Scottish Women's Football

Jane Lewis
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Lauren Perry (Montrose): Hibs maybe didn't test her as much as she was expecting, but when she had to be alert she was. Stopped a Hibs effort near to help her side secure an excellent point.

Emma Lawton (Celtic): The Scotland international to be everywhere for Celtic. Produced a brilliant finish for her goal on one of many forays forward and was key in establishing Celtic's attacking play.

Cassie Cowper (Montrose): Outstanding at the back for her side and played a major part in keeping Hibs at bay.

Danique Ypema (Hearts): Mopped up most of what came her way at the back. Composed on the ball when clearing her lines and also confident going forward.

Lizzie Waldie (Hearts): A real influence for Hearts defensively and offensively. Won most of her duels and got forward too as Hearts made it seven league wins on the bounce.

Lisa Forrest (Glasgow City): Scored five, enough said! Produced some great finishes and showed great awareness for her goals.

Jodi McLeary (Rangers): Was at the heart of everything Rangers did well. So composed in the middle of the park pulling the strings, on another day could have been on the scoresheet too.

Lauren Wade (Hearts): So dangerous for her side down the wing, with her pace and persistence. Set up the opening goal with a great delivery into the area.

Laura Berry (Rangers): Assisted the opener and scored the winner. Was once again influential out wide for Rangers.

Nicole Kozlova (Glasgow City): A hat-trick of assists and she could have been among the goals herself. A real threat all afternoon, looking to constantly create opportunities.

Saoirse Noonan (Celtic): Set the tone for her side with an early goal and added another midway through the second half. Set up the winner too as she continues to prove a key player for Celtic this season.

Image source, Malcolm Mackenzie/SWPL

The SWPL returns from a three-week hiatus with a full card on Sunday as Iain Robinson takes charge of Motherwell for the first time when title-chasing Hearts come calling.

Eva Olid's Hearts are currently second, four points behind leaders Glasgow City, while Motherwell are seventh but only two points behind Montrose in sixth.

Hearts haven't lost since 21 September, a that run includes games against champions Hibs and double winners Rangers.

Motherwell have a new manager in place following Paul Brownlie's departure, with Robinson and his assistant David Brownlie leaving second-tier Queen's Park for the top-six SWPL hopefuls.

Robinson has top-flight experience from last season with the Spiders and is aiming to guide Motherwell to a first victory over Hearts since May 2022.

Elsewhere, leaders City are at home to rock-bottom Hamilton while champions Hibs travel to Montrose. Celtic and Rangers are at home to Aberdeen and Partick Thistle respectively.

How to follow the action on BBC

Celtic v Aberdeen is live on the BBC Sport website and app, as well as on BBC iPlayer. It kicks off at 13:00 GMT.

Rangers' match against Partick Thistle at Broadwood is live on BBC Alba - and the BBC Sport website and app - and kicks off at 16:10.

There will also be match reports from all five games on the BBC Sport website and app and you can watch highlights on Monday night on the BBC Scotland channel from 19:30.

Image source, SNS

Iain Robinson has left Queen's Park to become the new head coach of Motherwell's women's team.

Robinson, who previously held the position of under-17s coach at Rangers, had been head coach of the second-tier Spiders' women's side since last year.

Assistant coach David Brownlie follows him from Queen's Park to the side sitting seventh in the Scottish Women's Premier League.

Robinson, who will take charge for the first time against Heart of Midlothian this weekend, told the Motherwell website: "From the outside looking in, Motherwell seemed like a very exciting club to be a part of.

"The women's department has gone from strength to strength in recent years.

"We want to be a team that dominates the ball and imposes our structure on the game. We look to play through the thirds, build from the back, and create a high number of quality chances."

Robinson leaves Queen's Park sitting one point behind third-top Boroughmuir Thistle in the SWPL2 promotion race and Motherwell chief executive Brian Caldwell described him as "a young and ambitious coach who impressed from a very early stage during the interview process".

Image source, SWPL

Hearts striker Georgia Timms has been named the SWPL player of the month for November.

The English forward netted six goals in four games, including a double in the 3-2 win over Rangers.

