Grainger still emotional over Wales departure

Former manager Gemma Grainger says she is still emotional about her departure from Wales earlier this year.

The 42-year-old left in January after nearly three years in charge to become head coach of Norway.

But speaking to a new BBC documentary series, Iconic: The Rise of the Women in Red, Grainger revealed she struggled to tell some of the players she was leaving without crying.

Before news of her departure went public, she insisted on speaking with the senior leadership group at the time of Jess Fishlock, Sophie Ingle and Angharad James.

“Thinking about it now the emotions are so raw for me still,” Grainger said.

“I wanted to be able to tell them what had happened, I wanted to be able to tell them why I’d made my decision.

“I’d text them all, so they had an idea.

“We had a video call and that call was difficult, it was emotional.

“It was like ripping off a bandage.

“It was something that I didn’t think was going to happen and it was happening so quickly.

“What I said to them was that I’ve had an opportunity, I don’t think I can turn that opportunity down, but I was quite emotional.

“For me it was getting through the call without actually crying and just being able to tell them look, I’m sorry, I’ll speak to you again soon.

“As captains, the respect that I owed them was my biggest priority, that they heard from me and not anybody else.”

Grainger led Wales to a World Cup play-off final in 2022

Grainger was appointed as Wales boss in March 2021, becoming the country’s first ever full-time manager solely dedicated to just the women’s senior team.

She signed a new four-year deal in January 2023 after reaching the World Cup play-off final.

“I was approached by Norway and things happened very quickly," added Grainger.

“It wasn’t expected for me, it was a surprise and sometimes the timing of how things are is not always perfect.

“I don’t think there ever would have been a perfect time for me to leave Wales, I certainly didn’t plan to leave at the time that I did and also at the speed that I did as well.

“But I felt like the opportunity that had been put in front of me was the right one for me to take.

“I knew the players were upset, I knew they would be upset with me leaving at that time as well.

“I do believe in the journey, I do believe in the team, that’s still what I believe in.

“I still follow the team closely, I’m still very close to the team but it was a decision that I had to make and my only hope was that the players would understand.

“Everyone in football gets opportunities at different times, them as players when they move to different clubs.

“It didn’t mean that what I said about believing in the journey and believing in the team wasn’t true, it was just something that I felt was the right thing to do for me.”

Wales face Slovakia in a two-legged play-off semi-final as they try to qualify for Euro 2025 which would be their first ever major tournament.

The winner of the tie will then face either Georgia or Republic of Ireland in the final.

Grainger’s Norway are also in the play-offs, they play Albania in the semi-final and then either Northern Ireland or Croatia in the final if they win.

And she is desperate to see both nations reach the finals in Switzerland next year.

“I am Wales’ number one fan,” she said.

“When I am Norway manager now, the first thing I do when I get on the bus is check the Wales score and I text the staff because it means everything to me.

“My dream is that Norway and Wales qualify for Euro 2025 because that would be a huge tick, life complete.”

The final episode of Iconic: The Rise of the Women in Red will be broadcast on BBC Radio Wales and BBC Sounds at 18:30 BST on Monday, 21 October.