14s Scottish Challenge Cup – 3rd Round (Ties to be played Sat/Sun 1/2 Jun 2024)
Here is the draw for the 3rd Round of the 14s Scottish Challenge Cup:
Aberdeen West End v Athena Glasgow Burnbank Blues or Hibernian Whites v Hamilton Bonnyrigg Rose Reds v Glasgow City Winchburgh Albion v Milton Girls Kintore United v Dundee West Reds Burnbank or Inverness Caledonian Thistle Reds v Buchan Braves Turriff United Youth v The Swifts Blues Glasgow Girls v Stirling Albion Reds
16s Scottish Challenge Cup – 4th Round (Ties to be played Sat/Sun 1/2 Jun 2024)
Here is the draw for the 4th Round of the 16s Scottish Challenge Cup:
Westerton United v Musselburgh Windsor YPL Dundee West Royals v Aberdeen Reds Ardrossan Winton Rovers Blacks v Central Girls Grampian Girls United v Dumbarton United East Fife v Glasgow Girls Purples Bayside YPL v Athena Glasgow Glasgow City YPL v Queen of the South or Huntly Bo’ness United v Montrose
18s Scottish Challenge Cup – Quarter Final (Ties to be played Sat/Sun 24/25 Aug 2024)
Here is the draw for the Quarter Final of the 18s Scottish Challenge Cup:
Glasgow Girls v Dunfermline Athletic St Mirren v Inverness Caledonian Thistle EKFC Girls v Giffnock or Shetland Girls Gartcairn v Musselburgh Windsor Whites or Ross County
While most Saturdays and Sundays I’ll venture out to see one or two (three at a push) local matches, I like to spread my wings and go further afield during the weekends of the Scottish Challenge Cups. Who doesn’t love a road trip? In the 1st Preliminary Round of the 14s Challenge Cup, I took in games at Cowdenbeath, Lumphinnans and Dalgety Bay. Okay, so they’re not that far from home but, with it being the early rounds, there were a lot of ties and many scores to collate and publish when I got home so I figure something local would be more beneficial. The following round was the 2nd Preliminary Round (don’t get me started on the SWF’s random round numbering) and I headed up to Angus, taking in two games at the wonderfully named Hercules Den – home to Arbroath Youth – and then headed along to catch most of the Montrose versus Dumbarton United Yellows. Sadly, my next planned venture to Bo’ness and Alloa didn’t go to plan as I was laid low by an untimely chest infection.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
So where would I be heading for the weekend featuring the 18s 3rd Round, the 16s 3rd Round and/or the 14s 2nd Round? (See what I mean about the numbering?) Having seen the draws, I had a fair idea of at least one tie I wanted to see but which other matches could I fit around it? With the governing body’s website not always being the most reliable (Saturday games listed on Sundays and vice versa), I made a point of contacting most of the clubs involved to get the correct venues and kick-off times, as well as checking out their social media pages. Once I had those, I consulted Google Maps to see what was achievable.
Knowing I would be driving for just over two hours to get to the first game, I scheduled some tweets (sorry Elon, it will always be Twitter) to give some playful clues as to where I might be going.
AS I ROVED OUT
I had no recollection of ever going to Dyce before, but my wife reminded me that we’d been to a wedding there back in the early 1990s and stayed at a hotel near the airport. My favourite memory of being in Aberdeenshire was going to one of seven gigs of a Scottish tour by The Smiths, who stopped off at Aberdeen’s Capitol Theatre before heading to Lerwick and Inverness. (I wrote a blog about that tour, which you might enjoy).
NEW DIRECTIONS
The route North was fairly straightforward or at least it should’ve been. Not knowing the roads of Aberdeenshire I wasn’t aware of any major changes. I’d given myself plenty of time – I left at 7am – to get to Dyce so I was prepared for any unplanned detours, which is always a possibility when I’m behind the wheel. I went for the belt-and-braces approach of a satnav alongside my phone, hoping that both would agree with each other. How did that work out? Well, as I heard my phone telling me to go off at the new A90 North, the satnav said keep going ahead. I did what any sensible, mature man would do; I ignored the modern, up-to-date phone and listened to the older-than-the-hills satnav and kept going. As it turned out, because I’d allowed for plenty of wiggle room for the journey and it was still early in the day, it didn’t make that much difference staying on the A92, which took me through some suburban areas of Aberdeen. I seemed to arrive at Asda in Dyce around my scheduled time so I was quite happy but I resolved to use the new A90 South (officially known as the “Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route” but unofficially as the more user friendly and straightforward “Aberdeen Bypass”) to get to the next game because, with extra time and penalties being a possibility, I might need to catch up a bit of time.
BOY, YOU’VE GOT THE SUN IN YOUR EYES
You never really know when summer’s going to appear in Scotland. I had checked the weather forecast and I saw it would be nice, but I wasn’t prepared for just how hot it would be. I’m not really built for heat. Despite parking in Asda and getting some provisions for the next leg of the trip, it didn’t occur to me to get sunscreen. Rookie error. Another mistake was to believe the Asda security guy who told me there was no limit to the time I could park at the supermarket. Having been there for about an hour and then spoken to several other locals, I decided it would be more prudent to move my vehicle. I drove to the car park in Dyce Academy next door and was lucky to get the last space. Result! I might have been a pasty-faced southerner when I arrived, but I was going to be resembling a lobster when I left.
TALK OF THE TOWN
Having seen Arbroath in an earlier round it was great to say hi to some familiar faces, including one of the Yellows’ coaches Stuart. One of the other coaches – World Champion bowler Darren Burnett, no less – was sunning himself in Australia so would miss the game. No doubt he was glued to his team’s Usqor account. It was nice to meet some Kintore folk too, including my good friend Lena, who is also the secretary for the Kintore United 14s and a fountain of knowledge about the game in the North region. Kintore had been down to Pitreavie to play a Bayside team in a pre-season friendly, so it was great to catch up with her on her patch.
LOOKING FOR THE MAGIC
Having heard a lot about Kintore from Lena and having seen Arbroath Yellows live, I knew this was a going to be an even contest between two well-matched teams who try to play football the right way. With both teams unbeaten in their respective leagues, and having drawn a pre-season friendly 1-1, I knew this was one of the matches of the day. Kintore got off to the best possible start with a goal inside the first couple of minutes from Katie and it took Arbroath some time to find their feet against slightly bigger opponents. The Yellows came back into it and their pressure was rewarded with a penalty ten minutes before half-time. Harlow put it low to the keeper’s right. 1-1! Game on!
While the game ebbed and flowed back and forth, and chances were created at both ends, I felt Kintore began to dominate, especially when the game went into extra time. But Arbroath defended stoutly, and the scene was set for the inevitable penalty shoot-out. How would the tired minds and bodies of the girls handle the pressure? They’d all worked their socks off for 90 minutes, in blazing heat and, even with the inclusion of water breaks, some of the girls looked dead on their feet at the final whistle. Plenty were suffering with cramp.
NERVOUS WRECK
Thankfully, the penalties were being taken at the end I was watching from, so I didn’t have to move. In this heat, I’m not sure I could’ve moved, even if I wanted to. What can you say about penalty shootouts that hasn’t been said before? Some like them, some hate them, but they’re part of the game and unless you want to keep playing until midnight (don’t give FIFA any ideas!) they’re here to stay. After the regulation five penalties, we were at 4-4 and it was time for sudden death. If there was any more drama, that sudden death might’ve been mine and I was a neutral! The Kintore number 6 converted her penalty, but the Arbroath number 8 was distraught to see her effort saved by Kintore keeper Jane.
What was great to see was that while Kintore allowed themselves a moment to celebrate (and why shouldn’t they?), two of their number broke off to console with the Arbroath player who had missed. The other Kintore players joined them. It was a beautiful moment that almost brought a tear to my eye.
I FOUGHT THE LAW
The referee gave an impressive display and let the play flow. Like most good referees, he was pretty much invisible, but he did have to deal with one minor incident (I think it was in extra time) when one player was spoken to about her attitude and the coach, who wasn’t happy about it, was also spoken to and told to “be a better role model”. His gas was certainly put at a peep.
But that was a very minor issue, during a game played in a great spirit. No quarter asked nor given on the field, in soaring temperatures, and everyone supportive off it. That’s how I like my football.
LET ME GO
Lena had suggested I had my picture taken with the teams at the end and I was happy to oblige. A couple of girls even knew about my Girls Results page and were followers, which was great to hear. I managed to chat with lovely people from both teams before, during and after the game but, after saying my goodbyes, I had to head off in search of match number 2 and the elusive A90 South.
