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They inspired a nation - now, Wales' footballers are heading | :00:00. | :00:11. | |
Welcome to this special programme from BBC Wales. | :00:12. | :00:26. | |
# When Gareth Bale plays, we can beat any side | :00:27. | :00:32. | |
# With Ashley Williams, we can win any fight... | :00:33. | :00:47. | |
I hope you've got the afternoon off, because there's a party planned | :00:48. | :00:50. | |
for the Wales football team, and you're all invited. | :00:51. | :00:55. | |
So stay with us here on BBC One Wales | :00:56. | :00:57. | |
as we bring you the story of the Wales | :00:58. | :01:00. | |
Their plane is expected to land at Cardiff Airport any moment now, | :01:01. | :01:09. | |
followed by an open-top bus parade in the streets, before arriving | :01:10. | :01:18. | |
here at the Cardiff City Stadium for a special show. | :01:19. | :01:32. | |
Over to our man Iwan Griffiths. And I have just heard word, we are | :01:33. | :01:40. | |
expecting the plane to arrive at about 2.30 five. We have had a | :01:41. | :01:44. | |
little false start. Another plane has actually just arrived from | :01:45. | :01:49. | |
Greece. As you see, the crowds are gathering, the atmosphere is lovely | :01:50. | :01:54. | |
here this afternoon. They will be walking in this direction, down | :01:55. | :01:59. | |
through arrivals, greeted by these wonderful scenes, local children | :02:00. | :02:05. | |
from a local primary school and another school mile from Freetown. | :02:06. | :02:10. | |
They have been practising singing the anthem for the last few minutes. | :02:11. | :02:14. | |
They are ready to greet the team as they arrive. -- from Barry. And here | :02:15. | :02:23. | |
is a lovely banner to welcome the team. Chris Coleman, the manager, | :02:24. | :02:30. | |
has been speaking to the press this morning in Dinard, basically saying | :02:31. | :02:33. | |
how much of a bubble they have been in over the last four or five weeks. | :02:34. | :02:39. | |
I have been in that bubble as well, unaware of what this success has | :02:40. | :02:42. | |
meant to the nation. Well, this is what it means, and thousands more | :02:43. | :02:49. | |
fans will be lining the streets over the next hour or so as the team | :02:50. | :02:55. | |
arrives. So, yes, the first flight has arrived from Greece. Not the | :02:56. | :03:00. | |
players, as you see. But in about four or five minutes, they will | :03:01. | :03:04. | |
arrive to be greeted by the First Minister, Carwyn Jones, before they | :03:05. | :03:10. | |
embark on that historic, memorable, I'm sure, tour of the city centre. | :03:11. | :03:20. | |
For now, back to you. Thank you very much, Iwan. We will be back to you | :03:21. | :03:26. | |
throughout the afternoon. The Wales players started the day in their | :03:27. | :03:30. | |
base in Brittany, Dinard, which they have called home for the last five | :03:31. | :03:32. | |
weeks. Let's see what Chris Coleman had to | :03:33. | :03:49. | |
say at his final press conference. We need to keep washing. That means | :03:50. | :03:55. | |
we need to start straightaway. August, September comes around and | :03:56. | :04:00. | |
we are back into it. So we have got to work pretty quickly. I think it | :04:01. | :04:05. | |
is great for Welsh football, for the Wales nation. Forget football, as a | :04:06. | :04:09. | |
nation, but we can feel proud. We were watching the game last night, | :04:10. | :04:16. | |
and you feel a twinge of jealousy because those two teams are still | :04:17. | :04:21. | |
going at it. You see them celebrating at the end. That's where | :04:22. | :04:25. | |
we wanted to be. It is a compliment to our boys, because we have not | :04:26. | :04:30. | |
just sat there and thought, we have got to the semifinal. There is still | :04:31. | :04:35. | |
not a disappointment - and I quite like that. The players will return | :04:36. | :04:41. | |
as heroes. For the fans, well, they expected maybe a fortnight in | :04:42. | :04:42. | |
France. Many expected just a fortnight | :04:43. | :04:47. | |
in France, but Chris Coleman's men went further than anyone | :04:48. | :04:50. | |
could have imagined - He's scuffed it, but it's the best | :04:51. | :04:52. | |
scuff you will ever see! And so now at Euro 2016, | :04:53. | :05:06. | |
a very British affair. He's played it in low - | :05:07. | :05:11. | |
and it's into the net! We are confident, we | :05:12. | :05:20. | |
are in good spirits. Oh, it's an own goal, | :05:21. | :05:38. | |
Gareth McAuley has steered Robson-Kanu, what a fantastic | :05:39. | :05:44. | |
piece of skill from him. One of the greatest performances | :05:45. | :06:07. | |
in the history of British football. Could they repeat their | :06:08. | :06:18. | |
heroics in Lyon tonight? Wales take the game to | :06:19. | :06:21. | |
Portugal straightaway. And it's turned past | :06:22. | :06:24. | |
Hennessey in for two. All over in Lille, | :06:25. | :06:35. | |
all over for Wales. There's lots of positives for us, | :06:36. | :06:38. | |
there's loads to take back. I think this team has got | :06:39. | :06:44. | |
more success in them. We've just got to make sure we go | :06:45. | :06:50. | |
and get it. Keeping me company is the chief | :06:51. | :07:04. | |
executive of the FA W Trust. And also a former manager and | :07:05. | :07:08. | |
commentator. Starting with you, Mark, did we ever think this day | :07:09. | :07:13. | |
would come? Absolutely unbelievable, for Wales to reach a semifinal of a | :07:14. | :07:17. | |
European Championship was beyond my dreams, and I think everybody else's | :07:18. | :07:24. | |
as well. Just to interrupt you, the plane is now landing at Cardiff | :07:25. | :07:29. | |
airport. So many people have waited for this moment. Schoolchildren | :07:30. | :07:33. | |
waiting with flags to cheer them on. The Wales squad, who have achieved | :07:34. | :07:40. | |
so much over the last few weeks, now finally arrived home here in Wales. | :07:41. | :07:47. | |
Let's talk to you, Neil ward - how far did you really think Wales would | :07:48. | :07:53. | |
get in this tournament? I heard Chris took about it kill could times | :07:54. | :07:56. | |
and his target was to get out of the group. He felt that was achievable. | :07:57. | :08:01. | |
So to progress to the semifinal was beyond our wildest expectations, | :08:02. | :08:08. | |
really. How will you capitalise now on this success? We have got a | :08:09. | :08:12. | |
number of projects planned which we have been working on in the lead up | :08:13. | :08:15. | |
to the tournament and throughout the tournament. We have been having club | :08:16. | :08:20. | |
recruitment days, we have launched a pack for primary schools to work on, | :08:21. | :08:25. | |
which has achieved 10,000 downloads in the last few weeks. Incredible | :08:26. | :08:28. | |
feedback we have had from schools on that. We are trying to encapsulate | :08:29. | :08:34. | |
the enthusiasm behind this. We are not going to do anything different. | :08:35. | :08:38. | |
We think this will give it an extra catalyst to drive forward what we | :08:39. | :08:41. | |
have been doing and planning for the last ten years, really. The FA W | :08:42. | :08:47. | |
will have earned earned millions and millions of pounds during this | :08:48. | :08:51. | |
tournament. Will you be asking for the chief executive to get out his | :08:52. | :08:55. | |
