SWPL Team of the Week – 17th December

Team of the Week from the ScottishPower Women’s Premier League games played on Wednesday 13th, Saturday 16th, and Sunday 17th December.

Goalkeeper – Regan Ott (Stirling University)

In her first start for the club, Regan Ott put in a fine performance to earn her side a point away at Alliance Park. She made three saves, including two brave pieces of goalkeeping to pressure the Glasgow Women attackers before denying a goal. On top of a clean sheet, Ott boasted an impressive 89% long passing accuracy.

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Defender – Philippa MacConnell (Glasgow Women)

The young defender earns her place in the Team of the Week after helping her side to a 0-0 draw at home to Stirling University in ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2. With the third highest number of passes in Round 13 and 10 crosses attempted in the match, she pushed her side forward down the right. Defensively, MacConnell won 68% of her 37 duels, 67% of her ariel duels, and made 13 recoveries.

Defender & Star Player – Kenzie Weir (Glasgow City)

Two goals and a clean sheet earns Weir a spot in the Team of the Week as the Star Player. Rounding off the City scoring on Sunday, the defender was in the right place to finish the fifth goal before applying a lovely header for the final goal of the afternoon. With 81 passes throughout the match (83% success rate) and a solid defensive display against a tough Partick Thistle side, the loanee put in one of her finest performances with Glasgow City to date.

Defender – Chelsie Watson (Motherwell)

On another day, Watson would have had a hat-trick and a clean sheet against Dundee United. The defender had four shots throughout the match and was denied by the crossbar, the post, and a United player for a certain goal. It was still an excellent display from Watson who made 92 passes in the match, the most of any player in Round 16, and won the vast majority of her duels as the Women of Steel closed the gap on Aberdeen.

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Midfielder – Mia McAulay (Rangers)

On as a substitute at half-time, McAulay helped secure three points for Rangers with a brace in their 4-0 win over Hamilton Accies. The youngster doubled their lead just five minutes after the restart with a lovely finish from the edge of the box before rounding off the scoring by being in the right place at the right time for an easy goal. It’s a win that moved her side three points clear at the top of the ScottishPower Women’s Premier League table going into 2024.

Midfielder – Maria Novou Torrente (Boroughmuir Thistle)

A regular feature in the Team of the Week this season, Torrente returns again after helping her side to a hard fought 2-0 win over St Johnstone. With a number of strong performances for her side, she edges into the team with an assist and a strong overall display. That included 100% crossing accuracy, 13 duels won, and 14 interceptions as Thistle climbed up to 2nd in ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2.

Midfielder – Ciara Grant (Heart of Midlothian)

It was a historic result for Hearts as they earned a point at home to Celtic in the ScottishPower Women’s Premier League. The Republic of Ireland international played the full match as she put in a particularly strong defensive performance from the middle of the park. Grant boasted 68% passing accuracy, won 12 duels, made 7 interceptions and 14 recoveries as her side came away with a point at Oriam.

Midfielder – Ellie-May Cowie (St Johnstone)

With two matches this week, Cowie was particularly impressive midweek in their 4-1 win over Gartcairn. The left sided player scored twice, timing her runs forward to perfection before applying composed finishes. Across both matches she had six shots as the Saints fell to a disappointing 2-0 defeat to Boroughmuir Thistle on Sunday. In both matches though she showed her quality boasting over a 50% passing accuracy (75% and 57% respectively) in both games.

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Forward – Kirsty Morrison (Hibernian)

The Hibernian forward returned to the pitch with a strong performance in their 7-0 away win over Aberdeen on Saturday. Morrison got her first goal of the season, latching on to the loose ball after the ‘keepers save, as well as providing two assists with just 67 minutes on the pitch. She also had a 73% passing accuracy, 80% crossing accuracy, 100% dribbling success, and won 72% of her duels as Hibs will hope to keep her fit for the remainder of the 2023/24 season.

Forward – Abby Skelton (Gartcairn)

Gartcairn earned their second point of the season with a somewhat surprise 2-2 draw with Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. Skelton was a menace throughout the match, especially from distance as she opened the scoring from a wonderful free-kick before later hitting the crossbar. She was also highly involved throughout the match featuring in a whopping 50 duels as she battled to help her side earn a potentially vital point.

Forward – Abby Callaghan (Queen’s Park)

While a lot of recent attention has been on Ellie Kane, it was Callaghan who was the hero for Queen’s Park on Sunday as she scored the only goal in their 1-0 win over Livingston. The forward timed her run well before applying a lovely finish to help put her side 12 points clear at the top of ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2. The forward played the full game producing six shots and boasting 68% passing accuracy.