Author Archive
Ahead of the 2020 season, Scottish Building Society SWPL, caught up with Spartans Head Coach Debbi McCulloch last week. The full interview can be found below.
How are excited are you for the 2020 season? We are all very excited for the season ahead. Several changes to league structures and clubs, including ourselves, investing more than ever means that we face new challenges but everyone is highly motivated and ready to kick the season off.
What do you make of the changes for the new season? I feel the changes will have a positive impact on the game with clubs, players, and coaches having to take steps to increase the professionalism of everything they do. The play-off’s will provide and exciting end to the season for the teams involved and will hopefully increase the exposure of SWPL 1 and SWPL 2.
Caley Gibb has joined Spartans from Hibernian Ladies U23’s. The 15 year-old defender has previously played for Rosyth United Boys, Hillfield Swift Boys, Bayside Girls and most recently Hibernian where she has scored six goals so far this season.
Caley spoke exclusively to Spartans FC Women “I am delighted, and very exited, to start training and playing at a higher level and I feel so honored to have been given this opportunity as my dream has always been to play in SWPL 1 and become a professional footballer.”
“I’ve taken the decision to join Spartans because it’s a great club and I know the club will develop me as a player but also a person. I feel Spartans will give me the opportunity to be the best I can be and will support me in hopefully being selected for Scotland’s Under 17’s Women’s National Squad.”
Spartans Manager Debbi McCulloch is set to reap further rewards from the investment made in the Club’s Player Pathway system by promoting Shannon Todd, from the clubs Development Team, ahead of the second half of the 2019 SWPL 1 season.
Shannon already has four SWPL 1 appearances to her name and has been training with the SWPL squad over the past couple of months and McCulloch is delighted with the progress Shannon has made.
Speaking of her call-up to the Women’s squad, winger Shannon Todd said, “I’m excited to making the progression from the Development Squad to the SWPL. I feel like I’ve came a long way since signing for Spartans and I’m looking forward to working hard with Debbi, and my new teammates, as we look to prepare for the second half of the season.”
Spartans FC Women’s Michaela McAlonie has been voted as the winner of the Scottish Building Society SWPL Player of the Month for April 2019. The versatile player wins the award for the first time after being nominated last season in August and is the first Spartans player ever to win the award.
McAlonie helped her side concede just three goals in three games from defence and opened the scoring with an excellent free-kick in their 2-0 away win against Forfar Farmington. While they lost their other two games, this was a 2-1 defeat to SWPL Cup champions, Hibernian, and a narrow 1-0 loss at home to Rangers.
Speaking from Spartans Academy, McAlonie said: I’m over the moon to recieve this honour. I was nominated last season and while it was great to be nominated, you always want to win this award.”
Ahead of the new 2019 season, the team at Scottish Building Society SWPL caught up with Spartans Head Coach Debbi McCulloch to discuss new signings, and new aspirations, as Season 2019 looks to kick off in two weeks time.
The full interview can be found by clicking on the following link https://www.womenspremierleague.co.uk/news/sbsswpl-qa-spartans/
Spartans hosted SWPL 2 side St Johnstone WFC yesterday afternoon in the first preseason friendly of 2019. Both teams started off well although Spartans did enjoy much of the possession in the first and second half. After several set pieces and a couple of near misses Spartans broke the deadlock with Tegan Reynolds intercepting the ball in the final third (twice) before slamming the ball home. Half time: Spartans 1 St Johnstone 0
Spartans started off the second half at great pace as they searched for more goal scoring opportunities. The second goal of the game came in the 72nd minute with Spartans debutante Beth McKay blasting the ball into the St Johnstone goal from just outside the box. Eight minutes later, McKay secured her second of the game by calmly slotting a Sanyoto-Brown cross into the back of the net. Further goals were scored by Michaela McAlonie (83rd minute), Kaela McDonald-Nguah (84th minute) and Jess Murphy (89th minute). As you can see from the image below Murphy was slightly surprised by her fine and clinical finish! Full time: Spartans 6 St Johnstone 0
Images by Craig Doyle Photography