cheque-book to make sure that the grassroots will do well over the | :08:56. | :08:59. | |
next few years? I'm always asking that question, believe you me. But I | :09:00. | :09:04. | |
think Jonathan will point out that the tournament itself has been | :09:05. | :09:07. | |
costly in terms of the resources going into prepare the team and give | :09:08. | :09:11. | |
them everything they needed to be successful. I think that has proved | :09:12. | :09:16. | |
dividends. I think now the team are back, once the dust settles, there | :09:17. | :09:20. | |
will be some consideration about how we invest those monies in the | :09:21. | :09:25. | |
future. Mark Jones, a former manager in the Welsh Premier League - do you | :09:26. | :09:29. | |
expect to see a surge in interest in the Welsh Premier League, or is that | :09:30. | :09:35. | |
completely separate from the national team? I don't think it is | :09:36. | :09:40. | |
completely separate. There is an early bit of good news, that one of | :09:41. | :09:44. | |
our clubs qualify for the second round of the Europa League last | :09:45. | :09:50. | |
night. They won out in Norway 1-0. So they have started it off. Let's | :09:51. | :09:55. | |
finish it. It's fantastic what they have done. And I hope it goes down | :09:56. | :10:06. | |
to the grassroots. At the moment, it is a dream to be part of Welsh | :10:07. | :10:11. | |
football. I just want to ask you, would it help if more players went | :10:12. | :10:16. | |
on to reach the highest level and represent their country? Of course | :10:17. | :10:22. | |
it would. We did have a centre forward, Tom Bradshaw, from Walsall, | :10:23. | :10:26. | |
in the Welsh squad. He was touted as, he may have gone to France, but | :10:27. | :10:31. | |
he was injured before the start. That is basically what the Welsh | :10:32. | :10:34. | |
Premier would really need, somebody from the Welsh Premier League to | :10:35. | :10:40. | |
actually make the national squad. Mark, with the plane just taxiing | :10:41. | :10:46. | |
here at Cardiff airport, and the firefighters, is that a guard of | :10:47. | :10:56. | |
honour for the Miller when the Wales team left for the tournament. Of | :10:57. | :10:59. | |
course they went to Sweden first for that friendly, and then straight to | :11:00. | :11:07. | |
France. I can remember the England rugby World Cup squad coming home, | :11:08. | :11:11. | |
Heathrow airport, decked out with English flags and everything. Well, | :11:12. | :11:17. | |
our lads have gone, they have not won the European Championships but | :11:18. | :11:21. | |
they have done everything bar when it. And that's why there are going | :11:22. | :11:25. | |
to get the reception they deserve. I don't think the players will | :11:26. | :11:28. | |
understand what is going to hit them now. They have been in a bit of a | :11:29. | :11:33. | |
bubble out in France. You're not quite sure what the reaction will be | :11:34. | :11:38. | |
at home. When they get out of the plane and go through the terminal | :11:39. | :11:42. | |
and get onto that bus journey, I think they will be blown away with | :11:43. | :11:45. | |
the reaction they will get. What will this mean to them? I think come | :11:46. | :11:49. | |
as Neil said, it will bring it all home. The amount of support they had | :11:50. | :11:55. | |
in France was absolutely unbelievable. I was lucky enough to | :11:56. | :12:00. | |
be there at the semifinal, and the crowd reaction, when they got beat, | :12:01. | :12:06. | |
they were in tears. The French people could not believe the amount | :12:07. | :12:09. | |
of passion that the Welsh supporters were showing for their team. We are | :12:10. | :12:13. | |
just moments away now. Over to you, Iwan. A flight has just landed from | :12:14. | :12:23. | |
Greece, so crowds coming through here getting cheered. What a welcome | :12:24. | :12:32. | |
home from holiday! And another funny moment - a young gentleman wearing a | :12:33. | :12:37. | |
Swansea City shirt being booed slightly, in a funny manner. One | :12:38. | :12:44. | |
quick point, in France over the last month, it appears that the Welsh | :12:45. | :12:50. | |
football fans have really gathered around this Welsh team. It has | :12:51. | :12:53. | |
brought some unity within Welsh fans. It has been four weeks of | :12:54. | :13:03. | |
festive fun, really. The crowds and supporters have been really well | :13:04. | :13:05. | |
behaved and just enjoyed the festive party atmosphere in France. As you | :13:06. | :13:12. | |
see, the flags are out, the local school children here from Penarth | :13:13. | :13:22. | |
are waiting for the arrival of the squad. As you have said, they have | :13:23. | :13:26. | |
arrived, but we are waiting for them. It is a special day, isn't it? | :13:27. | :13:34. | |
It is a very special day, especially for these children from school who | :13:35. | :13:37. | |
have been invited to come and welcome the Welsh team home. It is | :13:38. | :13:42. | |
something they will remember for years to come? Definitely, for some | :13:43. | :13:47. | |
of these children this is the chance of a lifetime. And when it comes to | :13:48. | :13:52. | |
looking forward to the future, the success the Welsh team have had, is | :13:53. | :13:56. | |
it something to inspire young boys and girls to go on and play? Most | :13:57. | :14:01. | |
definitely. Lots of these young children are already playing | :14:02. | :14:05. | |
football in school. Did you enjoy the tournament? Yes. And who is your | :14:06. | :14:19. | |
favourite player? Gareth Bale. Would you like to go on and play more | :14:20. | :14:27. | |
football yourself? Yes. I will keep an eye out for you. How excited are | :14:28. | :14:33. | |
you at this moment? So excited. Back to you. | :14:34. | :14:50. | |
So, we are now waiting for the players to emerge. I understand they | :14:51. | :14:56. | |
will be fast tracked through the system. No queues for the Wales | :14:57. | :15:03. | |
players. Just River Severn idea of the backroom staff, Neil. What does | :15:04. | :15:07. | |
it take to get this team out performing well on the pitch? -- | :15:08. | :15:13. | |
just give us an idea. There is a group of staff who have been working | :15:14. | :15:17. | |
tirelessly throughout the tournament, making sure everything | :15:18. | :15:20. | |
is in place, making sure the hotels are ready, the travel connections | :15:21. | :15:24. | |
work correctly. And then obviously, you have got the coaching staff | :15:25. | :15:29. | |
behind them - conditioning coaches, mental skills coaches, | :15:30. | :15:32. | |
physiotherapists, it is a very significant backroom staff. | :15:33. | :15:38. | |
The red carpet being put in its place. The wider -- the weather in | :15:39. | :15:46. | |
Cardiff is cloudy, much better in Lyon yesterday. The dignitaries are | :15:47. | :15:51. | |
getting in place. The First Minister Carwyn Jones ready to greet the | :15:52. | :15:55. | |
players as they come off on the official photographer, who has been | :15:56. | :15:58. | |
taking snaps of the players. You may have seen them on social media over | :15:59. | :16:04. | |
the last few months. Unbelievable, David Griffiths there, the president | :16:05. | :16:08. | |
of the Welsh FA, Jonathan Ford, Jonathan came home yesterday but | :16:09. | :16:12. | |
obviously very proud to be stuck there. That's a great moment because | :16:13. | :16:17. | |
he was with the football club for about 30 years and he's been a Welsh | :16:18. | :16:23. | |