SOUND OF CONFUSION
I returned to the car park to find my car had been kindly decorated by some of the local birdlife. I don’t what they had been eating but they might want to see a vet. No amount of screen wash was clearing some of it! As long as I could see enough to catch the sign for the A90 South I’d be fine. Did I see the sign for the A90 South? Yes. Did I follow the sign for the A90 South and learn from my earlier mistake? Well, er, no. Once again, the satnav and phone were squabbling and, in the course of the distraction, I took the wrong route. It had to happen when I was in even more of rush, thanks to the extra time and penalties.
PLAY ON
When I originally planned the trip, I had a vague notion that should the first game be finished in the regulation 70 minutes, I might just be able to catch some of Forfar Farmington 14s tie against Turriff United, before heading on to a third game. It was a long shot but the shootout in Dyce put paid to that, and I bypassed Forfar and headed straight to the Charlotte Street pitches in Dundee for Dundee West Reds 14s against Motherwell. It was a good job I did because the Forfar-Turriff game also went to extra time and penalties, with Turriff winning the shootout 5-3 after a 2-2 draw.
While Dundee West Reds are currently in the bottom third of a very competitive 14s East Caroline Weir league (led by Arbroath Youth Yellows), Motherwell were on a bit of an unbeaten run and in good form. It was set to be an intriguing tie.
When I arrived at the car park, the first sight I saw was a mound of earth. Had I arrived at an archaeological dig? Voices in the distance told me the game was further over. I headed over to a grass pitch on the far side. I saw the players walking off and, after asking a Motherwell supporter the score, I tweeted that it was 2-1 at half-time. Except it wasn’t half-time, it was a water break! D’oh! Correction duly sent.
Chatting to some of the Motherwell supporters, I met a follower of Girls Results. Murray (aka Champion Slayer, his Twitter nom-de-plume) was a big fan of the site and very complimentary. I was blushing although it was hard to tell as my face resembled a beef tomato.
One talking point was the pitch. Motherwell were used to playing on astro and they couldn’t play their natural passing game on a lumpy, sloping grass pitch. The pitch next door, which the supporters were standing on appeared to be much flatter. I don’t know if Dundee West Reds chose this pitch specifically or if it was down to availability, but a home draw in the cup can be great leveller and you take your advantages where you can get them. The home team led 4-1 at half-time (not another water break) and not long into the second half increased their advantage. Motherwell clawed their way back into the game with two goals, but time ran away from them and they lost 5-3. I’m told the Motherwell parents are still talking about the pitch!
ONE TRACK MIND
Once more, I said my farewells and headed to the car. Dundee’s avian population were kinder that their Dyce counterparts and no further ‘decoration’ had been added. This part of the journey was the most straightforward and I was homeward bound. Getting in around half past four, I also had the small matter of pulling in all the other scores, as well as posting results and, where applicable, league tables. No rest for the wicked.
HOLD TIGHT!
After a terrible night’s sleep, thanks to the sunburn, and having missed the Forfar-Turriff game yesterday, I called on a local derby in the 18s Challenge Cup to make up the third part of my regular Challenge Cup triumvirate.
Despite being approximately 25 minutes further North (and a bit more East), Raith Rovers Colts 18s play in the 18s South East Joelle Murray league, while Dunfermline Athletic play in the 18s East Kelly Clark league. Colts won a friendly 4-2 back in March at Gallatown. Unfortunately, due to the men’s first team needing Stark’s Park for training ahead of their forthcoming Scottish Premiership play-off with Partick Thistle, the 18s Challenge Cup tie was moved from there to the grass pitch at Gallatown Park. Another game across from another Asda!
HERE COMES THE SUMMER
Having not learned my lesson from yesterday, today’s attire was a long-sleeved top and a bunnet to protect my napper! I might be parboiled by the end of the game, but I was taking no chances. While it was still warm, there were some clouds in the sky. This brought some relief but not much.
SUFFER THE CHILDREN
As well as the heat (have I mentioned that?), the teams had to contend with a sloping pitch (flashbacks to Charlotte Street) and the kind of long grass you might lose a team of under 8s in. This would be an energy-sapping game. Let’s hope it doesn’t go to extra time.
Shooting down the slope in the first half, Dunfermline took the lead and doubled it 15 minutes later with Raith getting one back to trail 2-1 at half-time. Five minutes from the end of the second half, the Colts equalised, and we headed for extra time. For the neutral, this was great but as someone who had another game to go to this wasn’t ideal.
BABYLON’S BURNING
After full-time, there seemed to be a discussion on the other side of the pitch between the referee and some of the coaches. They were also looking across at me so I figured this was about the issue of whether there was extra time, or would it go straight to penalties, so I ambled across the pitch to join the discussion and help clarify things. While the referee was happy for it to go to penalties “for the sake of the girls” playing in the heat, we found the relevant rule and extra time it was. [Clarification: League Cup ties go straight to penalties until the semi-final stage. In the Scottish Challenge Cup, it’s extra time and penalties in all rounds]
At one point in the game, the Dunfermline keeper kicked a ball rather than pick it up because she couldn’t see the lines. The grass was so long it looked like Raith were playing a back line of dandelions!
Within a minute of kick-off in extra time, Raith regained the lead and held it until half-time. It was all or nothing for the visitors and they were rewarded with an equaliser with ten minutes to go. The game was finely balanced. Would there be a winner before the end, or would there be more penalty drama? The answer was the former. The Pars managed to breach the solid Raith defence with five minutes to go and Rachel slotted home from the edge of the box for the Pars. Raith had a couple of late free kicks outside the box but weren’t able to beat the Pars keeper, who was in good form.
A 4-3 win on the road for Dunfermline, who will be flying the flag for East Region in the quarter-finals.
SOME KIND OF JERK
Apart from a couple of yellow cards – one for each team – the game was played in a great spirit (especially considering it was a derby) and the young referee Ollie let it flow. Unfortunately, there was one unsavoury incident when a supporter, presumably from Dunfermline, who wasn’t happy with an offside decision vented his feelings rather too vociferously. Not content with expressing his opinion about the decision, he also made a comment about a Raith player. Full credit to Bev, the Colts coach, who calmed the guy down. He also apologised for what he said to the player but was asked to watch the game from a different area of the pitch so as not to exacerbate the problem. Well done Bev!
5-4-3-2-1
One thing I noticed during the game was that the Raith goalkeeper Lauren was wearing the number 4. This isn’t, by any stretch of the imagination, a regular keeper number. Bev, her coach, told me she used to wear 4 as an outfield player for Lomond Colts and when she moved to Raith she wanted to keep it when she went between the sticks.
It reminded me of the Dutch World Cup squad of 1974, who, with the notable exception of Johann Cruyff (number 14), were issued squad numbers in alphabetical order. First choice keeper Jan Jongbloed ended up being number 8 and he retained that number for the 1978 World Cup finals.
CAN’T HELP THINKING ABOUT ME
The 18s derby wasn’t my last game of the weekend. Extra time and roadworks on the A92 meant I arrived at Pitreavie for the Dunfermline Athletic v Musselburgh Windsor ladies league match just at half-time. It was 1-0 to the visitors and the home coach wasn’t happy about the referee. After watching the second half in the company of striker Alex’s mother, I could see why. I’m not sure I’ve witnessed a more self-important refereeing display. I had seen this guy before and he was the same then. He was arguing with supporters, players and coaches. Even Thomas, the mild-mannered club photographer, was shouting at him and it takes a lot for him to do that. The ref could certainly learn a thing or two from the three other whistlers I watched this weekend. I know it’s a difficult job but he made it even harder for himself.
GROOVY TIMES
That was the weekend that was. It was hot, it was exhausting but it was so much fun.
Sincere thanks to the parents and supporters of Kintore United, Arbroath Youth Yellows (see you all again soon), Motherwell, Raith Rovers Colts and Dunfermline Athletic I met this weekend. Apologies to Dundee West Reds as I didn’t get a chance to say hello to coaches or supporters. I might see you in a league match soon though. Great to see Stuart from Arbroath, Linsey Burnett and Darren Inglis too. If I have forgotten anyone, and there’s a good chance I have, let me know and I’ll add you.
Extra special thanks to Lena Roy, Kevin Taylor Photography (thanks for the photos and if you could airbrush a couple of stone off me next time, that would be great!), Bev Harkins and Justin Hamilton (and coaches).
HARMONY IN MY HEAD
You’ll notice the different sections of this piece have ‘headlines’. These are actually the titles of songs from the special road trip playlist I compiled for the journey north and back. Most, but not all, of the tracks are available on Spotify and here’s a link to my special Hit The North! playlist. The tracks are taken from about a dozen 3-CD clamshell box sets covering a number of weird and wonderful musical genres from various decades.
