Wales had not recorded a victory since their Euro 2025 play-off triumph over the Republic of Ireland last December, and pressure had mounted through a run of nine defeats and three draws.
Wilkinson said the scrutiny had taken its toll.
“I can pretend all I want that the string of results, the questions I have had to answer, haven't bothered me,” she said.
“But it is a burden. One of the players said 'now you don't have to answer the question'. It's true.”
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The win over Euro 2025 quarter-finalists Switzerland — achieved through goals from Sophie Ingle, Hannah Cain and Lily Woodham — brought overdue relief at the end of a difficult 2025.
“It's nice to end [the year] with a win against a very good team who gave it their all. I don't have much to say other than I am really proud,” Wilkinson added.
Ingle was the standout performer, involved in all three goals.
Wilkinson even joked about her attacking output:
“Clearly, Sophie Ingle is our next Jess Fishlock in front of net. We talked about that, we’ve got to be holding ourselves to account in front of net and you don’t usually create as many chances as we did the other night (Friday’s 1-1 draw with South Korea).”
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But the head coach emphasised that the performance was just as important as ending the run.
“A win is one thing, a performance is another. So many different moments in the game and they absolutely rose to the occasion. I’m a proud coach today.”
Wales’ poor run had come against mainly strong opposition.
They went winless through the Nations League, suffering defeats to Denmark and Italy and drawing twice with Sweden.
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Their Euro 2025 campaign ended with heavy losses against the Netherlands, France and England, while October’s friendlies brought a narrow defeat to Australia and a 5-2 loss to Poland.
Wilkinson said the level of opposition had been a deliberate test.
“I think every game we've played this year has been against teams that are ranked higher than us,” she said.
“It was a tough year as a result because we pushed ourselves.”
Switzerland — ranked eight places above Wales — were no exception, but Wilkinson said her players had finally produced the decisive moments that had been missing for most of the year.
“We've been going toe-to-toe for a while now and knocking on the door, and this was the performance we needed, especially at the end of a tough year.”
She also said Wales’ growth was becoming clearer despite the results.
“Everyone's brought up our recent string of results and I understand that, but equally you can see that this is a team that is almost unrecognisable, I would say, because of how confident they are on the ball,” she said.
“This is a really good team and, as soon as they start believing that, I think we'll be in a great spot.”
Wales now turn to 2027 World Cup qualifying, beginning in March with fixtures against Czechia and Montenegro.
They will also meet Albania in Nations League Group B1, which doubles as the opening phase of World Cup qualification.
Wales results in 2025
Italy 1-0 Wales (Nations League, February 21st)
Wales 1-1 Sweden (Nations League, February 25th)
Wales 1-2 Denmark (Nations League, April 4th)
Sweden 1-1 Wales (Nations League, April 8th)
Denmark 1-0 Wales (Nations League, May 30th)
Wales 1-4 Italy (Nations League, June 3rd)
Wales 0-3 Netherlands (Euro 2025, July 5th)
France 4-1 Wales (Euro 2025, July 9th)
England 6-1 Wales (Euro 2025, July 13th)
Wales 1-2 Australia (friendly, 25th October)
Wales 2-5 Poland (friendly, 28th October)
Wales 1-1 South Korea (friendly, 28th November)
Wales 3-2 Switzerland (friendly, 2nd December)