FA member for 30-40 years, so proud moment for David Griffiths. He must | :16:24. | :16:26. | |
have enjoyed some pretty bad times when it comes to Welsh football over | :16:27. | :16:31. | |
the years. Definitely, he is lucky because they change the president | :16:32. | :16:34. | |
every two years and after all this time, as they were saying, met him | :16:35. | :16:39. | |
the other night, Dave, you hit the jackpot, you got on at the right | :16:40. | :16:43. | |
time. He was lucky. We've had some barren years but this is absolutely | :16:44. | :16:47. | |
unbelievable. We are just waiting now for the players to emerge. Who | :16:48. | :16:50. | |
will lead them out? The manager Chris Coleman, taking Wales further | :16:51. | :16:56. | |
than any other Wales manager, to the semifinals of the European | :16:57. | :17:00. | |
Championships. The technical director behind him, his assistant, | :17:01. | :17:06. | |
walking down the steps, all smiles. I wonder whether they truly | :17:07. | :17:09. | |
appreciate what's about to happen, the crowds that are waiting for them | :17:10. | :17:17. | |
in a centre of Cardiff. Ashley Williams there, a goal-scorer | :17:18. | :17:21. | |
against Belgium. It took Wales through to the semifinals. People | :17:22. | :17:26. | |
wondered whether his tournament was over when he injured his shoulder | :17:27. | :17:30. | |
against Northern Ireland, but he powered on through, he was | :17:31. | :17:36. | |
determined not to miss that game. It's great to see the assistance, | :17:37. | :17:44. | |
and unsung heroine many ways, the technical director, he makes a huge | :17:45. | :17:50. | |
contribution to the Trust and the coaching programme that has been put | :17:51. | :17:53. | |
in place is recognised as world class. He's a great supporter of | :17:54. | :17:59. | |
Chris, he's a student of the game, he studies all aspects of the game, | :18:00. | :18:03. | |
always looking to increase his knowledge and understanding of it, | :18:04. | :18:07. | |
always looking to make those small marginal gains that people talk | :18:08. | :18:12. | |
about really essential to be successful in high-performance | :18:13. | :18:14. | |
sport. It's good to see him there beside Chris, enjoying the moment. | :18:15. | :18:19. | |
Now for the photocall. It was only a few weeks ago they were having this | :18:20. | :18:23. | |
very same photo ahead of the tournament. Back then, no one knew | :18:24. | :18:28. | |
how far they would go. Just 90 minutes away from a major tournament | :18:29. | :18:29. | |
final. It's been a busy few days for them. | :18:30. | :18:46. | |
Mark, what do you make of that video which emerged on social media, some | :18:47. | :18:58. | |
of them doing a haka, half naked? They've earned the right to do what | :18:59. | :19:03. | |
they want, they work so hard, they have worked tirelessly over the last | :19:04. | :19:07. | |
five weeks, they have to have some down time and there are way of | :19:08. | :19:11. | |
enjoying it is by being together. You can see how close they are, and | :19:12. | :19:17. | |
unbelievable close-knit group of players. When you are cocooned in a | :19:18. | :19:21. | |
hotel for a number of weeks you find different ways of entertaining | :19:22. | :19:25. | |
yourselves. I don't think there was any disrespect meant behind it. It | :19:26. | :19:28. | |
was just part of the entertainment they put on for the evening. And | :19:29. | :19:37. | |
Aaron Ramsey there, that blonde hairdo. I suspected at one point | :19:38. | :19:41. | |
that all the players had that hairdo done before the tournament, just to | :19:42. | :19:45. | |
emulate the Romanian team from a few years ago. When he had his hair dyed | :19:46. | :19:52. | |
blond, but Ramsey, if it makes you play as good as Aaron Ramsey, there | :19:53. | :19:56. | |
will be a lot of hairdressing salons being, getting footballers asking | :19:57. | :20:03. | |
for blonde dies in the next few weeks because Ramsey was tremendous | :20:04. | :20:08. | |
in the tournament. A big loss in the semifinal. A big loss in the | :20:09. | :20:13. | |
semifinal, his stock has gone up, Arsenal will be aware of Barcelona | :20:14. | :20:16. | |
and Real Madrid, they will be coming for Ramsey. Do you see him going | :20:17. | :20:21. | |
abroad? Absolutely, the standout midfielder of the tournament for me. | :20:22. | :20:28. | |
Was it a risk by the FAW, they had a participation fee, they spent all of | :20:29. | :20:33. | |
that, was that a risk for the FAW? Should they have kept a bit of money | :20:34. | :20:37. | |
back, because back then we didn't know how well they would do? I think | :20:38. | :20:41. | |
Jonathan sat down with Chris and decided what would it take to be | :20:42. | :20:45. | |
successful, to give the team the best chance possible. We didn't want | :20:46. | :20:49. | |
to be happy tourists. We wanted to go out there and give it our best | :20:50. | :20:53. | |
shot. In order to do that you need to fund it proportionally. That was | :20:54. | :20:58. | |
what we aimed to do and it stood them in good stead. OK, let's head | :20:59. | :21:03. | |
to the airport. Have you managed to catch a glimpse of them yet? | :21:04. | :21:07. | |
Not yet, the anticipation is building. We are hearing they are | :21:08. | :21:13. | |
moments away. I see the local school children here with their banners, | :21:14. | :21:18. | |
with notepads as well, they are hoping to grab may be an autograph | :21:19. | :21:24. | |
from some of the stars, some of the heroes from the last four weeks and | :21:25. | :21:29. | |
all with phones in hand as well, waiting for that picture, maybe a | :21:30. | :21:35. | |
selfie with Aaron Ramsey, maybe with Gareth Bale, Joe Ledley, those who | :21:36. | :21:40. | |
have been playing so well over the last months in Paris. We are now | :21:41. | :21:48. | |
seeing the snappers coming through, I imagined the arrival of the Welsh | :21:49. | :21:51. | |
football squad is imminent. It's interesting to see these young | :21:52. | :21:58. | |
children here today. Who knows, these may be the footballers of the | :21:59. | :22:02. | |
future, something that Chris Coleman spoke about this morning. This isn't | :22:03. | :22:07. | |
the end of the journey for Wales, for the Wales football squad. He | :22:08. | :22:10. | |
once this current squad to be in place after he leaves as manager, | :22:11. | :22:18. | |
but he also wants to make sure that Euro 26 isn't just the end of the | :22:19. | :22:24. | |
road for Wales in major tournaments -- Euro 2016. He wants to qualify | :22:25. | :22:28. | |
for the World Cup in 2018. He wants to qualify for major competitions on | :22:29. | :22:35. | |
a biannual basis, by then hopefully these kinds of scenes, well, they | :22:36. | :22:42. | |
will be accustomed to them, but it's been special, hasn't it? These | :22:43. | :22:48. | |
scenes, I hope, I know, we'll really resonate with the Welsh players as | :22:49. | :22:55. | |
they come through, they are special scenes. We turn quickly to a | :22:56. | :22:58. | |
gentleman here, I know that you have been following the team for years? | :22:59. | :23:06. | |
Yes, I've been for 30 or 40 years. It's the best feeling I've ever had. | :23:07. | :23:12. | |
Do you remember 1958? I do, exactly, and that was brilliant. It was | :23:13. | :23:21. | |
brilliant. This really surpasses it, to be honest. This is different, | :23:22. | :23:24. | |