HALFWAY THERE
With a handful of ties left to play in each Challenge Cup (being played this weekend coming), it looks like we’ll have to wait until next week to find out the last 16 draws (16s and 14s) and the quarter-final draw (18s). Hopefully, by the time those ties come round my sunburn will have died down to a mild pink hue instead of the current flaming red and I can plan another trip around the highways and byways of Scotland. I might even go the right way.
Saturday morning started like any other with a breakfast of two eggs, a coffee and a plan to hit the highways and by-ways of Scotland to catch a girls’ football match. I ticked the M90 and A91 off my transport network bingo card and headed for the sleepy hollow of Strathmiglo, the regular home of Auchtermuchty Bellvue Colts. The grass football pitch is in an idyllic spot, with a path along one side and some benches at regular intervals. It’s a very civilised way to watch the football.
The Colts coaches had jokingly dubbed this as a “basement battle” after an indifferent start to the season but I think they were being harsh on themselves. They’ve been forced to play in the Tier 1 Caroline Weir league despite a legitimate appeal against their grading. I believe their opponents Dunfermline Athletic Whites also appealed. Both were denied. As someone who watches a lot of girls football, particularly in Fife, I already knew this is going to be a very competitive league.
Despite the final scoreline – an 8-2 victory for the Colts – this game was no less competitive and was an enjoyable way to spend 70 minutes. What was even more impressive was the spirit in which it was played. Every player gave their all and we barely noticed the referee, who I believe was relatively new to the game. No bad tackles, no incidents, just girls trying to play football the right way, with encouragement from parents, supporters and coaches. In an ideal world, that’s how football should be. Unfortunately, not all games were like that this weekend. Let me explain…
Every season in girls and women’s football, since I’ve been involved, there’s always been a spate of unsavoury incidents. Some of them even make the newspapers. The girls’ season is in its infancy and already we’ve had a number of games abandoned due to the behaviour of players, coaches and parents/supporters. Some of those games were even deemed to be “friendlies”. It seems they were anything but.
This weekend past there were a number of cards dished out and they weren’t for my recent birthday. There were at least ten red cards issued this weekend, that I know of, and most of them weren’t for what you might call footballing incidents, i.e. late tackles, dissent, diving etc. Sadly, most of them issued on Saturday and Sunday seemed to be for issues around violent conduct.
Game 1: A 14s game finished with both teams having a player red carded for fighting. I’m told that both coaches let the referee deal with it, which is as it should be.
Game 2: Another 14s game was abandoned with a few minutes to go after a visiting player received a red card for a bad tackle. I’m told a home coach persuaded the ref to rescind the red card and a coach from each side agreed to carry on. However, another coach said “No” and the game was abandoned.
Game 3: A third 14s game where the home team had a coach red carded and, according to one comment, had threatened visiting players. An away player was also red carded. A visiting player was said to have had a home player in a “choke hold”.
Game 4: A fourth 14s game where the home team had a player red carded. This was for two yellow card offences, although no-one seems sure what the second one was for.
Game 5: You would think that older players would be a bit more mature and above this kind of behaviour. It seems not. An 18s game on Sunday was described by one witness as “eventful”. Eventful doesn’t really do it justice; like describing the Rumble in the Jungle as a bit of ‘handbags’. There were three players sent off, but four red cards issued, according to one eyewitness. A home player was sent off for a questionable tackle and the referee, who had already been on the receiving end of a lot of abuse, declined to get involved in the ensuing melee, which also involved a player running on to the pitch to break up a fight. A visiting player had earlier been sent off for foul and abusive language after disputing the award of a penalty to the home team. I’m told that at the end of the match the referee was verbally abused by a player who had already been sent off, as well as her mother, resulting in a second red for her. The referee had to be escorted to his car following even more abuse from visiting players and parents when he went to get his car keys. One of those in the visiting technical area is on the League Management Committee for his region and, apparently, part of some sort of think tank in girls’ football. If this is the kind of behaviour he condones from his own players and their parents (interesting that this is all missing from their match report on Facebook) one can only dread to think what influence he’ll have on a body trying to shape the future of the girls’ game.
[UPDATE: According to the latest Misconduct and Dispensation spreadsheet (received on Friday 17 May), only two reds and one yellow are listed against the visiting team, while the home team has one red. However, I’m told that the referee did say that the girl was sent off twice. Only a two match ban for two reds seems rather lenient. Either the referee has failed to put the second red card through or something else has happened. The visiting club does seem to lead a rather charmed life when it comes to disciplinary matters. Maybe they have friends in high places.]
Game 6: No red cards in this one but a friend who at a ladies’ game on Sunday said, “I have never heard so much foul, aggressive behaviour from the sidelines in the women’s game like I heard today from the home support. I can swear as bad as the next one but that was terrible, especially towards the ref and when tackles were going in”
Obviously, with some of these incidents, I’m only hearing one side of the story. But, knowing the game as I do, I’d be very surprised if there wasn’t more than a grain of truth in them. These are just the incidents I’ve heard about. I have no doubt there are others. There were also some recent 14s friendlies that were abandoned, as well as an SWFL league match.
We know that yellow and red cards are part and parcel of football. It’s a physical contact sport after all but the number of cards dished out in girls and women’s football in Scotland is unprecedented. I recall, when my daughter first started playing and I was secretary for her team for a while, I got to see the SWF’s Disciplinary spreadsheet. At the end of one season in our region, only three yellow cards had been issued. Even then it was considered shocking. The most recent misconduct information I’ve seen, covering January 2024 to the end of April 2024, featured 21 red cards (including 8 for either “serious foul play” or “violent conduct” and one for spitting) and 154 yellow cards. That’s just the players.
How do we resolve these issues? An email or social media graphic from the governing body simply isn’t good enough because they’re easily ignored. This can’t be dealt with behind closed doors, with the usual smoke and mirrors and the sweeping of issues under the carpet. The SWF needs to be seen to be doing something and actively punish clubs and teams whose coaches, players and parents fail to control themselves before, during and after games. These punishments need to be publicised to act as a deterrent to clubs who continue to fail to hold individuals representing their clubs to account. We can no longer pretend that this kind of behaviour doesn’t go on in our game. I recall a spate of serious incidents in March 2022 which I wrote to the SWF about at the time. The incidents included red cards, hospitalised players, referees being abused and a coach being headbutted. This isn’t acceptable in normal society so why is it acceptable when a football is involved?
How do clubs deal with it? Most clubs have a Code of Conduct, which players and sometimes parents have to sign up to. That’s a start but if they aren’t adhered to and nobody enforces them then what next? Do you ban the parent? They might be the person giving the player a lift. Do you ask the child to leave the club because of the parent’s behaviour? Possibly but only as a last resort. (Imagine the embarrassment of your daughter being asked to leave a club because YOU can’t control yourself). Whatever the answer, something must be done before it gets really out of hand. Do we have to wait for a player, coach or referee to get seriously injured before real action is taken? The recent assault on a young linesman by a coach in Wales being a perfect example. Already one ladies game (from last season) has resulted in police action and an impending court case. I would like to say more on that but I’ve been cited as a witness, so I’ll leave that for now.
When I see coaches misbehaving on the touchline, I often wonder which part of their coaching syllabus taught them that that kind of behaviour was acceptable. When I see players partaking in what you might consider to be the ‘dark arts’ of football I wonder if the person teaching them (coach or parent) didn’t think it might be better to teach them how to improve as a player first and foremost before indulging in the ‘tricks of the trade’.
Referees need to play a part by dealing with unruly players, coaches or parents. I used to see referees sending parents to their car, but I haven’t witnessed that for a long time. Referees also need to get more protection. Some people seem to think that the abuse they get comes with the territory of being an official. That’s utter nonsense. If a plumber was taking too long to fix your leaky tap, would you start shouting at them? Referees make mistakes (especially when they have no assistants to help), but so do players, coaches and parents. Do you verbally abuse a player who makes a bad pass? No. Do you have a go at a coach for making a poor tactical decision? Of course you don’t, so why are referees considered fair game? If you’re the kind of person who loses their head over not being awarded a throw-in or a corner in a 14s girls match then maybe it’s time you go for a walk and come back when the game’s over. Remember, without referees, you have no game.
The governing body needs to show some teeth and stop pretending these incidents aren’t happening. Fine clubs, dock them points and/or throw them out until they can get their house in order. An organisation who loves to makes statements but hasn’t addressed any disciplinary issues on their website since November 2022.
