Celtic FC Women secured a comfortable enough victory on the road as they overcame Aberdeen at the Balmoral Stadium by four goals to nil…
In case you missed them yesterday afternoon, here are the four Celtic goals courtesy of Celtic TV’s Unique Angle…
Here are my talking points from our first away day of the season…
What is Colette Cavanagh’s strongest position?
Colette Cavanagh took the left centre-back role in Elena Sadiku’s defence against Aberdeen. Alongside Caitlin Hayes and captain Kelly Clark, Cavanagh did a good job, but I struggle to see that being her best position.
I’ve always thought Cavanagh is a player who can do a job upfront. When she stuck a cross in the box for Saoirse Noonan on the opening day of the season to get the Irish striker a goal at Parkhead, she sort of proved my point, and I still don’t see her strongest abilities to be defensive.
Don’t get me wrong, I think she can do well in a defensive role as well, as she already does that when she takes up one of the midfield roles. But overall, I believe playing her higher up the pitch would have a bigger impact overall. Right enough, she must have impressed Elena because she managed to play the full 90 minutes, and I definitely wouldn’t mind seeing her play there again all things considered.
Kelly Clark’s 300th appearance
The captain made her 300th appearance for Celtic at the Balmoral, and I just wanted to take a second to thank her for what she has done for the club.
What a phenomenal asset she has and continues to be for the Celts. She spoke about how easy it can be for a new manager to come in and drop regular starters, like Clark, but she chose not to, and that’s because she can see what the supporters see. A fantastic player and a worthy captain of the Scottish champions.
I don’t think I need to discuss her skill in too much detail, because it wouldn’t be anything I haven’t said before, but she’s reliable in the defence and leads the team with passion. She is exactly the person you want to wear the captain’s armband.
Thank you Kelly, from The Celtic Star and the entire Celtic support.
The impact of goal difference
Goal difference is key in the Scottish Women’s Premier League, as we found out last season. Last season, we won the title thanks to it. Despite being tied on points with theRangers, we won the league with +13 more goal difference.
It’s incredibly important, but Jo Potter’s side are currently pulling away with it. They have +15 better goal difference than us after four games thanks to big wins against Montrose, Queen’s Park and Aberdeen. Realistically, we should have been looking to destroy Aberdeen yesterday to catch up to them before they get out of sight.
Of course, we could make things right even if their goal difference stays as is if we beat them on Derby days, but we’ll have to be on the ball for that to happen. We saw what can happen if we make mistakes against our rivals last campaign.
Importantly, we need to keep Katie Wilkinson under control. Their new striker has 11 goals in just four games and is a deadly weapon that could hurt us if we don’t keep a close eye on her.
It doesn’t help that the Celts did have a fifth wrongfully chopped off by the referee. I thought he had a decent performance up until that point, so to see him affect the game in that manner was disheartening. Let’s hope that no other dodgy decisions go against us this year, because I mean it when I say that every goal counts.
Elena Sadiku was far from pleased with her side’s performance noting that too many players just didn’t show up.
“We got the victory, yes. But it was not good enough. That is something that I will need to make sure changes for the next game. I said it to the girls after the game, we had too many players that didn’t show up. And that is not good enough.
“We are about winning, but for me it’s very, very important that we stick to our standards, how I want us to play and the decision making. The execution today just wasn’t there. We created a lot of chances and have a lot of corners. But we need to step up in those situations,” the Celtic manager said.
Lisa Rodgers’ competitive start
Young goalkeeper Lisa Rodgers made her first competitive start for the club against the Dons and I wanted to mention how brilliant she was.
Although she wasn’t called into action often, when she was, she got down well to make a really good save from a shot that Aberdeen could have found the net with. She’s someone that I see as a worthy successor when eventually Kelsey Daugherty and Chloe Logan decide to leave the Celts, so certainly good to have at the club.
And what a brilliant moment it must have been for her to get her first start in the Hoops. Well deserved!
Friday Night Football!
Next up for Elena Sadiku’s Celtic FC Women side is an SWPL1 match against Hibs at the Excelsior Stadium in Airdrie this Friday evening, 30 August. Kick off is at 7.35pm and the Ghirls will be looking to improve on their performance levels from the weekend after the start words from the boss!
Then it’s the Champions League for the Ghirls!
COYGIG!
Jessica Elliott
Forgot to mention
More youngsters have been sent out on loan by Celtic FC Women in hopes that our youth academy can develop some first-team players.
Maisy Stewart will join up with Montrose for the remainder of the season as the Links Park side hopes to stay in the SWPL for a third year. Stewart made her senior debut for the Celts last season, coming off the bench in a 6-0 win over Motherwell at the Excelsior Stadium. She has also featured for Scotland’s under-16s and now will hopefully get some more game time in the Scottish top flight at the age of just 17.
Another two senior debuts as @CelticFCAcademy's Sophie Timlin and Maisy Stewart came off the bench in today's win! 💫💚#CelticFC pic.twitter.com/NuZJNDNXqg
— Celtic FC Women (@CelticFCWomen) October 8, 2023
Charlize McFadyen has also been sent out on loan to newly-promoted Queen’s Park. The 17-year-old joined the Celts ahead of last season, signing with the academy after putting in the hard work with Gartcairn. Hopefully, she will have a successful season with the Spiders and come back ready to take the step up to first-team football at Celtic.
Other players to have been sent out on loan this season are Olivia McStay and Erin Halliday, both joining Hamilton Accies as they push for promotion back to the SWPL1.