just because we all know by now that the players came back from the World | :23:25. | :23:28. | |
Cup in 1958 and nobody knew really what had happened. They didn't. It's | :23:29. | :23:34. | |
amazing, coming back, watching them come back. When we started with a | :23:35. | :23:40. | |
qualifying in this tournament I thought right, they are on the road | :23:41. | :23:44. | |
here, let's go. But to get to the semifinal is absolutely brilliant. | :23:45. | :23:52. | |
I've been in a bubbling byes-macro in France for the last two years -- | :23:53. | :23:58. | |
I've been in a bubbling Dinard. What's it be like here? It's been | :23:59. | :24:04. | |
grabbing a sandwich and back to the telly, what time are Wales kicking | :24:05. | :24:10. | |
off? We get sad points where we lost to England, we overcame that. We | :24:11. | :24:15. | |
forget about that today. A word about the squad. Chris Coleman? He's | :24:16. | :24:19. | |
been brilliant. He took over from Gary Speed. In difficult | :24:20. | :24:27. | |
circumstances. He lost a few matches when he first came, Chris Coleman, | :24:28. | :24:32. | |
and they didn't have a side together as they had today. We have three or | :24:33. | :24:38. | |
four world-class players now, haven't we? And there is hope for | :24:39. | :24:42. | |
the future, this isn't the end, this current side. Like Coleman has said, | :24:43. | :24:49. | |
he wants to carry on, they are going to a World Cup now. If we can win a | :24:50. | :24:54. | |
few of those first matches in a World Cup we are on our way again. | :24:55. | :24:58. | |
In September they will play games, we are still waiting, let's turn for | :24:59. | :25:02. | |
a quick word I suppose you've been enjoying. A few years. Really? Tears | :25:03. | :25:16. | |
of joy? Let's turn now, the -- from the Cheers I assume the arrival of | :25:17. | :25:21. | |
the team is imminent. They will be ushered through this area, this | :25:22. | :25:25. | |
narrow channel of screaming schoolchildren, then they will pose | :25:26. | :25:29. | |
in front of a banner that is behind me, welcome home, boys, we are so | :25:30. | :25:36. | |
proud of you, that is the message. Dinard speaks WELSH. That's the | :25:37. | :25:45. | |
bilingual message, there will pose for a photo opportunity, they are | :25:46. | :25:49. | |
ushered out and outside of this arrival area here, local | :25:50. | :25:53. | |
cheerleading group from the Vale of Glamorgan, they will give us some | :25:54. | :26:00. | |
cheerleading dance, another element of this wonderful day in Cardiff, | :26:01. | :26:06. | |
and they will be ushered on the bus, taken to Cardiff Castle, before the | :26:07. | :26:11. | |
end they embark on a great tour of the city on an open topped bus. | :26:12. | :26:16. | |
Let's just enjoy this atmosphere, the champs have started, the Wales | :26:17. | :26:21. | |
squad are nearing the arrival area of Cardiff. | :26:22. | :26:31. | |
As we see there, the snappers in our sights, so just around the corner, | :26:32. | :26:38. | |
the players have grabbed their bags, they are ready to be welcomed here. | :26:39. | :26:45. | |
There will be some singing as well, the local school children from | :26:46. | :26:49. | |
Fairfield Primary School will be singing. We're enjoying this as | :26:50. | :26:56. | |
well, Chris Coleman in Dinard this morning in the press Conference the | :26:57. | :26:59. | |
gain was reiterating the message that this shouldn't be the end of | :27:00. | :27:05. | |
the line for this squad, we need a new generation of players to carry | :27:06. | :27:10. | |
on, to make sure that Wales develops as a footballing nation. And once | :27:11. | :27:18. | |
they go through this area, outside there is more people waiting for the | :27:19. | :27:23. | |
Wales squad. Again, waiting with their phones, hoping to get a | :27:24. | :27:30. | |
glimpse of the players. As you can hear, there is some chanting... | :27:31. | :27:36. | |
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE CROWD NOISE DROWNS SPEECH some | :27:37. | :27:51. | |
autographs... Those who have enjoyed the experience... Now enjoy this | :27:52. | :27:53. | |
moment. CHEERING I think Chris Coleman is | :27:54. | :29:18. | |
going to run out of ink, isn't he, so many autographs to sign. He knew | :29:19. | :29:24. | |
the squad was coming because of the crescendo, the noise, the atmosphere | :29:25. | :29:27. | |
building up there at the airport. Incredible scenes, I don't know | :29:28. | :29:30. | |
about you guys but I've got goose bumps watching this. Absolutely, it | :29:31. | :29:35. | |
goes to show you the type of character he is. Like Neal said | :29:36. | :29:39. | |
earlier on, he's been like it from the start of the campaign. He's | :29:40. | :29:43. | |
attended schools, charity functions and some of these managers when they | :29:44. | :29:47. | |
reached the top like that they may want to get whisked through but look | :29:48. | :29:51. | |
at him, absolutely fantastic. A nice little kids as well, made her day. | :29:52. | :30:00. | |
Quiz has been such a lot of -- been through such a lot in his short | :30:01. | :30:05. | |
managerial career. He has made it clear how difficult some of the | :30:06. | :30:09. | |
disappointments have been, this is a huge achievement for him. I'm | :30:10. | :30:12. | |
pleased for him, I know everyone else will be pleased for him because | :30:13. | :30:17. | |
he's such a genuine guy. He's very open, he leads the team extremely | :30:18. | :30:22. | |
well and the thing that sets Wales apart is the openness between the | :30:23. | :30:27. | |
team and the fans. A word about this man, Gareth Bale, his profile is | :30:28. | :30:32. | |
such a boost to Welsh football. I would have brought him through on a | :30:33. | :30:36. | |
magic carpet, myself! What a player, having watched him, he's immense, | :30:37. | :30:39. | |
he's immense. He's right up there now. I think if we had won the | :30:40. | :30:43. | |
semifinal the other night he would have been favourite for the Ballon | :30:44. | :30:48. | |
d'Or. He may not get the Ballon d'Or especially of Ronaldo and Portugal | :30:49. | :30:52. | |
win the tournament but he's brilliant, absolutely brilliant. | :30:53. | :30:55. | |
What a moment for these children, the missing school this afternoon | :30:56. | :30:59. | |
but frankly, who cares? They get an opportunity to meet Gareth Bale. | :31:00. | :31:04. | |
Yes, for them it's very much a day that they remember, won't it? This | :31:05. | :31:08. | |
is what we need to capitalise on, this adoration, this huge and easy | :31:09. | :31:15. | |
as for the game. As far as the Trust is concerned that it something we | :31:16. | :31:18. | |
will look to capture, something which is part of the incidental | :31:19. | :31:22. | |
things we have seen. We had a club recruitment day and over 2000 people | :31:23. | :31:24. | |
turned up, unbelievable. Because of the attention on Gareth | :31:25. | :31:37. | |
Bale, a truly global star at around Madrid as well, he has somebody who | :31:38. | :31:41. | |
follows him when he is with Wales as well. But of course we love doing | :31:42. | :31:46. | |
the campaign, but this team is not just about Gareth Bale. Definitely | :31:47. | :31:53. | |
not. Of course he will have a lot of the attention because he cost ?80 | :31:54. | :31:56. | |
million or whatever it was. He is the man. But we always make sure | :31:57. | :32:02. | |
