugby."