SWPL Team of the Week – 30th April – 5th May

Team of the Week from the ScottishPower Women’s Premier League games played between 30th April to 5th May.

Goalkeeper – Victoria Esson (Rangers)

The only goalkeeper to have kept back-to-back clean sheets, Esson earns the spot for her performances against Hearts and Celtic. While not making a huge number of saves (four) across 180 minutes, she remained alert throughout and pulled off an excellent stop to deny Natasha Flint on Monday. If Rangers do go on to lift the ScottishPower Women’s Premier League, that could be a pivotal moment.

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Defender & Star Player – Caitlin Hayes (Celtic)

It has been another great season for Hayes at Celtic and yet again she has played her part at both ends of the pitch. Scoring once against Glasgow City on Wednesday in their 2-2 draw, she was also responsible for the opener by forcing the ball towards goal before eventually finding the net off Lee Gibson. She followed this up on Monday by helping her side to a clean sheet against Rangers and maintaining their position at the top of the ScottishPower Women’s Premier League.

Defender – Nicola Jamieson (Dundee United)

After keeping an important clean sheet against Spartans, Jamieson is included for her strong performance at the heart of defence. She won an impressive 69% of her duels and 100% of her ariel duels as well as making six interceptions and 11 recoveries. The result keeps Dundee United level on points with Hamilton Accies in the battle to avoid automatic relegation.

Defender – Athina Varnava (Stirling University)

Stirling University needed a positive result on Sunday to avoid automatic relegation from ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2, and they delivered a 2-1 win over rivals Glasgow Women to keep the battle alive. Varnava put in a powering performance on Sunday down the left side of the pitch with 69% duels won, 57% ariel duels won, 13 interceptions, and a whopping 21 recoveries. She was also solid with the ball, boasting an 81% passing accuracy and 100% long passing accuracy rate.

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Midfielder – Kayla Jardine (Motherwell)

Motherwell continue to thrive towards the latter stage of the ScottishPower Women’s Premier League as they extended their unbeaten run to eight games. Jardine is included this week after scoring against Spartans in their 4-2 win and putting in two impressive attacking displays. She had a total of 10 shots with five on target while also boasting a 75% crossing accuracy rate and 100% dribbles successful across 173 minutes of game time. She also exceeded her season average passing success (74%) with 79% against Montrose and 91% successful against Spartans.

Midfielder – Eilidh Shore (Aberdeen)

Aberdeen continue to hold on to 7th place in the ScottishPower Women’s Premier League as the Dons look to give Clint Lancaster the best end to his reign at the club. Understandably, Bayley Hutchison continues to earn plaudits for 10 goals in their last five games but Eilidh Shore is included this week. The central midfielder was involved in over 200 actions across their two games including a goal and an assist against Hamilton Academical as well as boasting over 70% passing accuracy across both matches.

Midfielder – Anna Dickov (Livingston)

It was a huge week for Livingston as they closed the gap to the promotion play-off spot down to just one point in ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2. Dickov has been vital for her side in the last two matches, scoring in their 2-1 win over Glasgow Women and her shot leading to a goal in their win over Gartcairn by the same scoreline. The midfielder also boasted over 65% passing accuracy in both games and made 16 recoveries.

Midfielder – Melissa Reid (Hamilton Academical)

Playing in an advanced role on the right side, Reid delivered for her side with a goal to put Hamilton Accies 3-1 up against Aberdeen on Sunday. They’ll have been disappointed not take three points after drawing 3-3, but it’s a point that keeps them above Dundee United in the battle to avoid relegation. On top of her goal, she had three shots in the match, produced nine crosses, and had a 63% passing success rate. 

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Forward – Ami Robertson (Queen’s Park)

Queen’s Park continue their champions tour and continue to keep winning in ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2. Robertson is certainly playing her part as the forward scored the only goal in their 1-0 win over St Johnstone and provided another goal on Sunday in their 3-2 victory against Kilmarnock. Both were different finishes by Robertson and showed her quality as she moved on to double digits for the season. 

Forward – Kaela McDonald-Nguah (Gartcairn)

After being 10 points adrift at Christmas, many saw writing on the wall for Gartcairn and their time in ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2. Instead, they turned their season around and are safe from any sort of relegation battle with two games to spare. On loan McDonald-Nguah has certainly be a reason for their success, scoring in eight out of 13 games she has played for the club. This included a goal on Sunday against Livingston and an important brace midweek in their 2-2 draw with Kilmarnock where she showed her composure to score a late penalty. 

Forward – Jorian Baucom (Hibernian)

Firing herself to second in the top goalscorers chart, Baucom scored twice in Hibs’ last two games as she earns her spot. The American forward provided a tidy finish late in their 3-2 loss away to Partick Thistle but returned to Petershill Park on Sunday with a thumping goal to help her side to a 2-2 draw against Glasgow City. As well as her goals, she also had six shots and had a plus 62% passing success rate across both matches.