Assistant manager Rehanne Skinner hailed an improved display as Wales U17 Women lost 2-1 in their second game against Hungary at Merthyr’s Penydarren Park.

Anna Morphet struck straight from a corner to give Wales the lead but the visitors netted twice after the break to secure the win on Thursday.

The first match in Merthyr on Tuesday had seen Hungary come out 3-1 winners.

Skinner said: “It was a much better performance today than Tuesday. The first half in particular was very good.

“The girls stuck to the game plan much better and we were much more coordinated and organised with everything that we were trying to achieve.

“A couple of people were working extremely hard but as a collective the team worked better together.

“Their shape was much better and their attitude to press was better. The way that they went about the game overall was with a much more positive and aggressive attitude when winning the ball.

“It was a whole different ball game. We’re much happier with the situation but nobody wants to lose. We didn’t want to be in that position.

“Sometimes when you feel under pressure you sometimes make decisions that you usually wouldn’t make. Unfortunately, that caught the team out twice today.

“Next up is team selection, everybody will be focused on that. We still need to work on ensuring that the the players fitness levels are coming in at peak condition ready for the Elite Round in March.”

Morphet, Bronwen Thomas and Ella Powell all had chances before before Morphet fired Wales ahead on 34 minutes with Erin Riden also coming close before the break.
Cassia Pike and Ffion Morgan had chances to increase the lead in the second-half before the Hungarians upped the pressure.

And the visitors capitalised on mistakes and levelled through Luca Papp before Vanessza Nagy bagged the winner.

Midfielder Bronwen Thomas said:“I think we showed a lot more passion and want to put things right.

“I think together, as a team we need to work on keeping the intensity in the second half.

“That was a big thing that allowed them to get back into the game. But I think we can take a lot of positives and build ahead of the Elites in March.

“We can leave feeling better about putting in a better performance and working harder for each other and for the badge.

“Together Stronger really does apply to the group, working and helping each other together.

“Friendlies are brilliant preparation for us, especially when Hungary have also qualified for the Elite Round.

“This has shown us the level of competition we will face in March and what standard we need to get to.

“We qualified for the Elite Round so why can’t we go on further. If we work hard, apply the things that we need to, I don’t see why we can’t.”

Wales face Norway, Denmark and hosts Bosnia and Herzegovina in the UEFA Women’s EURO elite round on March 20th, 22nd and 25th.