Every single one of us who attends a football match, whether by watching or participating, has a part to play in cleaning up our game before it’s too late. I’m as guilty as the next person at getting overemotional at games. You get caught up in the excitement, even as a neutral. It’s only natural. But there’s a line when it comes to appropriate behaviour and too many people are crossing it.
Note 1: I have deliberately omitted the names of the clubs involved.
Note 2: I had to change the picture. Inadvertently used a copyrighted photo by mistake. Apologies to the photographer concerned.
Three weeks ago, I wrote a blog expressing concerns about the 14s League Cups draws in Central, West and, especially, the East region. The ties which were contrived as a result of those draws were played on Saturday 27 April 2024 and the results, particularly in the East, were just as I had predicted. Actually, they were worse.
As you’ll recall from the earlier blog, in the most one-sided draw since the Lions took on the Christians, the 14s East League Cup draw consisted of one bye and 16 ties (instead of the conventional 1 tie and 15 byes) and the SWF, in their infinite wisdom, decided to give* the Tier 1 teams a distinct advantage by not only ‘seeding’ them, but giving them all home advantage and then, just to make sure they got the results they wanted, had them all playing Tier 3 teams (bar Arbroath Youth Yellows and Dunfermline Athletic Whites, who got the only bye). The Tier 3 teams also had the additional expense of travelling. (*I say “give” rather than “‘draw”‘ because in the traditional sense of the word this was nothing like a proper draw. A draw would indicate some form of randomness, like balls being drawn out a receptacle of some sort. This ‘draw’ was contrived and manipulated to get a particular set of results. It worked but at what cost to those players who suffered humiliating defeats?)
The results were predictable. While you’re not supposed to show more than a 9-goal winning margin on social media, I shall give you an insight as to the scores as I was given them, but I won’t assign them to the specific matches in which they occurred. The ten ties featuring Tier 1 versus Tier 3 teams resulted in scores as follows: 23-0, 15-0, 15-0, 15-0, 15-1, 14-1, 13-0, 11-1, 7-0 and 4-1. I attended one of these matches. Before the game, one of the visiting coaches informed me that as a result of two heavy defeats during the pre-season grading friendlies, they had lost three players who simply quit the sport. At half-time in the same game, the visiting goalkeeper was in tears. I, along with another parent and the home goalkeeper, spoke to her in an attempt to raise her spirits. My own daughter had been a goalkeeper so I know how tough that position is. While she conceded another five goals she also saved just as many and pretty much saved her team from suffering an even worse defeat.
I heard from coaches at other games who, in an attempt to keep the scores down, placed ‘conditions’ on their own players in terms of how they played so as to keep the score down. Without those conditions I’ve no doubt the 132-4 aggregate score would’ve been a lot worse. The only other Tier 1 team to play – Arbroath Youth Yellows – were given a home tie against a Tier 2 team. That also resulted in a “9-0” win.
When you have strong second year teams playing new first year teams there’s always the possibility of a big score. While the consolation of knowing the score will only be posted publicly as 9-0/10-1/11-2 etc, there’s still the long-term damage done to the players suffering such defeats. Are the SWF trying to drive girls out of the game? Because they’re going the right way about it. Whoever was responsible for this insane draw must take some of the responsibility. Did nobody check it? Did nobody look at that draw and think “what the hell is this?” In all my years of following girls and women’s football and collating and publishing scores I’ve never seen a draw like it, let alone the set of scores that resulted.
One explanation given was that the draw was done to ensure the right number of teams for the Plate competition, but that explanation doesn’t hold up. It just sounds like more doubling down to cover up for a bad draw in the main Cup. With all due respect to teams taking part in the Plate, that is a secondary competition compared to the League Cup. Yesterday the 2nd Round of the East League Cup was drawn, with 1 tie and 15 byes, to squeeze in the extra round this Saturday! Ironically, the solitary tie can’t be played this weekend due to one of the teams playing in a tournament in England. Two rounds in and Dunfermline Athletic Whites haven’t played a game yet! Not their fault, of course.
I stand by my assertion that the draw was downright lazy. They would’ve been just as well to pick who they wanted to go through and not bother with the matches. It would’ve had the same effect but without the expense incurred by the away teams, let alone the trauma suffered by many of their players.
I should point out that the four Tier 1 versus Tier 3 ties in the 14s West League Cup had scorelines of 13-1, 11-1, 6-0 and 6-1. The other four Tier 1 teams were handed the only four byes.
As for the 14s Central League Cup draw, the SWF still hasn’t responded to my two requests regarding the lettering or numbering of the eight groups, so I’ve had to allocate my own. Have you ever known a competition drawn into groups where the groups aren’t given numbers or letters? In the men’s Euros, Scotland are in Group A. In the women’s 2025 Euros qualifying competition, Scotland are in group 2 of League B. In the 14s Central League Cup, eh, well, we won’t bother… I did ask publicly if anyone knew the numbering or lettering, but nobody came forward, so I assume they were drawn without numbers/letters.
As a related aside, don’t get me started on my personal bugbear of draws being put into alphabetical order before being issued. Is it really too much to ask that draws are published as they’re drawn out? How many nanoseconds are you saving people who can’t be bothered to look though a draw for their team by putting them in alphabetical order?
I suspect that the SWF hasn’t responded to my emails because they’ve decided to stop engaging with me. One individual decided to screenshot some of my posts on my Twitter/X feed and send them to the SWF. As a result, I posted, “I’d invite this person to speak to me privately, like an adult, instead of scuttling off to the headmaster like a playground tattle-tale.” Not surprisingly, the coward didn’t get in touch and the SWF wouldn’t tell me who the individual was. The SWF didn’t like some of the comments made by me and other contributors. They said, “If you have questions and want to share factual information rather than speculation, I am happy to speak with you. Some of the comments that ive been shown in response to your posts also aren’t truth, it’s a little disappointing to see.” I asked them “to clarify any points I may have made that you think aren’t the truth”. That was 19 days ago. Still no reply.
It seems my love-hate relationship with the SWF shows no sign of abating, but I will continue to call them out on any issues as I see them. If the SWF doesn’t want to discuss them privately by email, I’ll continue to address them publicly via blog posts and tweets. Meanwhile, let’s hope we haven’t lost more girls from the game as a result of the weekend’s one-sided fixtures.
14s Scottish Challenge Cup – 2nd Round (Ties to be played Sat/Sun 11/12 May 2024)
Here is the draw for the 2nd Round of the 14s Scottish Challenge Cup:
Forfar Farmington v Turriff United Youth Stirling Albion Reds v Deveronvale Glasgow City v Rossvale Reds The Swifts Blues v Shotts Bon Accord Blacks Bo’ness United v Bonnyrigg Rose Reds Phoenix Pinks v Glasgow Girls Renfrew FC v Hamilton Kintore United v Arbroath Youth Yellows Buchan Braves v St Cadoc’s Caley Athena Glasgow v Cumbernauld Colts Morton Blues v Aberdeen West End Dundee West Reds v Motherwell Milton Girls v Inverness Caledonian Thistle St Mirren v Winchburgh Albion Burnbank FC Blues v Hibernian Whites Burnbank FC v Inverness Caledonian Thistle Reds
16s Scottish Challenge Cup – 3rd Round (Ties to be played Sat/Sun 11/12 May 2024)
Here is the draw for the 3rd Round of the 16s Scottish Challenge Cup:
Westerton United v Musselburgh Windsor Blues Spartans Reilly YPL v Glasgow Girls Purples Queen of the South v Huntly FC Dumbarton United v Hibernian YPL Thistle Youth v Musselburgh Windsor YPL Athena Glasgow v Aberdeen West End Port Glasgow v Aberdeen Reds Rossvale v Dundee West Royals Glasgow City YPL v Turriff United Bonnyrigg Rose Girls v Grampian Girls United Bo’ness United v Murieston United Reds East Fife v Lauderdale Montrose v Aberdeen Blacks Ardrossan Winton Rovers Blacks v Inverness Caledonian Thistle Bayside 16s YPL v Morton Central Girls v Glasgow Girls Pinks
18s Scottish Challenge Cup – 2nd Round (Ties to be played Sat/Sun 11/12 May 2024)
Here is the draw for the 2nd Round of the 18s Scottish Challenge Cup:
Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Cumbernauld Colts Raith Rovers Colts v Dunfermline Athletic Glasgow Girls v Queen of the South Boroughmuir Thistle Jags v St Mirren Giffnock v Shetland Girls EKFC Girls v Musselburgh Windsor Blues Musselburgh Windsor Whites v Ross County Renfrew v Gartcairn
Note: There was a mistake by the SWF in the 18s draw. It’s now been fixed although SWF simply replaced Ayr United with Dunfermline Athletic instead of a full re-draw. #embarrassing#omnishambles#youcouldntmakeitup
In last year’s mid-season review I pointed out the issues that the SWF had had with a number of cup draws in the first half of 2023, most notably the Challenge Cup at all age groups. The first two rounds of this season’s Challenge Cup draws passed without incident and it looked like they’d turned the corner from the issues of previous seasons. In congratulating them on getting it right it seems I spoke too soon.
Despite the SWF’s Media and Communication Manager constantly referring to me as “media” (before I blocked him but that’s another story for another day) I’m not afforded the kind of heads up that journalists might expect. I’m not on any distribution list that might be useful for a site like mine, despite the work I do in promoting the girls and women’s game. Thankfully I was furnished with the 14s League Cup draws courtesy of many friends (coaches, parents etc) throughout the regions for which I am truly grateful. There are 383 teams across 41 leagues in the girls game this season and any head start I can get in updating my spreadsheets is greatly appreciated.
At the very start of April the regional League Cup draws started to filter through to my DMs. While there were no obvious issues with the two 18s draws and six 16s draws* – there was no seeding and they were all-in draws – when I started to have a closer look at the 14s draws I thought it was some kind of April Fool’s prank.
Let’s start with what I consider to be the worst draw. In the East region all 33 teams taking part in the 11-a-side leagues have entered. 33 is an annoying number for a cup draw because in all knockout competition conventions you’re trying to get down to 64, 32, 16 etc. With 33 entrants you have to knock out a single team to get down to 32. Normally you would have 1 tie and 31 byes to reduce the number to the requisite 32. The SWF, in their infinite wisdom, decided to go with 16 ties and 1 bye, which would bring 17 teams through. Unbelievable! Not for the first time in recent seasons, they got their maths wrong and the knock-on effect is that in the next round – instead of 16 ties – they’ll have to have a single tie, alongside 15 byes. Farcical! This goes against all traditional knockout tournament conventions. The error of the first round instead of being fixed has been exacerbated and compounded in the second round. (They made a similar mistake in the 14s South West League Cup in April 2022 when they had to squeeze in a single 3rd Round tie between Hamilton and Millennium to get down to the standard 8 quarter-finalists because they contrived to put 9 teams through!) However, the mathematical mess of the 1st Round draw has been heightened by another issue with the 14s East draw.
It seems the SWF have decided to ‘manipulate’ the draw to ensure the top tier teams get through by giving them not just one advantage but three. While the first advantage afforded the Caroline Weir league teams is to be seeded and therefore avoid their league rivals – a not unnatural benefit of the seeding process – the SWF have decided to also give the Tier 1 teams the added bonus of a home draw (or in Dunfermline Athletic White’s case a bye). This leaves the Tier 3 teams, as well as being given an away tie, having to incur the additional expense of travelling to play and, almost certainly, be beaten and beaten heavily*, by Tier 1 teams. (*A fair assumption based on the Tier 1 versus Tier 3 encounters during the recent grading friendlies). That’s no fun for anyone. Also, the way the draw was done smacks of sheer laziness. It seems they’ve taken an alphabetical list of the Tier 1 teams and taken the first one and given them a tie against the team at the bottom alphabetically of the Tier 2 teams and then continued the draw by taking the next Tier 1 team and placing them against the bottom Tier 3 team and continuing on like that. If you can’t get your head around that explanation then have a look at this picture where I’ve colour coded each tier to see what I mean. It is, quite simply, the most ridiculous draw I’ve ever seen.
I suggested to the SWF that this draw may end up in a load of 9-0 results and/or withdrawals by Tier 3 teams which makes a mockery of the competition. My concerns were expressed a few days after the draws were made but I’m still, at time of press, awaiting a response. For a few days they actually withdrew the draw from the SWF website. (Update: I was told yesterday, Wednesday 8 April, that the SWF have doubled down on their error and are sticking with the original draw. I’m not aware of any explanation why).
The 14s West draw has been made on similar lines, as the picture below illustrates. Another contrived draw giving a huge advantage to the Tier 1 teams.
What I don’t understand is the lack of consistency across the six regions. Are they going for all-in random draws – giving everyone a sporting chance – or manipulated draws to get the top teams though? Do they want knockout competitions or League Cups in groups? Are they seeding teams or not seeding them? They can’t seem to make up their mind from region to region. Either way, whatever they choose, they’re getting it wrong.
This brings us on to the 14s Central League Cup draw. There are 37 teams in this competition and the SWF have gone with groups rather than a knockout format. While in the East and West the SWF have looked to give an advantage to the Tier 1 teams, in Central it’s a very different story and this harks back to my issue of a lack of balance.
They’ve gone for eight groups; 5 featuring 5 teams and 3 groups of 4 teams (pictured below). So far, so good. All the 12 Tier 1 teams (from the Sam Kerr league) have been placed into just three groups. I have dubbed the group containing Isla Thistle Pinks, Milton Girls, Holytown Colts Blacks, Gartcairn and Motherwell as ‘The Group of Death’ because it’s ridiculously strong. Whoever gets through that group could easily be favourite to win the Cup. Three of the other groups only have Tier 3 teams in them. The draws for Central are below. I’ve still been unable to find the actual group numbers (or letters) so the ones I’ve used are purely for illustrative purposes.
In the North region they’ve plumped for 8 groups of 3 – Shetland Girls having been added to the 23 league teams – and it’s a mixed bag of strong and weak groups. In the South East they’ve opted for unseeded all-in knockout draws for the League Cup (Tier 1 and Tier 2 teams only) and the League Plate (Tier 3 and Tier 4 only), which is sensible. Being the only region with four 14s leagues the South East lends itself better to that split into Cup and Plate from the start. A straightforward all-in random knockout draw is the competition of choice in the South West.
Growing up with a dartboard in my bedroom meant mental arithmetic has always been a strong point of mine (unless it’s over 501!) but the SWF really seems to struggle with the basic mathematics of cup draws. (I also used to play with a weirdly-named game called LOGacta, in which you used charts, dice and cards to create and run league and cup competitions. The dice were a kind of seeding of their own. Does anyone else of a certain age remember it?) The problem is that it’s happening every single season. Lessons are not being learned. Once in a while it would nice if they put their hands up and said, “we got it wrong” and made amends for any errors. Instead, as is the modern, corporate way, they double down, PR their way out of it and hope the issue just goes away. They have to improve this side of their work because those involved in girls’ football, those who drive thousands of miles every year to coach, train and/or cheer on players and spends thousands of pounds doing so deserve so much better because some of these draws lack basic sporting integrity.
14s Scottish Challenge Cup – 1st Round (Ties to be played Sat/Sun 20/21 April 2024)
Here is the draw for the 1st Round of the 14s Scottish Challenge Cup:
Winchburgh Albion v Dunipace Ardrossan Winton Rovers Blacks v Hamilton Clark Drive v Renfrew Ladies Edinburgh South Phoenix v Aberdeen West End Calderbraes v Turriff United Youth Ross County v St Mirren Inverness Caledonian Thistle Reds v Donside Bo’ness United v EKFC Girls Pollok United v Phoenix Pinks Stirling Albion Reds v Drumchapel United Blacks Motherwell v Hutchison Vale Whites Queen of the South v Milton Girls Athena Glasgow v Riverside Sky West Park United Sky v Dundee West Reds Blantyre Celtic or Deveronvale v Auchtermuchty Bellvue Colts Rossvale Reds v Buchan Fire Burnbank FC v Penicuik Athletic Formartine United Reds or Glenburn MW v Arbroath Youth Yellows Isla Thistle Pinks v Glasgow Girls Forfar Farmington v Holytown Colts Reds Burnbank FC Blues v Rossvale Thistle Sauchie Juniors v Bonnyrigg Rose Reds Spartans Clelland v St Cadoc’s Caley Boroughmuir Thistle Purples v Cumbernauld Colts Blues Kintore United v Giffnock SC Whites Morton Blues v Montrose Youth Bo’ness United Navy v The Swift Blues West Park United Navy v Buchan Braves St Andrews & East Neuk v Inverness Caledonian Thistle Hibernian Whites v Musselburgh Windsor Blues Kilwinning FA v Shotts Bon Accord Blacks Murieston United Reds v Glasgow City
There’s never a dull moment in girls football in Scotland and 2023 was no exception. Here is my review of a dramatic season that ran from February to December. I hope you enjoy it.
