New Wales Women head coach Sean Lynn says 'things are changing' for his squad after making a big impact in his first few days in the job.
While he was appointed as Ioan Cunningham's successor back in January, Lynn had his first day with his new squad on Monday, less than 24 hours after signing off as Gloucester-Hartpury coach by sealing a third successive Premiership Women's Rugby title. With Wales taking to the field for their first game of the Women's Six Nations in Scotland this weekend, the Swansea-born coach has not had long at all to make his mark.
However, as he named his first team after completing three training sessions, Lynn is confident that he's already made an impression on a squad that has struggled on and off the pitch in recent times. Wales finished bottom of last year's Six Nations, while they were also involved in a "disgraceful" contract dispute that allegedly saw players threatened with being withdrawn from this summer's World Cups if they did not agree to deals.
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But fresh from experiencing that winning feeling yet again with Gloucester-Hartpury, Lynn said he is ready to bring the energy, positivity and "family feel" back to Welsh women's rugby as he addressed the media on Thursday.
"It's an exciting time," he said. "I think we have to understand that this is my third day with the squad. Over these last three days, it's been positive, the excitement is there and we're really excited going up to Scotland on Saturday.
"I've just been me, bringing energy and enthusiasm, bringing that licence to inspire and the girls can see that things are changing here."
"That [contract dispute saga] happened," he added. "[But] I'm coming in and I'm driving standards and everything about us. Also, it's [about] that family feel and the girls are now buzzing around the camp."
After Wales' new head of women's rugby Belinda Moore spoke of the importance of creating the right culture within the squad, Lynn emphasised how important the idea of family is to his coaching philosophy.
"We'll be one big family and we will all be proud of everything we do, we'll be working hard together," he said. "A big part of it for me is getting to know the person, getting to know the family and there are small little things that we are bringing into camp for that.
"For me and my staff, I want to get to know the person and what makes them tick."
Lynn's own family have certainly bought in to what he does, with his wife Vicki inviting the Gloucester-Hartpury squad around for Christmas dinner last year to help shake them out of a slump. It proved to be a turning point in their season and the Wales boss revealed that a similar gesture to his new squad is already in the works.
"You wouldn't believe what she said to me yesterday," he said. "She said 'what are we going to do for the Welsh family then?' The family are all coming up to Edinburgh and they're getting excited. My kids can't wait to get into it.
"As I said, last night, my wife said to me: 'What should we do for the Welsh family, should we put something on for them to get them to know our family as well?'"
Wales captain Hannah Jones has worked with Lynn at Gloucester-Hartpury and hailed him as a "great man" who was helping to put a smile back on the faces of his squad.
"He's a fresh face for some of the girls, but I've obviously worked with Lynny before and he brings that excitement, that family feel," the centre said. "It's going to be an exciting time for us and we're looking forward to getting going against Scotland on Saturday.
"Lynny's a great man. He is excited. He wants to coach us in the women's game, he's Welsh, he's passionate and he's very good with his rugby knowledge. He's going to bring some excitement to the team. We're very excited. We just had a great session now. We're only two sessions in and Rome wasn't built in the day, but we're building.
"I think family is massive, he lives by it himself and it's not just something he throws about easily," Jones added. "I think when you're working towards a common goal off-field, you work that little bit harder for each other on the field. So we're getting the environment right, making sure that we’re working hard but also making sure we're enjoying it and playing with a smile on our faces."
Lynn has named a mix of youth and experience in his first Wales team, with props Maisie Davies and Jenni Scoble and lock Alaw Pyrs handed maiden Test starts. Davies and Scoble join Carys Phillips in the front row, with Abbie Fleming alongside Pyrs in the second row and Georgia Evans, Kate Williams and Bethan Lewis at the base of the scrum.
Jones leads the side alongside Kayleigh Powell in midfield, with Jaz Joyce-Butchers at full-back and Lisa Neumann and Carys Cox on the wings. Keira Bevan and Lleucu George make up the half-back pairing.
Wales: Jasmine Joyce-Butchers; Lisa Neumann, Hannah Jones (capt), Kayleigh Powell, Carys Cox; Lleucu George, Keira Bevan; Maisie Davies, Carys Phillips, Jenni Scoble, Abbie Fleming, Alaw Pyrs, Kate Williams, Bethan Lewis, Georgia Evans.
Replacements: Kelsey Jones, Gwenllian Pyrs, Donna Rose, Gwen Crabb, Bryonie King, Meg Davies, Courtney Keight, Nel Metcalfe.
