User:Catch Red Owl/Siwan Lillicrap

Siwan Lillicrap (born 27 September 1987) is a Welsh Rugby Union player and current captain of the Wales women's national rugby union team. She plays second row for Wales and Bristol Bears. Lillicrap made her debut for Wales in 2016, and captained the team at the 2020 and 2021 Women's Six Nations Championship.

Club career
Lillicrap's interest in rugby was piqued at a young age, when she would spend her childhood weekends at Waunarlwydd RFC, watching her father coach and brother play. With no girls' team at the club or in her local area, Lillicrap had to wait until she was 17 to join the women's side.

She played for Waunarlwydd while at university and in 2011 moved to Neath RFC. In 2020 Lillicrap moved to the English top flight to represent Bristol Bears in the Premier 15s.

International career
After spending almost five years in the extended Wales squad, Lillicrap earned her first cap for Wales at the 2016 Women's Six Nations Championship, making her international debut against Ireland as a second half replacement for Rebecca Rowe. Her impressive performance meant she was then named in the starting team for the match against Scotland a week later at the Gnoll.

Lillicrap was made Wales skipper in autumn 2019, where she captained Wales to test wins over Ireland and Scotland ahead of the 2020 Women's Six Nations Championship. She captained the team again during the 2021 Women's Six Nations Championship.

Personal life
As a child, Lillicrap attended Ysgol Gyfun Gwyr, a Welsh language secondary school in Gowerton, Swansea. She then studied at Swansea University, graduating with a degree in sports science in 2009.

Since 2017 she has served as Head of Rugby for Swansea University, looking after more than 300 players from both the men's and women's rugby programmes, from participation level up to high performance. Previously, she was the university’s Sport Development Officer – a role she previously held at Cardiff University.