While every attempt has been made to be as factually correct as possible, feel free to message me should you see any errors, whether they be factual or typographic. With the sheer volume of information here, the occasional faux pas may slip through.Corrections will be made as and when I’m informed.
14s
North and South West had grading friendlies at 14s, which seemed to last forever, but the teams soon settled into their allotted leagues with fixtures up to November/December. East, South East and Central had three leagues at 14s in the first half of the year and these were amended over the summer and all results zeroed. West had two leagues with fixtures from February through to the end of the year.
16s
North region had grading friendlies at 16s and their two leagues – Kim Little and Rachael Boyle – were very competitive. The two East 16s leagues were altered over the summer. Central, South East and South West regions played right to the end of November. West 16s is probably one of my favourite leagues because it’s a proper big league (16 teams). At the summer break there were just six points separating five teams.
18s
With not enough teams to justify 18s leagues in the North, East and South East regions, 21 teams across these regions played a League Cup split initially into groups in the first half of the year. Similarly, Central, West and South West joined together for a cross-region 18s Emma Mukandi league, which ran throughout the year. Neither competition was without issues but more on that later. Post-summer there was a North/East league, as well as as a Fife/South East league.
While every attempt has been made to be as factually correct as possible, feel free to message me should you see any errors, whether they be factual or typographic. With the sheer volume of information here, the occasional faux pas may slip through.Corrections will be made as and when I’m informed.
Notes:
*Please note when calculating “awarded” games, I’ve gone by what I have on my spreadsheets as some awarded games haven’t been marked as such on the SWF website. I have excluded awarded games involving clubs who withdrew from leagues during the season. Awarded games also includes games that were forfeited.
** In leagues where a play-off match (or matches) has been used to determine the winner, the result of the play-off(s) has been added to the final league table just to underline which team won the respective league, although generally it isn’t something I would normally do.
14s North Rachel Corsie
The very first game of this league’s season – Colony Park’s 3-1 victory over rivals Kintore United in April – proved to be the difference between the two teams as they fought it out for the top spot all the way to November.
League Note: Inverness Caledonian Thistle withdrew in September after playing five games. All fixtures accounted for and three awarded games.
14s North Christy Grimshaw
Turriff United Youth’s 3-0 away win over rivals Deveronvale on the last day of the season gave them an unassailable lead at the top, even though their rivals had two games in hand.
League Note: Seven unplayed fixtures and four awarded games.
14s North Rachel McLauchlan
Ross County dominated this league, finishing with a 100% record. Their own Colts team finished second.
League Note: All games accounted for, with only one awarded.
14s North League Cups and Plate
Rachel Corsie league leaders (at the time) Westdyke Girls lost in the 2nd Round to eventual league winners Colony Park, who went all the way to the final to play free-scoring Inverness Caledonian Thistle who had hit the net 17 times in three previous ties. An exciting final ended 3-3 after extra time with Inverness edging the penalty shoot-out 4-3.
Westdyke’s consolation was a 6-3 victory in the Plate final over Moray Girls.
The Highland League Cup was played on a league format with the top two contesting the final. Ross County had gone through the campaign with a 100% record, however Inverness Caledonian Thistle Reds upset the form book by taking the match to penalties, after a 1-1 draw, and then winning 8-7 in the shootout.
Cup note: Only one League Cup match went unplayed and that was between Nairn and Brora Rangers.
14s East Caroline Weir
It wasn’t until the post-split fixtures that Dunfermline Athletic Whites dropped any league points, drawing 0-0 with 2nd-placed Forfar Farmington. By that time the league had already been won, adding to their League Cup victory in June. Hopes of a treble with victory in the Challenge Cup fell at the semi-final stage with a 2-1 defeat to eventual winners Musselburgh Windsor.
League Note: All games accounted for, with three being awarded.
14s East Lucy Hope
Despite losing to their rivals in November, Dundee United held off the challenge of Glenrothes Strollers to win the league by two points.
League Note: Dundee United Sports Club replaced by Dundee West Reds. Letham Girls folded in September after four games. Three unplayed fixtures and three awarded games.
14s East Lana Clelland
Forfar Farmington 13s remained unbeaten and only a solitary draw between them and nearest rivals Bellvue Colts prevented either side having a 100% record. Bellvue Colts defeated Dunfermline Athletic Reds 6-1 in their final game to force a play-off with Forfar Farmington. The play-off, which I watched, took place on a wet and windy day at King George V Park in Strathmiglo on Saturday 16 December. A solitary second half goal settled what had been a very even match.
League Note: Dryburgh Athletic withdrew. One unplayed fixture and two awarded games.
14s East League Cup and Plate
Free-scoring Dunfermline Athletic Whites dominated the League Cup campaign with 33 goals in four games, finishing with a resounding victory over Jeanfield Swifts Jags in the final in June.
Cup Note: There were three awarded games in the first round of the League Cup.
The Swifts Blues narrowly lost out to Dunfermline Athletic Blacks in the first round of the East League Cup but victories over Arbroath Youth Blues, Kirrie Thistle and East Fife in the Plate saw them take on Glenrothes Strollers in the final. A narrow 2-1 win saw The Swifts Blues lift the trophy.
14s South East Joelle Murray
By any stretch of the imagination, Musselburgh Windsor had a great season. They won the treble of Joelle Murray league, League Cup and Scottish Challenge Cup. They only conceded four goals on the way to winning the league ahead of Murieston United.
League Note: Five clubs moved up from Tier 2 but one dropped back down before the season started. Two other clubs dropped out completely. Two unplayed fixtures and two awarded games.
14s South East Lizzie Arnot
Only a draw away to Dalkeith Thistle in August prevented Blackburn United Whites from maintaining a 100% record on the way to winning the league by eight points from Musselburgh Windsor Blues.
League Note: Two clubs moved down from tier 1, four moved up from tier 3 and 1 dropped down to Tier 3. Boroughmuir Thistle Purples dropped out. Three unplayed fixtures and six awarded games.
14s South East Frankie Brown
Twelve wins out of twelve for Winchburgh Albion Youth saw them win the league ahead of Loanhead Miners Yellows.
League Note: Loanhead dropped down from Tier 2. Three clubs were mooted to be joining from 9v9 but only two started the season. Two unplayed fixtures and ten awarded games.
14s South East League Cup and Plate
Musselburgh Windsor began their dominant trophy-filled season with victory over Boroughmuir Thistle Purples in the League Cup final in June.
Cup Note: Two awarded games and one where the result was reversed due to some sort of breach.
Broxburn Athletic Colts scored the only goal in extra time against Bonnyrigg Rose to lift the Plate.
Cup Note: One awarded game in the QF/1st Round of the Plate.
14s Central Sam Kerr
A 3-1 victory in their final game against league rivals Westerton United was enough to seal the title for Holytown Colts Reds.
League Note: Rossvale Reds, Dunipace and Westerton moved to Tier 1. Airdrie, Central, Falkirk and Stirling Albion moved down a tier. One unplayed fixture and five awarded games.
14s Central Nicola Docherty
Surprise defeats for both Stirling Albion and Gartcairn in their penultimate matches meant their final game – against each other – would be a winner-takes-all shootout to win the league. While Gartcairn had to win, Stirling Albion only needed a draw.. The final match was on Thursday 14 December at Raploch Community Centre and I popped along to watch a really competitive game between two well-matched teams. Stirling took a 2-0 lead in the second half and despite a late goal from Gartcairn the hosts held on to win the match and the title.
League Note: Kilsyth withdrew in February and Wasp Community withdrew in May after five games. Three unplayed fixtures and one awarded game for a rule breach.
14s Central Fiona Brown
Calderbraes’ shock home defeat against Phoenix Girls opened the door for Kirkfield United to win the league title, providing they won their two remaining fixtures. Playing two games in two days, Kirkfield first defeated Sauchie Juniors 7-3 on Saturday and beat Holytown Colts Blacks 3-0 the next day to clinch the league title by a solitary point.
League Note: All fixtures accounted for and two awarded game.
14s Central League and Plate
In June Holytown Colts Red played out a high-scoring final with Riverside Girls Maroons. 2-2 at full-time, Holytown pulled away in extra time to win 5-2.
Cup Note: Four awarded games, including one for a rule breach.
Victories over Kirkfield United, Shotts Bon Accord and Falkirk 14s brought Stirling Albion face to face with Dunipace in the final. In a close contest Stirling Albion edged out their opponents 3-2.
Cup Note: One unplayed/awarded game.
14s West Jen Beattie
Glasgow Girls 14s finished the season with 14 league wins out of 14, with Houston United, St Cadoc’s Athletic and Renfrew Blue fighting out the minor places.