that everything is shared out between the group. The goalkeeper | :32:03. | :32:05. | |
there, Wayne Hennessey, coming through. I think everybody is as | :32:06. | :32:11. | |
important as everybody else. It's what they brought to the squad. | :32:12. | :32:17. | |
Together Stronger has really caught on. I think they have dispelled the | :32:18. | :32:23. | |
myth that they are a one player team. We were speaking the other day | :32:24. | :32:30. | |
about, everybody agreed. It shows you how good the performances have | :32:31. | :32:34. | |
been from the other players as well. Captain fantastic there, he smashed | :32:35. | :32:40. | |
his shoulder. I bet there were a couple of Welsh rugby players | :32:41. | :32:45. | |
looking at him, those rugby boys have been fantastic on social media. | :32:46. | :32:49. | |
We saw him pleading with the management team that he was fine, on | :32:50. | :32:54. | |
that pitch against Northern Ireland. He wanted to carry on and represent | :32:55. | :32:59. | |
his country right to the last. Writes to the last - and that's | :33:00. | :33:03. | |
everything you want from a captain. A brilliant leader. And Chris | :33:04. | :33:09. | |
Coleman, he is expecting a second child. His wife is heavily pregnant. | :33:10. | :33:13. | |
He has time this perfectly. If they had got to the final, it would have | :33:14. | :33:20. | |
been some nervy moments. Definitely. She was out watching the game at the | :33:21. | :33:24. | |
semifinal. I think his young lad was out there as well. We spoke about it | :33:25. | :33:30. | |
earlier on. You can tell there is a togetherness about the whole thing. | :33:31. | :33:33. | |
And that's testament to him and to the Welsh FA for building such a | :33:34. | :33:40. | |
tight squad. Hal Robson-Kanu, currently without a club. I guess he | :33:41. | :33:46. | |
will find one, no problem? I don't think there is any doubt about that. | :33:47. | :33:50. | |
What he has been keen to point out is that it was his choice not to | :33:51. | :33:54. | |
renew the contract. Leaving Reading was by mutual consent. Clearly that | :33:55. | :33:59. | |
has been the right decision for him because there will be many clubs | :34:00. | :34:03. | |
knocking on the door hit his performances, particularly that goal | :34:04. | :34:06. | |
he scored in the quarterfinal. Yes, what a goal that was...? They were | :34:07. | :34:15. | |
trying to call him cry for. It was against Belgium, in the | :34:16. | :34:20. | |
quarterfinals. I think he surprised everybody, including his own | :34:21. | :34:25. | |
team-mates. And I think he surprised the difference as well. | :34:26. | :34:31. | |
Unbelievable, it was a brilliant finish against Courtois, the Chelsea | :34:32. | :34:34. | |
goalkeeper, one of the best in the world. And that goal will stay with | :34:35. | :34:41. | |
Hal Robson-Kanu for ever. We got a glimpse of Owain Fon Williams, one | :34:42. | :34:45. | |
of the goalkeepers, who plays for Inverness Caley Thistle. When you | :34:46. | :34:48. | |
have got a player from Inverness Caley Thistle, and a player from | :34:49. | :34:56. | |
Real Madrid, it is a wide range, but a mixed together, don't they? I | :34:57. | :35:01. | |
think it comes from the top, they have made sure that nobody is dealt | :35:02. | :35:06. | |
with in a better way than the other players. From Bale downwards, the | :35:07. | :35:08. | |
togetherness is absolutely brilliant. David Vaughan, he did not | :35:09. | :35:13. | |
get time on the pitch in the tournament, but he was brilliant in | :35:14. | :35:17. | |
the corner fine campaign. And look at that young fan. He's so lucky, | :35:18. | :35:23. | |
because he has only known Welsh football success. He has not endured | :35:24. | :35:30. | |
decades, like as! I have now been working for 17 years in the game, | :35:31. | :35:35. | |
and there will be many supporters in the intervening period between 1958 | :35:36. | :35:38. | |
and now will not have experienced anything like this. This will be a | :35:39. | :35:44. | |
new role for them and the challenge for us is to make sure that this | :35:45. | :35:47. | |
success is replicated for the future, that it is not just a | :35:48. | :35:52. | |
one-off success, that we continue to build on, qualify for tournaments on | :35:53. | :35:56. | |
a regular basis. We heard some funny stories during the campaign. Neil | :35:57. | :36:01. | |
Taylor there, he missed a Beyonce concert because they thought they | :36:02. | :36:05. | |
might have been home by then. Chris Gunter missed his brother's wedding | :36:06. | :36:08. | |
in Mexico. Sacrifices of varying degrees! Joe Ledley had to postpone | :36:09. | :36:15. | |
his own wedding as well. Well, you know, some things in life have to be | :36:16. | :36:21. | |
done first of all. I think a semifinal, it will not be popular | :36:22. | :36:25. | |
with women, but this is a absolutely massive. He had to carry on playing | :36:26. | :36:30. | |
for his country. I'm sure he can get married again next week! I am just | :36:31. | :36:42. | |
hearing that Joe Ledley isn't here. I think he has gone. I think he has | :36:43. | :36:46. | |
got a lot of preparation work to do head of his big day. I think he left | :36:47. | :36:54. | |
in advance to get across to make his wedding on this occasion. He will be | :36:55. | :36:59. | |
disappointed to miss this. You can see on the players' faces come they | :37:00. | :37:04. | |
are really enjoying this moment. And Joe Ledley has been a real | :37:05. | :37:08. | |
character. We have seen his dance. How much of a character is he in the | :37:09. | :37:12. | |
dressing room? Well, has taken everyone by storm, just with his | :37:13. | :37:19. | |
beard and his dancing. I was in a school the other day and they were | :37:20. | :37:22. | |
all doing the Joe Ledley Downs, singing the Joe Ledley song. It | :37:23. | :37:27. | |
captures the imagination and it is good to have characters like that in | :37:28. | :37:31. | |
your team and you're away in a tournament for that length of time. | :37:32. | :37:35. | |
You need people who can lighten the mood and bring people together, | :37:36. | :37:38. | |
diffusing everything perhaps in the heat of the moment. You need | :37:39. | :37:42. | |
characters who can bring everyone together, as well as the strongly | :37:43. | :37:48. | |
desirable in stark contrast to other nations, Wales have kept it pretty | :37:49. | :37:52. | |
relaxed, they have been photographed on the beach, having a kickabout | :37:53. | :37:56. | |
with locals in Brittany, having an ice cream, we saw Gareth Bale having | :37:57. | :38:01. | |
a milkshake and it has been pretty relaxed? I was at the rushing game | :38:02. | :38:07. | |
and they came off and almost shook everybody's hand. They were | :38:08. | :38:12. | |
absolutely... They came over, enjoyed the moment with the fans, | :38:13. | :38:18. | |
which is why I think the fans pay them so much respect. Plenty of fans | :38:19. | :38:23. | |
waiting for their turn to have just a five second moment with their | :38:24. | :38:29. | |
heroes. An autograph, a selfie... Plenty of cameras, plenty of | :38:30. | :38:36. | |
attention. I think that is key as well. A lot of teams would have been | :38:37. | :38:42. | |
whisked through here. And forget, they have been away for five weeks. | :38:43. | :38:46. | |
They have families waiting to get to and holidays waiting to go on. But | :38:47. | :38:53. | |
