Women's Six Nations: England defeat will not define us - Wales captain Lillicrap

Siwan Lillicrap says Wales' heavy Six Nations defeat by England will not define them.

The Red Roses outscored Wales by 10 tries to one to halt their two-match winning run in the championship.

But the Wales skipper says it is all about perspective given how much further advanced England are in terms of professionalism.

"The girls are upset because it means so much, but my message is to hold our heads high," Lillicrap said.

Twelve of Wales' players signed full-time contracts at the start of the year, while 12 others are part-time with the Welsh Rugby Union.

England have been fully professional since 2019.

"We have come far, maybe the score did not reflect that," Lillicrap told BBC Sport Wales.

"This result does not define us, it is what helps us move forward. There were glimpses of some good stuff, I felt like we did rattle England from time to time.

"We have just got to work hard and stay united because the feeling in camp and the connection that we have created is brilliant, we cannot lose that now."

Wales head coach Ioan Cunningham said he was "super proud" of his players.

"We were really pleased with how we got stuck into England physically, we were up for the battle," he said.

"We have got to critically look at ourselves on how we can get better and we can take great learnings from this game."

England's head coach Simon Middleton also commented on Wales' progress.

"You can see it already. Wins are hard to come by in the Six Nations and they have had two great wins," he said.

"The scoreboard did not do them justice, it got away from them in the end, probably because of the difference. We are three years down the track, they are three months down the track.

"You can see the potential is absolutely massive, and it is testimony to them how far they have come in the short time that they have had their contracts."