League Note: OLM Girls withdrew over the summer and Glasgow City Orange withdrew to go NAP. All fixtures accounted for, with three games awarded.
14s West Chloe Arthur
With 63 points from 24 games each, the league would be heading for a play-off between Glasgow Girls 13s and St Mirren on Saturday 16 December at Greenfield Football Centre. A tight game was edged 2-1 by St Mirren after extra time.
League Note: Hillwood Girls withdrew in mid-April after three games, two of which were awarded. Busby Girls Blues joined during the summer but on a friendlies-only basis. Four unplayed fixtures and fourteen awarded games.
14s League Cup and Plate
Glasgow Girls 14s met Glasgow City Orange in the League Cup final in June. The Jen Beattie league leaders proved too strong for their NAP-bound opponents and ran out 3-0 winners.
Despite defeating Drumchapel United 5-0, Houston United’s League Cup tie was awarded 3-0 to their opponents. This saw them enter the Plate as one of the stronger teams. After defeating both Morton teams (Whites then Blues), Houston beat Glasgow City Blacks in the semi-final before meeting St Mirren in the final. Houston pipped St Mirren 3-2 after extra time.
Plate Note: Only one unplayed/awarded game.
14s South West Erin Cuthbert
Queen of the South won the league by seven point from Hamilton in what was a two-horse race.
League Note: After starting the league with competitive fixtures EKFC Girls moved to friendlies-only status after the summer. Three unplayed fixtures and five awarded games.
14s South West Lee Gibson
Ardrossan Winton Rovers held a three-point lead over Ayr United after defeating their rivals 4-1 in early December. Despite both teams having a game to play - and Ayr still mathematically in it – it seems to have been decided that that game was the league decider.
League Note: Heston Rovers added after the summer on a friendlies-only basis. Ostensibly to take the place of TASS Thistle who had left during the summer to become Ardeer Thistle. East Kilbride Thistle Reds also decided to withdraw in September despite being in the top half of the table once the end of split occurred. Six unplayed fixtures and four awarded games.
14s South West League Cup and Plate
In a close final Queen of the South lifted the League Cup against Clark Drive in June after a 2-1 victory.
Cup Note: Only one unplayed/awarded tie.
Cambuslang proved too strong for Heston Rovers Belles in the Plate final, running out 6-2 victors.
Plate Note: Only one tie forfeited.
16s North Kim Little
Ross County’s season began with a remarkable 7-7 draw away to Moray Girls. From then on, they won every game to hold off a spirited Aberdeen team to clinch the title.
League Note: There was one unplayed game, but the LMC/SWF (delete as applicable) have decided to make it a 0-0 draw. I disagree with making up results in this way because it cannot be applied fairly or consistently across all leagues. While this “draw” doesn’t affect the outcome of this particular league, it certainly could affect some of the other leagues where two or more teams are in the running, like it did last year when a 1-1 was decided upon, thereby handing a league to one team over the other. If you can’t apply it fairly to all teams across all leagues then it shouldn’t, in my opinion, be applied to any at all. I won’t be adding this “result” to the table. One unplayed fixture and four games were awarded.
16s North Rachael Boyle
A solitary defeat to Turriff and a draw away to Aberdeen West End were the only blemishes on an almost perfect season for league winners Deveronvale. Grampian Girls held off Turriff United for second place.
League Note: Banchory Girls withdrew before the season started. All fixtures accounted for with seven awarded games.
16s North League Cup
The League Cup was notable for the first appearance of a team from Shetland Girls taking part. After wins over Westdyke Girls Thistle and Ellon Meadows, they bowed out at the quarter-final stage to Thistle Youth who went on to make the final against Westdyke Girls. With the score level at 1-1 at full time, Westdyke Girls proved too strong in extra time and ran out 4-1 winners.
16s East Caroline Weir
Dryburgh Athletic and Bayside dominated this league and it was fitting that the final game of the season was between the two teams at Pitreavie on Sunday 10 December. Bayside took a 2-1 lead but three second half goals in five minutes gave Dryburgh Athletic the win and the title on a very rainy night.
League Note: All fixtures accounted for, with only one awarded game.
16s East Abbi Grant
Dundee United lost their 100% record against St Andrews and East Neuk in their final league game but still won the league by five points from Jeanfield Swifts.
League Note: Arbroath Youth folded before the season started. Two unplayed fixtures and nine awarded games.
16s East League Cup
Despite dominating the top league, both Dryburgh and Bayside failed to make the final. Forfar Farmington faced East Fife 15s, who had defeated their own 16s after extra time in the quarter finals. In a close game, Forfar Farmington ran out 2-1 winners.
Cup Note: Three awarded games. Having lost their quarter-final on penalties against Kennoway Star Hearts, Bayside put in an appeal and were awarded the tie only to then conceded their semi-final against Forfar Farmington because they were taking part in a tournament in Belgium!
16s South East Joelle Murray
In a very competitive league, Livingston held off the challenge of both Spartans Harrison and Bonnyrigg Rose to top the table. Bonnyrigg Rose had had some points docked for an alleged breach but after a judicial review the points were returned. Rather bizarrely, the highest footballing authority in the land – the SFA – said they didn’t have the authority to reinstate Bonnyrigg Rose into the Challenge Cup, which they had also been thrown out of as part of the punishment!
League Note: Bo’ness United and Dalkeith Thistle dropped down to the Lizzie Arnot league. All matches accounted for, with five awarded games.
16s South East Lizzie Arnot
With Murieston United being awarded their game in hand against Blackhall Athletic, they managed to pip Spartans Reilly to the title.
League Note: Winchburgh Albion withdrew after nine games. One unplayed fixtures and six awarded games, including one for a rule breach.
16s South East League Cup
The top two in the Joelle Murray – Livingston and Spartans Harrison – carried their league form into the League Cup and reached the final together in June. Livingston ran out 4-2 winners.
Cup Note: One awarded/unplayed game.
16s Central Lee Gibson
A play-off on Sunday 10 December decided the winners of the Lee Gibson league. Both Central Girls and Glasgow City Orange defeated each other once and both dropped points in draws against Rossvale, who finished a distant third in the league. In an exciting play-off, it went to extra time with Glasgow City Orange winning 4-3.
League Note: Gartcairn withdrew to go NAP. Cumbernauld Colts withdrew from the league towards the end of September. Two unplayed fixtures and eighteen awarded games, including one reversal for a rule breach.
16s Central League Cup
The 1st Round draw brought the two of the favourites together with Central running out 3-1 winners against Glasgow City Orange. Victories over Airdrie, Rossvale and, in the final, Riverside gave the cup to Central Girls.
Cup Note: Two unplayed/awarded games.
16s West Leanne Crichton
This was one of my favourite leagues purely because it was a big 14-team league, which ran from February to November, and teams played up to 26 matches. With a 100% record, Glasgow Girls ran out winners from Giffnock Black and Morton.
League Note: Giffnock Reds folded in August after 18 games. Drumchapel folded in October having already 24 games but struggled for players after a coach left in the summer and took ten players with him to become part of Hutchison Vale’s NAP team. Four unplayed fixtures and an incredible thirty awarded* games, including one reversal for a rule breach!
16s West League Cup
Glasgow Girls‘ dominance continued in the League Cup where wins over Thorn Athletic, St Mirren and Drumchapel saw them face league rivals Giffnock Blacks in the final. The original final in June was abandoned due to a spectator taking ill. The replayed final in September was a one-sided game with Glasgow Girls running out 7-0 winners.
16s South West Erin Cuthbert
Queen of the South Whites took the league title, with their Blues fighting for second spot with Glasgow City Black and Ardrossan Winton Rovers.
League Note: Kilbirnie were mooted to be joining but didn’t. Stewarton Annick withdrew in August after only managing to play one league match. Three unplayed fixtures and twenty two awarded games, including one result reversal.
16s South West League Cup
Queen of the South Whites’ semi final loss to Ardrossan Winton Rovers prevented an all Queen of the South final. However, Queen of the South Blues defeated Ardrossan 6-0 in the final.
Cup Note: Three ties were unplayed/awarded, including a quarter final.
18s North and East League
It’s fair to say that this league has been a bit of a shambles. It has the most unplayed games of any league and only seventeen games were played in total. At least three teams regularly struggled with player numbers and another had issues around dispensations so couldn’t play any league games at all. At an age group where girls are going off to further education or working (or both) or simply leaving the game it can be difficult to retain players or recruit. A number of 18s teams went straight to ladies football this year. Moving forward, I’m not sure what the solution is.