that for is testament to how they have come together as a squad, and | :38:54. | :38:59. | |
they've got time for the supporters. This is absolutely brilliant. Did | :39:00. | :39:03. | |
not expect them to be signing autographs for this long. They are | :39:04. | :39:07. | |
just there to please the fans. And that smile says it all. They have | :39:08. | :39:12. | |
been waiting there for over an hour. They were so excited even before the | :39:13. | :39:19. | |
plane arrived. Another chance to have a photo with the players. In | :39:20. | :39:23. | |
terms of the media scrutiny, a lot of our Premier League footballers | :39:24. | :39:28. | |
are used to the cameras and the interviews and the demands upon | :39:29. | :39:33. | |
them. But in terms of Wales, we have seen the media and press mushrooming | :39:34. | :39:37. | |
throughout the tournament - how difficult is it to manage the expect | :39:38. | :39:42. | |
nation from the media? Credit to our media team, they have done a | :39:43. | :39:47. | |
fantastic job in the way they have set up a media centre and created | :39:48. | :39:53. | |
the atmosphere. And I think again, what you're seeing amongst the | :39:54. | :40:00. | |
players is replicated amongst the staff. The warmness, wanting to | :40:01. | :40:05. | |
engage with whoever wants to engage with us. That's what sets us apart. | :40:06. | :40:09. | |
It is what Wales is apart. This is what makes us different as a | :40:10. | :40:14. | |
country. Our attempt in the build-up to the tournament was to become | :40:15. | :40:17. | |
everyone's favourite second-team. And really to raise the profile of | :40:18. | :40:23. | |
Wales and Welsh football throughout the world. Not just Europe, but | :40:24. | :40:29. | |
internationally. I can tell you, having spent five weeks in France, | :40:30. | :40:35. | |
the Wales fans were teaching charts to fans from other nations. Yet I | :40:36. | :40:40. | |
think there is some truth in that. I saw local French people supporting | :40:41. | :40:45. | |
Wales in the latter stages. They were the favourite team with many | :40:46. | :40:50. | |
people in France. I think it is because our first major tournament | :40:51. | :40:54. | |
and we have really gone and enjoyed the tournament. Well, we will just | :40:55. | :41:03. | |
pause now and go back to Iwan Griffiths at the airport. He has got | :41:04. | :41:06. | |
the First Minister, Carwyn Jones, with him. Yes, the squad has now | :41:07. | :41:13. | |
left this area. I am joined by First Minister Carwyn Jones. What an | :41:14. | :41:21. | |
experience? Yes, you can see what it has meant to them. After this it | :41:22. | :41:28. | |
will be the open top bus, and then the stadium. Thousands of people | :41:29. | :41:34. | |
from all over Wales will be in the city tonight to celebrate. You were | :41:35. | :41:37. | |
in France - from your point of view, what was it like and what has this | :41:38. | :41:44. | |
meant to Wales? I was in Lens, that was not so good. I was in Lille | :41:45. | :41:50. | |
joker that was fantastic. The red wall, wherever they have gone, they | :41:51. | :41:54. | |
have left a real impression for Wales. They deserve a lot of credit. | :41:55. | :42:00. | |
All those years of going abroad and people saying, Wales, is that part | :42:01. | :42:04. | |
of England? That has gone. In five weeks we have really made sure that | :42:05. | :42:08. | |
people know that Wales is a country in ourselves. It has been said that | :42:09. | :42:14. | |
this has potentially done more to promote Wales than anything else | :42:15. | :42:19. | |
could? That's right. Football is the biggest sport in the world and this | :42:20. | :42:22. | |
is one of the biggest tournaments in the world. To be in the semifinal - | :42:23. | :42:27. | |
people have heard of you. I was in Paris on Wednesday night, and as I | :42:28. | :42:33. | |
was in the Metro, I could hear people talking about Wales on the | :42:34. | :42:36. | |
Paris Metro. It shows how much people know about Wales now. What | :42:37. | :42:41. | |
can be done now to ensure that this can be built on? We are already on | :42:42. | :42:46. | |
to that. We have got a programme in place to build on the profile. We | :42:47. | :42:51. | |
want more people to take an interest in Wales, to visit and spend money | :42:52. | :42:56. | |
in Wales. Bring jobs to Wales. You can't buy this kind of publicity. It | :42:57. | :43:00. | |
has been incredible to see the awareness about Wales which has | :43:01. | :43:03. | |
flown across the continent and the world. I know you're a sports fan - | :43:04. | :43:07. | |
this is not the end, Wales needs to develop and get to the World Cup | :43:08. | :43:12. | |
next? This is a young team. They have still got a lot in the tank. We | :43:13. | :43:18. | |
have to remember that. Russia next in 2018, and who knows where from | :43:19. | :43:21. | |
there? The experience they have gained will stand them in good stead | :43:22. | :43:27. | |
in the competitions which I know they will qualify for in the future. | :43:28. | :43:31. | |
And to finish this, Carwyn Jones, how will you look back on the last | :43:32. | :43:37. | |
four weeks? A combination of wonder and disbelief - but happiness. I | :43:38. | :43:41. | |
know Wednesday night was maybe a game too far, but look at the whole | :43:42. | :43:46. | |
thing. If I had said to you in May that we would get to the semifinals | :43:47. | :43:50. | |
of the Euros, people would have said, a politician talking nonsense. | :43:51. | :43:54. | |
I was there for the Belgium match, and that was the best I have ever | :43:55. | :43:58. | |
seen a Wales team play against a quality team. For such a small | :43:59. | :44:02. | |
country to get that far in the Euros, we can take some pride in | :44:03. | :44:06. | |
that. Yes, they have made a nation proud. As you say, this is the | :44:07. | :44:12. | |
start. And now onto Cardiff, where the party will go on. For now, back | :44:13. | :44:19. | |
to you. Thank you very much indeed. What do you make of the scenes we | :44:20. | :44:27. | |
have just seen, boys? Incredible. One thing to look at is the average | :44:28. | :44:32. | |
age of the group could be 26. They could be getting stronger as a team, | :44:33. | :44:36. | |
and they will definitely want this again. They say success breeds | :44:37. | :44:41. | |
success. The memories they will have from France, they will want it to | :44:42. | :44:49. | |
happen again. Aaron Ramsey there signing autographs. Chris Coleman | :44:50. | :44:55. | |
has said that this is not the end of the journey - there is more success | :44:56. | :44:59. | |
to come from this side. Qualifiers for the World Cup will be starting | :45:00. | :45:04. | |
here at the Cardiff City stadium in September against Moldova - what are | :45:05. | :45:07. | |
their chances, do you think they will make it to the World Cup? It's | :45:08. | :45:11. | |
going to be tough, people must not it to be easy. What has happened, | :45:12. | :45:16. | |
before, people would have just come and played openly against Wales. | :45:17. | :45:21. | |
Because we got to the semifinal of the competition, they will come here | :45:22. | :45:26. | |
for Wales to break them down. So success can bring you a different | :45:27. | :45:30. | |
sort of problem. But I'm sure we the players to make the next World Cup. | :45:31. | :45:36. | |
We are mindful that it is important we do not catch a cold after this | :45:37. | :45:40. | |
