Wales return home to Llanelli on Tuesday for the second leg of their play-off semi-final with a lead courtesy of a 1-0 triumph in Albania. It was a game which mirrored the three Wales played on their travels during the group stage of this World Cup qualifying campaign, in the Czech Republic, Albania and Montenegro. In each of those matches, Wales claimed a positive result despite an underwhelming performance. The story was the same in Shkoder on Friday night.
In their home fixtures during the group stage, by contrast, Wales won plaudits as well as points in three resounding victories. Rhian Wilkinson must now hope her team will repeat the trick against Albania, who will travel to Wales wondering how they have not given themselves a foothold in the tie.
"We knew coming here [to Albania] wasn't going to be easy," said Wales captain Angharad James. "The most important thing was getting the result, the clean sheet and taking that back to Llanelli on Tuesday."
Wales are indeed well placed to progress as their quest to reach a first Women's World Cup in the nation's history continues. But the fact is that recent performances on their travels have not been those of a side destined to make it all the way to Brazil.
Source: BBC Sport · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing