One Celtic team has been blazing a trail whilst the rest have struggled this season; it is, of course, Fran Alonso’s outstanding women’s side. Their results have been absolutely extraordinary, and perhaps the most recent is the most amazing of them all; their first win in the Champions League. Men’s team take note; these ladies are showing you up.
Since this campaign kicked off, they have beaten Montrose 9-0, Hamilton 7-1, Spartans 5-0, Dundee Utd 9-0, Hibs 4-2 and now Bronby by a single goal. Fran Alonso has built a machine here, an absolute high-performance machine which eats up opponents and spits out goals.
The goal against the Danes was scored by Kelly Clark, a defender, and it’s noticeable how well spread out across the team the scoring has been.
Certainly, two players in particular – Amy Gallagher, formerly of Hibs and in the form of her life, and Kit Loferski – have been storming it with an astonishing 15 goals between them, but there are deadly players in front of goal all through this Celtic team.
It was a summer of major changes in the squad; Fran has brought in no fewer than eight players, including two more Americans and a midfielder, Paula Partido, from the Real Madrid women’s side.
Fran can certainly spot a player, but above all else he can craft players into a single unit that blows the competition away.
Last season’s dramatic finish was gutting. There are players in this Celtic team who are clearly fuelled by a determination to right that wrong. Watching them so far you can see that’s exactly what they are going to do. They are going to hammer most teams this season, and I cannot see past them when it comes to winning the title.
But it’s this European adventure they are now on which will be really something to see.
These women are going to get to test themselves against the very best, and that will tell them, and us, something. And we can believe in them to give a good account of themselves and make the club proud.
As they have every step of the way so far.
Great article. Garn the ladies!
Fantastic , power to the female species as they are at this moment , more deadly than the male. James did you hear the sevco fan saying on the radio, that he is worried about them becoming irrelevant? Like the German league where one team wins the league most times and somebody else wins it now and again. Someone should tell him that it has already happened and Angeball is now burstball lol
Let’s face it James, this season for myself anyway was about progression within CL football for the men’s team.
A treble is already off the table, so progression won’t be claimed unless improvement within CL is achieved.
The women are currently achieving fantastic results and progression, and quite rightly as you stated the men’s team need to follow suit.
Last season we didn’t really know what to expect with having so many without experience at that level.
Can’t make the same excuse this season, even if we remain with a good few who haven’t experienced CL football.
Will that extra experience gained be beneficial to ourselves?
Only time will tell, but believe so.
The performances were at an acceptable level last season, and the whole campaign could easily been very different if we were far more clinical in front of goal, and all this without ourselves being able to field our strongest team available for any of the 6 games.
We will be judged more harshly this season, so under a fair amount of pressure, I believe.
We have to start thinking bigger than an SPFL title, no matter the importance of the title.
A decent enough draw imo, so would be very disappointed if improvement upon results weren’t to be achieved.
Really looking forward to the whole campaign, it will be challenging, but we claim that of a big club, well it’s about time we started delivering upon the pitch to gain the results required?
I still believe that it can be achieved, even if the injury list remains a concern for the start of the campaign.
Yet this is where the depth of the squad will be required, and remain in the minority that believe we actually could well be in a better place squad wise than last season?
You are right to spotlight the women’s team. I feared for them when I saw the number of changes from last year but my fear was misplaced. Amy Gallagher looks to be worth watching. In a recent game (?Dundee Utd?) She scored two very different goals from the same spot on the pitch. Both from cut back crosses from the R. On both occasions she was just outside the line of the front post 8 – 10 m from the goal line. The 1st was a first time, R foot shot beating the keeper at her near post. The 2nd, with the defender tighter (lesson learned from the 1st goal) Amy does a drag back turn, spinning 270 degrees before firing a L foot strike in at the far post. She has also scored a couple of real pile drivers this season. She is no one trick pony, appearing to have a wide range of skills.
I have heard that she is a neice of Celtic legend Patsy Gallagher. I am somewhat sceptical as by reckoning she would need to be great neice or even great great neice. What I am sure of is that she is a great player.
Tiree Burchill, who was out on loan to Motherwell last season, is another who lloks the part. She is the daughter of Mark Burchill. The Celtic family indeed.
Aye I like the ladies footy, they would shame that ballet sand dancer Cuntwell with his Cheatin diving and falling, they just get up and on with it do the ladies !
Yep – last season was gutting in the league – black sabbath all over again, though Sevco Women In their favour gave Glasgow City a good game and but for good goalkeeping could’ve been level at The death – However The cup final the next week was a good day out at the office…
I’d have thought that Glasgow City might’ve picked more neutral colours than that garish orange top – Half Green / Half Blue (ala Blackburn Rovers) would’ve been better and more neutral and better looking – That said I suppose the ‘Irish’ club in Dundee (United but formerly Dundee Hibernian) use the same colours !