The 27-year-old also scored in Hearts' defeat to Edinburgh rivals Hibernian in the League Cup quarter-final, and recorded a hat-trick and two assists in the 8-1 win over Hamilton.

Her side sit second in the SWPL table, four points off leaders Glasgow City and three clear of Rangers.

Timms has also already equalled her best goalscoring season, with 10 goals so far this term.

Image source, SNS

The 2026-27 SWPL season will start on 16 August 2026, the league body has confirmed.

The SWPL and SWPL 2 will pause for a winter break after fixtures played on 20 December 2026 and resume on 10 January 2027.

Both divisions will split after round 18 on 21 February and the league season will end on 23 May 2027, with play-off finals set for 28 and 29 May.

The SWPL Cup league phase will run from 26 July to 9 August 2026.

Play-offs will ensue before the quarter-finals in early November 2026, semi-finals in January 2027 and the final on the weekend of 27/28 March.

Image source, SNS

Scotland goalscorer Kirsty Howat: “Delighted to obviously get my first start and then to top it off with two goals, it couldn't get much better… Could’ve had three though, which I'm raging about, but yeah, happy with the two.

“I just remember going and pressing, the pitch wasn't obviously the best, so I just thought, go and try and press and win it. Then I just hit it and managed to dink her at the back post.

“Then for the second, I didn't really fancy taking that run, so I just thought, here we go, hit it and just happy to see it hit the back of the net.

“My mum and dad are always usually here, but it’s just my dad tonight. He’ll be buzzing. He's so proud and he always tells me that.

“For him to be here tonight and to witness it firsthand is really special. I gave him a little thumbs up when I scored as well, which was nice.”

Scotland goalscorer Kirsty Hanson: “It was important to get the win. We were under the cosh at the end, so it was obviously quite disappointing to concede two goals, but so happy to get the win with different goals.

“Against Ukraine, we had loads of chances, it’s about being more clinical when we’re on top, punishing teams even more. You could see that at the start of the game, but we just need to keep it up.

“It’s a positive that we kept the win tonight because I think in the past we might have crumbled.

“We just need to keep building and hopefully that’s a really big win for us and something to build on.”

On her goal: “Kirsty Howat and I just said to enjoy it tonight, relax and score.

“I think she just laid it in the path perfectly for me, I was like, ‘I need to finish this off because she's done all the hard work’’. So, delighted it paid off.”

The Scottish FA is exploring plans to turn Lesser Hampden into a shared stadium for Celtic, Rangers and Glasgow City's women's teams, creating a hub to accelerate the growth of the game ahead of Scotland co-hosting the 2035 Women's World Cup. (The National), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish Gossip in full.

Amy Canavan
BBC Sport Scotland at Estadio Municipal de Chapin

Image source, SNS

Midfielder Caroline Weir missed Scotland's victory against China after picking up a knock.

The Real Madrid star followed an "individual programme in the gym" during a part of the squad's training session on Monday, when head coach Melissa Andreatta reported "everyone is available".

But the 30-year-old watched the Scots sign off 2025 with a victory from the stands alongside goalkeeper Sandy MacIver.

"She had a knock, we had a couple of opportunities to see if she could go, but we decided the game was too soon and called it," Andreatta told BBC Scotland post-match.

"It was close, it's always close. We just made the call and she was in the stands."

Amy Canavan
BBC Sport Scotland

Scotland head coach Melissa Andreatta told BBC Scotland: "We started fast and maximised the chances we created, then the momentum sort of swung towards China.

"But I think we regrouped towards the latter stages of the half and talked about a few things at half-time. We started the second half strongly, had a penalty and poor Kirsty [Howat] going for a third missed it.

"If we get that the pressure sort of releases a little bit, but then they go and score. That makes it super interesting, which is Scottish apparently.

"What we did was show really good character. The way we defended was excellent to deny them chances from all those crosses. Looking ahead, that's what you're going to need in tight games and tournament football."

On Erin Cuthbert, who was taken off on a stretcher and in a neck brace late in the game: "It happened so fast. I just saw a collision and then everyone saw what happened from there.

