Gwylliaid Meirionnydd - From Near-Collapse to Thriving Success
When Tirion Thomas stepped up to coach her under-18s team at just 18 years old, she prevented the girls' section from collapsing. Her intervention, supported by National Lottery funding through Sport Wales, sparked a transformation at Gwylliaid Meirionnydd Female Hub that has seen it explode from a single team to six full girls' teams ranging from under-8s to under-18s.
Building on Decades of National Lottery Investment
The Gwylliaid Meirionnydd Female Hub growth builds on substantial National Lottery investment. Since 1996, host club Bala RFC has received eight National Lottery grants totalling £95,475, with the most significant £80,547 grant in 2005 funding new changing rooms and floodlighting - infrastructure that now supports the flourishing women's and girls' sections.
"National Lottery funding supported me doing those coaching courses and helped buy kits for us. When we first started, we were going out in ancient rugby kit that was down to our knees," Thomas recalls. "Then at the season presentations we were able to buy awards for the girls. That's the part that rewarded the girls and made them want to put more effort in."
Today, Gwylliaid Meirionnydd covers the county of Meirionnydd with around 150 girls aged 8-18 registered in the 2024/25 season. In May 2025, the Under-12s and Under-16s teams won the North Wales cup at Parc Eirias - marking the first time Rugby North Wales has included a girls' competition alongside the boys.
The hub has produced Welsh internationals Mali Jones (Wales Under-18s 2019), Kate Davies (Wales Under-20s 2023, Gwalia Lightning 2024), and Saran Jones (Wales Under-18s 2024 and 2025).
Thomas's contribution was recognised when she was nominated for The National Lottery's The People's Portraits campaign in November 2022, celebrating individuals who have achieved incredible things for women in sport.
As England hosts the Women's Rugby World Cup this summer, we're witnessing the culmination of three decades of National Lottery support that has transformed women and girls' rugby from the grassroots up. This transformation demonstrates how over the last 30 years, by investing over £6 billion into more than 90,000 grassroots clubs and organisations, The National Lottery has been game-changing for women and girls' sport.
The National Lottery raises £30 million for good causes every week, with a significant portion helping to level the playing field for women and girls in sport across the UK - creating opportunities that transform communities, preventing collapse and enabling extraordinary growth that continues to benefit new generations of female rugby players.
As England hosts the Women's Rugby World Cup this summer, we're witnessing the culmination of three decades of National Lottery support that has transformed women and girls' rugby from the grassroots up. This transformation demonstrates how over the last 30 years, by investing over £6 billion into more than 90,000 grassroots clubs and organisations, The National Lottery has been game-changing for women and girls' sport.
The National Lottery raises £30 million for good causes every week, with a significant portion helping to level the playing field for women and girls in sport across the UK - creating opportunities that transform communities, preventing collapse and enabling extraordinary growth that continues to benefit new generations of female rugby players.
