Wilkinson Relishing Special Time With Wales

Leah Wilkinson makes a record 142nd appearance for Wales when the women’s hockey team get their Commonwealth Games campaign underway on Thursday – but it will also be a first.

The vastly-experienced defender will be skippering the team for the maiden time in the Pool opener against India at the Gold Coast Hockey Centre.

Wilkinson jointly holds the record of 141 caps with former skipper Abi Welsford but will set the record outright having taken over the captain’s armband from her former team-mate.

“It will be a special day for me with the record as I will also get to captain the team for the first time as well,” said Wilkinson, a history teacher and Head of Year at Ewell Castle School in Surrey.

“For them to come hand-in-hand is special. It’s my third Commonwealths as well.

“When you have played for as long as I have, since 2004, then Thursday will be right up there in terms of memories.”

Notching up so many caps in a 14-year international career is an achievement in any sport – even for a full-time professional.

But when you are also holding down a demanding job as well takes a huge level of commitment.

The 31-year-old added: “My day sometime is incredibly long. I am up at 6am and doing a horrible running session before I have got to go and teach a few history lessons then it’s back to the gym after work.

“Then we have our club commitments as well. But I wouldn’t change for the world and I feel very, very lucky to have a good job and get to play international sport.

“When you’re an athlete and you know you can’t play for ever, then I’m just treasuring the moments I can play at the elite level.

“To get the chance to play sport in Australia, with the big crowds, you cannot get better than that.”

Wales, ranked 26 in the world, face India (ranked No 10), second seeds England South Africa (No 14) and Malaysia (No 22) in their pool

“You don’t know which games are going to be the hard ones, but we are ranked ninth out of ten teams here,” said Wilkinson, who was vice-captain in Glasgow 2014.

“We’re going out there to give 100 per cent, try to play the Welsh way, our way and see how we do.

“It’s quite nice in a way as there are no expectations so we really have the underdogs status. It’s not a status we think we are ourselves, but it does take the pressure of us.

“As long as we play our hockey and achieve what we want in preparation for the Europeans in 2019 then I think we will be happy.”

But Wilkinson is relishing the chance to face England – including eight of the squad that won gold for GB in Rio in 2016 – given the Welsh players are also based in England.

“It’s always interesting playing England because you really are playing against your club-mates,” said Wilkinson, who plays for Holcombe.

“They’re people you play with week in week out. Ironically they are the people we see more than the players I’ll be out on a pitch with here.

“There is a lot of rivalry there but when step onto the pitch you know the way they play, you know the coaching staff and things like that.

“But Wales v England, you never know the result, it’s always a game full of passion and rivalry and it’s one of the games you relish playing in.”