New Wales winger Lowri Norkett says she has achieved her dream by wearing the Welsh jersey in honour of her late sister Elli.
Lowri took the field for her first rugby union cap against Canada on Saturday in Halifax, with her parents Kim and Caroline travelling more than 2,500 miles to take in the special occasion.
The night before, the Welsh camp had presented Lowri with a No. 14 jersey (despite her starting on the opposite wing) in a special tribute to Elli, who wore that shirt number. She was highly-regarded in the rugby world and beyond, earning four Wales caps and travelling to a World Cup, but tragically died following a car accident in 2017 aged 20.
After Lowri earned her first cap, where her physicality and pace came to the fore in the World Cup warm-up, she said on social media: "Dream achieved, Norkett legacy continued. That was for you little one - I knew you were with me every step of the way @ellinorkett".
"For me, ever since I started playing rugby I'd always wished and always thought hopefully I'll wear the jersey in honour of my sister one day," she had said pre-match. "She was such a special person, player, and carrying on the Norkett legacy on the pitch is a dream come true for myself and my family. It's been a journey and I’m achieving what has become my own dream but I'm also excited to carry on the Norkett legacy."
Dad Kim and mum Caroline booked their trip to Canada less than a fortnight before the match in the hope Lowri would be selected, and thankfully their gamble paid off.
"We hadn't been away on holiday so we thought we'd take a chance," Kim explained. "It was a gamble that paid off. Obviously we're so pleased and proud of her."
Neither Lowri nor her parents knew about the planned No. 14 jersey tribute, with Kim saying: "It was wonderful. Although she was playing on the left wing they gave her the 14 jersey which Elli played in. It was a lovely memory and tribute, very kind and meant a lot."
Beloved daughter Elli was in her parents' minds as they watched Lowri run out, but in a happy way. "We know Elli would be absolutely delighted," Kim said. "We have great memories of watching Elli and Lowri. You've just got to remember Elli as the character as she was. She would be beaming."
A PE teacher by trade, former Wales netball international Lowri is currently training full-time with Wales ahead of their World Cup campaign kicking off in October and is one of few players in the set-up who are not contracted.
"She's trained and trained and trained, it's what she's always wanted," dad Kim added. "She's gone about it the hard way, she's given a lot up for it. She is a fitness fanatic anyway, she's pushed her own boundaries."
Lowri first fell in love with rugby when featuring in Elli's memorial match, went on to play rugby league for Wales, made her union debut off the bench in March in an uncapped match against USA, and now has her coveted first cap to cherish forever. But she really cut her teeth at Swansea RFC, which brought through numerous internationals but sadly has now folded.
"The girls at Swansea were very, very good with her," dad Kim is keen to highlight. "Siwan [Lillicrap] was outstanding with her, bringing her on, giving her game time.
"She went to rugby league to get more experience. There weren't very many strong fixtures in club rugby at the time so she had to find rugby somewhere. She wants to be pushed and gain the experience and keep on growing and play for Wales more."
That looks likely, with Wales head coach Ioan Cunningham dubbing Lowri's debut "excellent" after proclaiming last week that she had "trained the house down".
Such a happy personal occasion was unfortunately not met with a win, however, with Wales going down 31-3 to their Canadian hosts, who showed why they are ranked fourth in the world.
Admittedly, Canada were match-hardened having played four internationals already this summer, while Wales have not been in action since April, but it gives Wales boss Cunningham food for thought ahead of another warm-up, this time against World Cup favourites England on September 14, and then the trip to New Zealand.
Although the squad was disappointed with the result, the over-riding feeling in the camp is that they have all had the chance to test themselves.
Wales Women squad captain Siwan Lillicrap said: “It was so important to have a hit-out against quality opposition like Canada. We’ve had our first proper pre-season as professional athletes and it was vital to measure ourselves in a Test match situation at this stage of our prep for the World Cup.
“We will take a lot of learning from the match and the whole week. Our set-piece improved compared to our training session against Canada on Tuesday, we need to improve our urgency in contact, we allowed Canada too many turnovers but there were lots of positives and lots of things to work on.
“It was a great benchmark for us. Defensively we looked comfortable mostly but we didn’t take the scoring opportunities we had so we will need to work on that. Lots to work on but lots of positives."
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