unprecedented success. We have got to build on this now and be ready | :45:41. | :45:44. | |
for September. That's going to come around very quickly. As soon as this | :45:45. | :45:48. | |
finishes, the planning will be going in to making sure that we are ready | :45:49. | :45:52. | |
again for September. So we get a good start, and I think that is | :45:53. | :45:58. | |
important, on the back of this success, that we get a good start | :45:59. | :46:01. | |
and we are ready to go for that match in September. The players now | :46:02. | :46:06. | |
just making their way to the bus. That bus will be heading to the | :46:07. | :46:09. | |
centre of Cardiff, towards Cardiff Castle. Therefore asses Kate Morgan. | :46:10. | :46:16. | |
-- there for us is Kate Morgan. Hundreds have fans have arrived at | :46:17. | :46:29. | |
Cardiff Castle. They are all dressed in their Wales tops, lots of Welsh | :46:30. | :46:33. | |
flags to see. There are 66 Welsh flags on top of the castle alone, | :46:34. | :46:37. | |
the gentleman whose job it was to put them up said it was a long task | :46:38. | :46:41. | |
but well worth doing for this occasion, and what an occasion it | :46:42. | :46:44. | |
is. We are expecting the arrival of the team in the next hour at the | :46:45. | :46:49. | |
castle. When they get here they will board two open top buses just over | :46:50. | :46:59. | |
there. They will head down High Street, onto St Mary Street, also | :47:00. | :47:01. | |
lined by fans, they will turn onto Wood Street near the station and | :47:02. | :47:03. | |
then to Westgate Street, where thousands of fans watched the | :47:04. | :47:06. | |
semifinal earlier this week in the Principality Stadium. They will head | :47:07. | :47:09. | |
over the River Taff onto Leckwith Road with the final destination | :47:10. | :47:13. | |
being their home here, Cardiff City Stadium, for a special concert. Most | :47:14. | :47:17. | |
of the fans are here because they want to glimpse their heroes, this | :47:18. | :47:21. | |
means so much to them. There was a massive cheer not too long ago, when | :47:22. | :47:25. | |
actually the two empty buses arrived. They have turned down onto | :47:26. | :47:31. | |
St Mary Street. They had a huge picture of both teams on the side of | :47:32. | :47:36. | |
them and the words together we are stronger. It's a chance to say thank | :47:37. | :47:42. | |
you for the team, a chance to share in the experience, because they have | :47:43. | :47:47. | |
been on it all of the way. I've been out in France and most of the fans | :47:48. | :47:51. | |
here have made a big journey. They have made the journey out there, | :47:52. | :47:54. | |
they are here to say farewell and thank you and I guess if this | :47:55. | :47:59. | |
journey goes on, it's loud here, it's noisy, people are getting | :48:00. | :48:02. | |
excited, they are swept up in the moment, lots of horns beeping, | :48:03. | :48:07. | |
children cheering, a huge range of ages outside the castle which has | :48:08. | :48:12. | |
been part of the campaign Together Stronger. There were some lifelong | :48:13. | :48:18. | |
fans, a gentleman with his flag and scarf, cheering, singing songs. I'm | :48:19. | :48:21. | |
sure there will be lots more joining in and a little while. There's a | :48:22. | :48:25. | |
sense of anticipation almost as well. They can't quite wait to get | :48:26. | :48:29. | |
the party started here. It won't take too much longer. | :48:30. | :48:35. | |
Kate, not long to go now. Let's pick up on a point that cake made their | :48:36. | :48:44. | |
summer together we are stronger. -- a that Kate made there. What do you | :48:45. | :48:50. | |
make of the language on the shirts, how is -- how important is it for | :48:51. | :48:59. | |
the FAW? I think the FAW can talk about it better than I can but it's | :49:00. | :49:03. | |
been in place for a long time, it's brilliantly both languages being | :49:04. | :49:06. | |
used. There is a deliberate strategy to embrace the language and culture | :49:07. | :49:10. | |
and very much promote that because that is what Wales is about. That is | :49:11. | :49:14. | |
what distinguishes us from other countries. It has gone down | :49:15. | :49:18. | |
extremely well with the public, hasn't it? It's created an identity, | :49:19. | :49:22. | |
that sense of belonging, that sense of working together for the common | :49:23. | :49:27. | |
cause and that's what it's about. That has created an energy and | :49:28. | :49:30. | |
dynamism within the squad and across the fans as well, hasn't it, and | :49:31. | :49:35. | |
proved to be hugely popular. We saw Welsh being used in a press | :49:36. | :49:38. | |
Conference at a Uefa tournament, I saw some of the foreign journalists | :49:39. | :49:43. | |
looking around pretty bemused when questions were answered in Welsh. | :49:44. | :49:46. | |
That's fabulous, it's the language that said -- sets Wales apart from | :49:47. | :49:52. | |
other countries, it makes us different. The media team won a lot | :49:53. | :49:57. | |
of plaudits by using French, by even using baton, so there have been four | :49:58. | :50:02. | |
languages used and that shows you the determination of the leadership | :50:03. | :50:07. | |
team to ensure that we make a good impression on Wales and the rest of | :50:08. | :50:13. | |
the world -- Breton. Joe Allen, a proud Welshman, he speaks Welsh at | :50:14. | :50:18. | |
the press conferences. Let's talk about the players' families. We saw | :50:19. | :50:22. | |
the lovely images of Gareth Bale chasing after his daughter after a | :50:23. | :50:28. | |
match, people taking penalties, cheered on by the Welsh fans but | :50:29. | :50:33. | |
Uefa said there were not happy. Disappointed by that? Disappointed, | :50:34. | :50:39. | |
yes, we'll understand security issues around all games and the FAW | :50:40. | :50:44. | |
has been charged by Uefa on that but we've put in a lot of mitigation on | :50:45. | :50:48. | |
this because obviously it is about that future generation, it is about | :50:49. | :50:52. | |
the inclusivity and it was hugely popular amongst the people in the | :50:53. | :50:55. | |
ground, to see those young kids on the pitch. Some of those goals that | :50:56. | :50:59. | |
were scored in front of the fans got as big a cheer as some of the other | :51:00. | :51:04. | |
goals scored in the game. It was magical to see and it shows you that | :51:05. | :51:07. | |
squad, that openness, that togetherness. The players have blown | :51:08. | :51:12. | |
away those myths of the modern professional player they have shown | :51:13. | :51:17. | |
huge courage, they have shown huge passion, leadership, friendliness | :51:18. | :51:20. | |
and embracing the family ethic as well. It's an important point, that | :51:21. | :51:25. | |
even being out in France for a couple of games the amount of | :51:26. | :51:28. | |
youngsters, you were out there all the time, the amount of youngsters | :51:29. | :51:32. | |
at the game, obviously there was a bit of trouble with time off school | :51:33. | :51:37. | |
but there were thousands of under 15s and under 16s and that is key to | :51:38. | :51:42. | |
the development of Welsh football. The memories of being a live games | :51:43. | :51:46. | |
and seeing all this happening, that is key for the future of Welsh | :51:47. | :51:49. | |
football. How will we gauge success? We speak | :51:50. | :52:09. | |