"She's off to hospital now. We'll just wait to hear for updates."

Amy Canavan
BBC Sport Scotland in Jerez, Spain

Image source, SNS

Sophie Howard says Scotland are "finally developing a belief" they should be on the biggest international stage as they enter their final friendly before World Cup qualification begins.

The Scots face China - who were scudded 8-0 by England on Friday - in Spain on Tuesday night looking to secure just their second win of 2025.

And while Howard admits a win "would be great" to sign off the year, she thinks the performance is more important.

"I think we're finally developing a belief that we should be there," the Como defender told BBC Scotland.

"We're a very humble squad and that's why we get on so, so well, but it's about time that we believe, not only in one another, because I think we've always done that - we've believed in one another more than ourselves.

"Signing off with a win would be great, but more important is a performance.

"We've spoke often this week, and before, about finding a way to win, because I believe potentially sometimes that's what we've been missing a little bit."

Scotland's sole win of the year came away to Morocco in October. A friendly defeat to Switzerland in a seven-goal thriller and Friday's last-gasp draw with Ukraine followed after the Scots picked up just one point in their Nations League A campaign earlier this year.

The squad will meet up again in February to kick off their quest for an appearance at the 2027 World Cup with Group B4 matches against Belgium, Israel and Luxembourg.

"I almost don't want to put too much pressure on us, we need to go out and perform really well," Howard added of tonight's game against China.

"If things go against us and we don't get that result, that doesn't mean we're not ready.

"We just need to use this game as a chance to be as prepared as we can for what's coming."

Amy Canavan
BBC Sport Scotland in Jerez, Spain

Image source, PA Media

Melissa Andreatta insists "belief is growing" amongst her squad as Scotland prepare for their final match of the year against China on Tuesday.

The friendly will fall just a day short of the one year anniversary of that night in Helsinki where the Scots failed to qualify for Euro 2025.

It was a result and outcome that devastated the side and one which took them time to recover from.

Under Michael McArdle's interim reign before her, and the five games she has taken charge of, though, Andreatta has seen a fresh and reenergised group.

"I think belief comes through relentless effort and exposure to different experiences," the head coach told BBC Scotland at the team's hotel in Jerez.

"We had that even against Ukraine where we had so much of the ball and were really dominant for most of the game, but just couldn't get that goal that we wanted.

"But, we never stopped and you get belief from situations like that - even when you don't get the win - by knowing you can create chances and take them.

"I think those moments where we come through the other side and experience the pressure, allows the belief to grow both individually and as a collective, and I definitely think the belief is growing amongst the team, and that we'll see plenty of that out there tomorrow night."

Amy Canavan
BBC Sport Scotland at Estadio Municipal de Chapin

Image source, SNS

When the whistle blew at the Estadio Municipal de Chapin on Friday afternoon, the draw with Ukraine felt like a Scotland win, such was their last-minute equaliser.

Maria McAneny's finish, with virtually the last kick of the ball, buoyed the Scots who were below par in Jerez.

But one fine performer, was Rachel McLauchlan, who appears to have a new lease of life in a Scotland shirt under Melissa Andreatta.

The Brighton and Hove Albion full-back was flipped in and out of the starting line-up by previous head coach Pedro Martinez Losa, but already appears to have found a fan in Andreatta. And it's reciprocated.

"She's filling the squad with a lot of positivity and belief," McLauchlan told BBC Scotland.

"I feel confident playing under her and I'm really enjoying having her as manager right now.

"I'm just enjoying moments with the girls on the pitch, and that will keep that smile on my face."

McLauchlan's afternoon of work was up by the time the debutant crashed in the equaliser and was just a couple seats down from Andreatta when the Aussie screamed "we never stop" as the celebrations ensued.

"We want to look at that going forward, that we don't give up," she added.

"We give absolutely everything to the last minute and I think we proved that, obviously it's good to get the goal and the draw.

"I think there's lots of things we can take from it and learn from it.

"We need to start figuring out how to win these games going forward, but it's another building block and we'll look forward to the next game."