Team of the Week – 8th October

Team of the Week from ScottishPower Women’s Premier League games played on 5th October.

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Goalkeeper – Abigail Paton (Hamilton Academical)

Accies bowed out in the 2nd Round of the Sky Sports Cup after suffering a 5-0 loss to league leaders Glasgow City. It could have been worse if not for Paton in goals, making her first appearance for the club. The 18-year-old goalkeeper made seven saves to stop Glasgow City, the second highest of all ‘keepers this Sunday. With league survival the main focus for Robert Watson and his side, he’ll be buoyed by the goalkeeping quality he has at his disposal.

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Defender – Jodi McLeary (Rangers)

One of two Rangers players included following their 12-0 win over St Johnstone, McLeary earns her spot in the team with a goal and two assists from right-back. Her goal showcased her desire to get forward, making a perfectly timed run into the box and a striker’s instinct to score. Alongside 84% passing accuracy, four crosses, and 80% of her duels won, it was an impressive afternoon for the young full-back.

Defender – Linzi Taylor (Hibernian)

A number of Hibs players could have made the Team of the Week after their excellent 9-0 win at home to Motherwell, as they seek to go one better in the Sky Sports Cup this season. It’s hard to argue with a centre-back who keeps a clean sheet, scores, and gets an assist. While it was a fortunate goal, there was nothing fortunate about her ability to keep possession with 94% passing accuracy, four interceptions, and 12 recoveries. The Hibs go marching on with an Edinburgh derby ahead in November.

Defender – Georgia Hunter (Heart of Midlothian)

If there is something better than a defender who scores once, it’s a centre-back who scores twice. That was the case for Hearts on Sunday in their 7-0 win at home to Montrose as they progressed to the Quarter-Final. Hunter said post-match that since her return from injury, she wanted to be a big presence from set-plays, and she showed that at Oriam. Their skipper cooly slotted home her first before a strong header into the corner for her second. Eva Olid will be hoping for more goals and clean sheets from Hunter in the remainder of the season.

Defender – Kelly Clark (Celtic)

ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2 side Spartans pushed Celtic all the way on Sunday, with the Glasgow side eventually prevailing 3-1 at Ainslie Park. Clark’s involvement can’t be argued, making an incredible 120 passes with an accuracy of 93% as well as 22 recoveries. It was the highest number of passes in all matches this Sunday, as well as the highest number of through balls, passes into the final third, and progressive runs.

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Midfielder – Sofia Määttä (Glasgow City)

One of the two players included in the team this week who came on at half-time for her team and made a huge difference. With City holding a slender 1-0 lead at the break, Määttä came on to score twice in quick succession to make their victory all but secure. From the 47 minutes she played, she had a further shot on target, 78% passing accuracy, and 80% successful dribbles. Glasgow City will now welcome Aberdeen next month in the Quarter-Final of the competition.

Midfielder – Ellie Kane (Queen’s Park)

Queen’s Park are the only ScottishPower Women’s Premier League 2 side left in the Sky Sports Cup, their reward being a match against Celtic. It wasn’t plain sailing on Sunday for the Spiders, being 1-0 down to Gartcairn at half-time before eventually prevailing 3-1. Club hero Kane added more status to her name with a brace, including a long-range effort to seal the victory in the final few minutes. Queen’s Park will be looking to make history in the next round and to become the first SWPL 2 side to reach the Semi-Final of the Sky Sports Cup.

Midfielder – Kelsy Crainie (Kilmarnock)

It wasn’t to be for Kilmarnock on Sunday, falling in the 2nd Round to higher-ranked opposition in the form of Aberdeen. Jim Chapman said he was “really proud of the effort” and “for the majority of the game we (Kilmarnock) were more than a match for Aberdeen.” It certainly was a team effort from Killie, but Crainie earns her place with their only goal of the game, which brought them level at 1-1.

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Forward – Kerry Beattie (Aberdeen)

Aberdeen were pushed all the way in the Sky Sports Cup by Kilmarnock in tricky conditions at Balmoral. In the end, it was the half-time introduction of Beattie that made an impact as the forward got the assist for the opening goal before applying a lovely finish to put the Dons safely into the next round and make it 3-1. Aberdeen will face Glasgow City in the next round as Scott Booth heads back to Petershill Park.

Forward – Lia Tweedie (Partick Thistle)

It was an excellent performance from Tweedie on Sunday, scoring a hat-trick for the Jags as they cruised past Livingston 7-0. She demonstrated her natural instincts in front of the goal, getting into the right positions and applying three fine finishes. She had a further shot on target saved, as well as linking up play with her 77% passing accuracy. It’s her first hat-trick for the club, and Thistle fans will be hoping for many more.

Forward & Star Player – Laura Berry (Rangers)

Leaving the best until last this week, the star player is unsurprisingly Rangers’ Laura Berry. It was a professional performance from the Gers on Sunday, epitomised by Berry, who scored five goals and provided two assists. From an XG of just 2.11, Berry showed how clinical she can be in and around the box. She was also careful on the ball with 81% passing accuracy and 75% successful dribbles. A Glasgow derby against Partick Thistle awaits Berry and her side in the next round.