Of all the remarkable sporting achievements in Wales in 2021, the one you have probably not heard about involves Seren Hughes. The young cricketer boldly travelled where no Welsh woman had travelled before, as she tells Lucy Rees. Seren Hughes can look back on 2021 as the year she made cricket history in Wales – although she didn’t know it at the time. The 20-year-old entered the record books back in the summer when she became the first female in the South Wales Cricket Association to score a century at club level.

Sam Thomas has admitted keeping the Coral Welsh Grand National title in Wales left him speechless with emotion. The Welsh trainer enjoyed a landmark win at Chepstow on Monday as his horse, I willdoit, came home first to ensure a Welsh-trained horse has won the showpiece race for three successive years. The victory is Thomas’s biggest career success as a trainer, his first graded victory, and the Vale of Glamorgan-based handler follows Christian Williams (Potters Corner, 2019) and Evan Williams (Secret Reprieve, 2020) as Welsh winners of the race.

The Welsh Grand National will be the only event still standing after a combination of Covid and new restrictions wiped out professional sport in Wales over the festive period. The Chepstow race meeting – Welsh racing’s showpiece event of the year – will go ahead on Monday, but behind closed doors following limits set by the Welsh Government. The fact it is happening with no spectators has more to do with TV contracts and sponsorship deals, rather than any enthusiasm for the country’s biggest racing event – a social event as much as a sporting one – to take place in front of empty stands.

Cardiff and Scarlets have both welcomed back a host of international players for their United Rugby Championship derby clash at the Arms Park on Boxing Day. Both sides have endured a rough time over the past month having to isolate both in South Africa, and back in the United Kingdom. Cardiff won the hearts and minds of supporters across the globe with their heroic performances against Toulouse, and Harlequins, respectively in Europe over the past few weeks with a team made up of academy and semi-professional players. But the Scarlets have not played a game since beating Benetton in October, and are raring to go. Lloyd Williams and Rhys Priestland will start at half-back for Cardiff, with Ben Thomas partnering Rey Lee-Lo in midfield.

By David Williams Wales’ four rugby regions have been left counting the cost after new restrictions imposed by the Welsh Government to combat the spread of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 saw professional sport effectively forced behind closed doors. A strict limit of 50 spectators was placed on sport at all levels in the country […]

By Gareth James Newport County chairman Gavin Foxall says a £3m Welsh Government support fund for sports clubs in Wales is not enough to cover the loss of revenue from playing games behind closed doors. The club’s Boxing Day fixture at home to Forest Green Rovers was called off due to Covid cases in the […]

Swansea City head coach Russell Martin says the financial impact from playing behind closed doors has already hit his January recruitment plans. Martin – who had held discussions with chief executive Julian Winter and the club’s American owners about new recruits in the January transfer window – says the fall in income from the Welsh Government’s closure of stadia to fans has affected his ability to bring in new players. The Swans will play at least three matches behind closed doors because of the new restrictions to combat rising Covid rates and the Welsh Government has given no end date for the policy, which does not apply in England.

By Rob Carbon The United Rugby Championship could be thrown into disarray if the tournament organisers can’t provide guarantees on a safe, secure and speedy passage home for the four teams they now expect to relive their recent traumatic travel experiences to and from South Africa. The four teams who found themselves stranded in Cape […]

By Gareth James Former Wales and Cardiff City striker Robert Earnshaw has continued to climb the coaching ladder in the USA with his appointment as an assistant at Orange County SC. Earnshaw – who was previously a youth coach at Vancouver Whitecaps before coaching at Fresno FC – will be the right-hand man to head […]

Up to 12,000 race-goers will be denied their chance to “blow away the cobwebs” at the Welsh Grand National following the decision to take the race behind closed doors. The biggest day in the Welsh racing calendar will take place in front of empty stands at Chepstow on December 27, following the move to remove fans from sporting events across Wales from Boxing Day. Organisers of the showpiece event are likely to seek compensation of around £200,000 from the Welsh Government, but Chepstow executive director Phil Bell believes it is the social impact that will hit many regular racing fans hard.

By Gareth James Aidan Heslop has revealed he thought he had blown his chance of winning before taking gold at the FINA High Diving qualifier in Abu Dhabi. The 19-year-old Team Wales star pulled off a hugely difficult dive to win the competition and secure his spot in the 27m high diving event at next […]

The Welsh rugby regions are weighing up whether or not to seek postponements of their festive fixture list after they were ordered to play their matches behind closed doors. The Scarlets, Ospreys, Cardiff and Dragons are all facing the prospect of having to play their Christmas and New Year matches in empty stadia after the Welsh Government’s decision to ban crowds. The decision – announced by Welsh economy minister Vaughan Gething late on Monday night – will have a devastating effect on the regions’ finances.

By David Williams Michael Hogan – who will retire from cricket at the end of the 2022 season – would earn a place in Glamorgan’s greatest team in history, according to the county’s director of cricket, Mark Wallace, Hogan has announced he is to call it a day at the age of 41, but not […]

Cardiff Devils managing director Todd Kelman has urged the team’s fanbase to remain calm and insists the team ‘aren’t going anywhere’ following the Welsh Government’s latest announcement regarding sporting fixtures. All sporting events in Wales are to be played behind closed doors over the holiday period with no definitive return date, initially effecting Devils home […]

Jenny Nesbitt and Piers Copeland produced spectacular performances as The Cardiff Met Christmas Classic proved to be a real cracker for Welsh endurance stars. Nesbitt and Copeland stole the show in the event’s blue riband 3,000m races on Sunday, while Bethan Davies enjoyed a dominant gun to tape win in the 3,000m walk. Seven days after winning a team gold at the European Cross Country Championships in Dublin, Nesbitt was in record-breaking form as the popular meeting returned after last year’s cancellation due to the pandemic.

Ospreys hooker Ifan Phillips has revealed he plans to use funds donated through a crowdfunding page to pay for a prosthetic leg following an amputation. The 25-year-old had his leg amputated after being involved in a motorcycle crash earlier this month. Police said Phillips was being treated for “life-changing injuries” when he was admitted to Morriston Hospital on December 5 after a road traffic collision involving two motorcycles.

By Steffan Thomas The versatility tag has been a hindrance for many players, but Seb Davies believes it can help him add to his 13 Wales caps. Davies began his career as a second row but has developed into a utility forward who is now able to play blindside flanker, and No 8. Many versatile […]

Barry Maddocks has worked at the cutting edge of professional rugby for the best part of 20 years – but now faces one of the biggest challenges of his career. The west Walian may not be a household name, but he has forged a reputation in rugby circles as one of the most forward-thinking attacking coaches around. After a decade coaching in England with Bath and England Sevens, before four years at the Dragons, Maddocks has jumped into the unpredictable cauldron of French rugby.

Theo Cabango admitted it was the fulfilment of a dream when he announced his arrival as a tryscorer in top level rugby on Saturday. The 19-year-old scored a stunning 50-metre try for Cardiff as their young, patched-up side went toe-to-toe with Harlequins before fading in the final quarter and losing 43-17 in their Heineken Champions Cup clash. Cabango – younger brother of Swansea City and Wales defender Ben Cabango – scored a magnificent first-half effort, one of three scored by the visitors before the break, in a contest that was still level at 17-17 until the 58th minute.

By David Williams Glamorgan’s Australian run-machine Marnus Labuschagne enjoys winning games for his team more than any personal milestone, the 27-year-old said after his sixth test century consolidated the position of the hosts in the second Ashes test against England on Friday. The South Africa-born Labuschagne – who is due to return to play for […]