about legacy. If we come back in a couple of years' time, how will we | :52:10. | :52:13. | |
gauge success? Will it be the number of schoolchildren playing the game? | :52:14. | :52:17. | |
For us, it is about participation as you say. We said two years ago that | :52:18. | :52:22. | |
we were setting ambitious targets for young people to be playing the | :52:23. | :52:26. | |
game, 50% of children playing football at least once a week, | :52:27. | :52:29. | |
increasing our number of junior players playing twice a week from | :52:30. | :52:35. | |
40,000 to 60,000. We have now got a recreational base in the adult game | :52:36. | :52:40. | |
of 300,000 people as well. It is about the health of the game. There | :52:41. | :52:48. | |
are successes and challenges as well. Especially in the senior game. | :52:49. | :52:52. | |
I think these will some of the priorities identified with a funding | :52:53. | :52:56. | |
that's now available through winning the prize money. Talking about the | :52:57. | :53:01. | |
health of the game - we know that there are high levels of obesity in | :53:02. | :53:06. | |
Wales - how does this play into making Wales a healthier nation? | :53:07. | :53:11. | |
That's something we are talking very closely about... I will have to | :53:12. | :53:16. | |
interrupt you, because the bus is leaving. The players and staff are | :53:17. | :53:20. | |
on the bus. Let's hope they have not left anybody behind. With the words | :53:21. | :53:24. | |
Diolch - Together We Are Stronger on the side. For the fans, who waited | :53:25. | :53:30. | |
for quite some time, it has been a moment they will never forget. The | :53:31. | :53:35. | |
bus will make its way to the centre of Cardiff, around 45 Minutes Drive | :53:36. | :53:40. | |
from Cardiff airport. And if you think those crowds were big, well, | :53:41. | :53:45. | |
in Cardiff there are many, many thousands of people lining the | :53:46. | :53:49. | |
streets ready to welcome them. There are some holiday-makers pushing | :53:50. | :53:55. | |
their trolleys off to the check-in. A rather bizarre experience for | :53:56. | :53:59. | |
them. After Magaluf and they have got the Wales team here as well! -- | :54:00. | :54:08. | |
off to Magaluf! I am told that the players, and also the support staff, | :54:09. | :54:12. | |
psychologists, physiotherapists, will be involved. Give us an idea of | :54:13. | :54:18. | |
the scale of the operation? I think overall we have had about 100 staff | :54:19. | :54:22. | |
out in France, either. Working with the east with the media, in terms of | :54:23. | :54:27. | |
stakeholder engagement, in terms of logistical work as well to make sure | :54:28. | :54:31. | |
that the squad can get to where they need to be and get into the hotel | :54:32. | :54:36. | |
and up and running straightaway. It is a big operation. We are not a | :54:37. | :54:40. | |
huge team, by any means. It is about making sure that all the staff have | :54:41. | :54:46. | |
pulled out the stops to make sure they are working extremely hard. | :54:47. | :54:48. | |
There will be a lot of tired people after this. They have got the | :54:49. | :54:53. | |
euphoric nature of the tournament, but now they will be tired after | :54:54. | :54:56. | |
this. Neil Warnock, thank you very much. What an afternoon. Children | :54:57. | :55:01. | |
here, meeting their heroes. And they have been speaking to Iwan | :55:02. | :55:07. | |
Griffiths. Iwan, over to you. Thank you, Tomos. Yes, it is starting to | :55:08. | :55:13. | |
get a bit quieter now. We have got some passengers as well arriving, | :55:14. | :55:17. | |
going through the arrivals here in Cardiff. I am joined by pupils from | :55:18. | :55:22. | |
Fairfield primary school. What have you been up to over the last half in | :55:23. | :55:27. | |
our? Well, Wales football team has just come out of their aeroplane, | :55:28. | :55:34. | |
because they have been in the Euros. We have got all our books and shoes. | :55:35. | :55:40. | |
Let's have a look at that shoe you have got on. Who has signed it? | :55:41. | :55:46. | |
Bale, Ramsey, Williams... A bit of everybody. Yes. Is that something to | :55:47. | :55:54. | |
treasure for ever? Yes. Who has signed your book? Bale, Ramzi... | :55:55. | :56:02. | |
Describe exactly what was happening when they were coming through, the | :56:03. | :56:08. | |
chanting and the singing? It was special, wasn't it? What have you | :56:09. | :56:13. | |
made of the last four weeks did you enjoy it? Yes. Thank you very much | :56:14. | :56:19. | |
for your time. I think you will remember it for ever. The players | :56:20. | :56:24. | |
are moving on to the city and it is getting a bit quieter here. Let me | :56:25. | :56:30. | |
just take you now to the centre of Cardiff. The scenes are pretty | :56:31. | :56:41. | |
amazing. The news that the team have left the airport will no doubt | :56:42. | :56:46. | |
excite this crowd. There are hundreds of Wales fans here. More | :56:47. | :56:51. | |
are still arriving. You can get a sense that the team are getting | :56:52. | :56:54. | |
nearer, the excitement and anticipation is building. There are | :56:55. | :56:58. | |
absolutely loads of Wales football kits and flags out here. I have even | :56:59. | :57:05. | |
seen a dog in a Wales football top. There were a few empty buses, they | :57:06. | :57:11. | |
got a massive cheer. I can only imagine what reception the team will | :57:12. | :57:14. | |
get when they arrive here soon themselves. Back to you come Tomos. | :57:15. | :57:25. | |
I just want to thank my guests this afternoon, marked Jones to keep | :57:26. | :57:28. | |
Jarju commentator and former manager. And Neil ward, from the FAW | :57:29. | :57:36. | |
Trust. So, the players are back on home soil. Now the party can begin. | :57:37. | :57:42. | |
Throughout the campaign, Wales have made new fans, from all over the | :57:43. | :57:48. | |
country. The good luck messages have been pouring in. From all of us | :57:49. | :57:56. | |
here, good afternoon. It has been a massive achievement | :57:57. | :58:00. | |
what you boys are doing out there in France. Long may it continue. Pob | :58:01. | :58:11. | |
lwc. Hopefully get the job done against, and go all the way. Good | :58:12. | :58:20. | |
luck! Pob lwc! Together, stronger - let's do this. We are all rooting | :58:21. | :58:36. | |
for you. Unbelievable! Aaron Ramsey for Wales! | :58:37. | :58:54. | |
Keeping a welcome in the hillsides, I just want to wish all the lads | :58:55. | :58:57. | |
You have made me and the rest of the country so incredibly, | :58:58. | :59:01. | |
Hey, Wales, get ready to party your Hasselhoff, | :59:02. | :59:04. | |
They have played superbly, and we wish them all the best. | :59:05. | :59:16. | |
Good luck Wales in the semifinals from everyone at Y Gwyll, | :59:17. | :59:18. | |
# Davies, Ledley, Taylor, Richards... | :59:19. | :59:24. | |
Come on, boys, we can do this. | :59:25. | :59:26. | |
I can't believe I've still got my Ledley beard this far | :59:27. | :59:33. | |
We're going to Cardiff to see the fans back home, | :59:34. | :59:51. | |
to be welcomed home as heroes, as they are, all of them. | :59:52. | :59:54. | |
Chris Coleman and the boys are magic. | :59:55. | :59:59. | |
COMMENTATOR: Gareth Bale strikes again! | :00:00. | :00:03. | |
This piece of film is 100 years old. Anything familiar about it? | :00:04. | :00:07. | |
"God speed the plough and the woman who drives it." | :00:08. | :00:11. |