League Note: Fifteen unplayed fixtures and ten awarded games.
18s Fife and South East League
This league fared better than the North and East one although there were still nine unplayed games come December. Penicuik Athletic finished the league with a 100% record and were worthy winners.
League Note: Dunbar United Colts folded in August before the league started. Nine unplayed fixtures and eleven awarded matches.
18s North/East/South East League Cup and Plate
As mentioned in the previous season review in July, there weren’t enough teams in each of the three regions to make competitive leagues, so they were formed into a three-group League Cup. I’m not sure why they didn’t go with four groups, to make qualification calculation easier, but there you go.
Group 1 was dominated by Jeanfield Swifts and Penicuik Athletic, Group 2 saw Musselburgh Windsor, Dunfermline Athletic and Raith Rovers Colts qualify for the quarter-finals where they were joined by Livingston, Aberdeen and Musselburgh Windsor Whites from Group 3. The other teams went into the Plate competition.
The League Cup final was contested by the two teams from Group A – Jeanfield Swifts and Penicuik Athletic. Jeanfield had won their group encounter 5-2 and got the better again, albeit by a much closer 3-2 margin after a spirited fightback by Penicuik.
Eleven teams contested the League Plate with Bo’ness United and Dryburgh serving up a six-goal thriller in the final. It went to penalties with Bo’ness United triumphing 5-4.
Cup Notes – Group A: One unplayed game in this group. Glenrothes Strollers withdrew in April due to a shortage of players but one of their results is still reflected in the SWF’s table.
Cup Notes – Group B: All games played. AM Soccer withdrew in February.
Cup Notes – Group C: One game unplayed. Dundee West withdrew in February.
18s Cross Region Emma Mukandi League
There didn’t seem to be a week going by without the composition of this league changing, for various reasons. Initially there were 16 teams, only for Sauchie Amateurs to withdraw before it started. Gartcairn and Evro Girls Academy joined them as they were only to play friendlies as they were going to be joining the National Academy Performance leagues after the summer (or so they thought!) Then West Park United and Kirkfield United dropped out leaving us with just 11 teams.
When the league finally started Glasgow City were the pace setters and remained undefeated going into the summer, just ahead of Glasgow Girls and Drumchapel United. Rossvale were in fourth, nine points between City.
During the summer, both Drumchapel United and Dumbarton United left the league to join the SWFL ladies leagues leaving the league with only 9 teams. This caused havoc with the fixtures and some teams ended the season with more home games than away ones. I pointed this issue out to the SWF and offered solutions but they weren’t interested.
In a fiercely competitive league, there were three teams on 42 points after 16 games: Glasgow Girls, Rossvale and Glasgow City. Rather strangely, the SWF published details of the three play-off matches before Glasgow Girls had actually played their final match, which I felt was disrespectful to both Rossvale and Glasgow City, and especially to Cumbernauld Colts. The SWF had obviously decided the outcome of the final league game before it was even played! I also know that Cumbernauld weren’t happy at being forced into playing in sub-zero temperatures while games all around them were being postponed due to frozen pitches and safety concerns.
Due to the weather the first two play-off games weren’t played when they should’ve been. In the third game, which was the first to be played, Rossvale won 3-2 away at Glasgow Girls. Two days later, Glasgow City lost 4-1 at home to Glasgow Girls. The final match saw Rossvale play host to Glasgow City on Sunday 17 December 2023. The LMC had decided that each individual play-off match should be played to a finish, which I found bizarre. I can understand that for a single play-off match but when three or more teams are involved we need clearer guidance. If it had been a mini-league instead of three individual games, Rossvale would’ve only needed a point to win the league. As it was, Rossvale and City drew 1-1 after 90 minutes and the game headed into extra time. Rossvale, who had been the form team in the second half of the league campaign, scored three more goals to run out 4-1 winners.
League Note: 2 unplayed matches and 16 awarded games.
18s Cross Region League Cup and Plate
There wasn’t a good start to the League Cup with five of the six first round ties being “awarded”. By the time we got to the semi-finals only four ties had been played. Glasgow City won the final 5-1 against Glasgow Girls.
Seven teams were in the draw for the Plate. Rossvale won a close final 3-2 against Ayr United.
Plate Note: One preliminary round tie in the Plate was awarded.
18s Cross Region Rose Reilly Shield
The Rose Reilly Shield was a cross region competition for those teams in the Emma Mukandi league, plus Evro Girls Academy who were going NAP. In a close final, Evro Girls defeated Glasgow Girls 2-1
Cup note: One preliminary round tie was awarded/unplayed, as was one of the semi-finals.
14s Scottish Challenge Cup
I won’t repeat the draw issues with the Challenge Cup (at all age groups, not just 14s). Musselburgh Windsor got to the 4th round without playing a game but then defeated Boroughmuir Thistle Jags and Westdyke Girls (both at home) before a close semi-final victory at Ainslie Park over Dunfermline Athletic Whites. Hamilton’s route to the final took them to Stewarton Annick, Glasgow City Blacks, Buchan Braves, Deveronvale and a long-drawn-out quarter-final saga with Forfar Farmington. Why the latter tie was played at a neutral venue (just 30 minutes from Forfar) instead of at the home team’s ground is anyone’s guess? The final began evenly with a goal apiece after 10 minutes, only for Musselburgh Windsor to pull away to lead 4-1 at half-time. Two more second half goals saw Musselburgh Windsor 6-1 victors.
Cup note: Eight regional ties were awarded, including one reversal for a rule breach. Between the second and third rounds there were four awarded ties. In the 4th Round there were seven awarded ties out of 16!
16s Scottish Challenge Cup
After similar early round draw issues to the other age groups, the 16s Challenge Cup got back on track. The semi-finals were dominated by 3 teams from the West league and a solitary interloper from Central region. Back in September Glasgow Girls had defeated Giffnock Blacks in the West League Cup final and they met again in the Challenge Cup final. While the outcome was a lot closer this time, the victory once again went to Glasgow Girls who ran out 2-0 winners.
Cup note: There were three awarded ties, including one reversal for a rule breach. Five awarded games in the 2nd Round and two in the 3rd Round. Despite winning in the 4th Round, Bonnyrigg Rose were thrown out (see the 16s South East Joelle Murray league) only to then win their judicial review. The notion that they couldn’t be reinstated because it would affect the running of the competition was ridiculous. Cup competitions get delayed all the time for all manner of reasons, especially the weather.
18s Scottish Challenge Cup
Four of the eight 2nd Round ties were awarded/not played. A notable inclusion was Shetland Girls who were making their first appearance in a competitive competition. Sadly, they came up against eventual finalists Penicuik Athletic and lost heavily but it would have been a great experience for them. The semi-finals were both East versus West affairs. Penicuik defeated Glasgow City 7-4 after extra time, while Glasgow Girls pipped Musselburgh Windsor 3-2. In an exciting final Glasgow Girls scored a last-minute winner to secure a 4-3 victory over Penicuik Athletic.
Scottish Women’s Football
It’s fair to say that it doesn’t look like my love-hate relationship with the SWF is going to end anytime soon. Sometimes they want to engage with me and sometimes they don’t.
Every week I do an audit between what results and tables I have on my spreadsheets and what they have on their website. Each email tends to contain a mix of missing results, incorrect results, tables where results have not been reflected, cup draw and fixture issues and, in the second half of this season, table splits being in the wrong place. There are usually other issues too, including IT problems at SWF’s end.
Earlier this year I put up a poll asking whether I should do a blog on all the fixtures issues. Word got back to the SWF and I was contacted by the CEO. I got a sense that she was more concerned with how we can “maintain the positivity around the game” rather than addressing the issues themselves. I didn’t publish the blog but I tend send some of the contents to the CEO to look at. I get the need to talk up the women and girls’ game but I’d also like to see more transparency and honesty about some of the issues surrounding the women’s game. Trying to ignore them doesn’t do the game any favours. It takes a lot for me to block someone on Twitter but I had to block the SWF’s official account due to the behaviour of the Media and Communications Manager towards me. One of his gripes seem to be that I wouldn’t go for a coffee with him! I kid you not.
I started my Twitter page (I’m never calling it X) with the purpose of getting the results and the tables to the people who wanted to know them when they wanted them i.e. on the day of their matches. I don’t think that is an unreasonable thing, especially in this modern, technological age. While the SWF has improved this as far as the ladies’ games are concerned – they’re now updated on the website on the day they’re played which wasn’t always the case – people involved with regional girls’ teams are still left waiting, sometimes until midweek for results from games 3/4/5 days earlier.
Having said all that, I wish to express my sincere gratitude for all the assistance I have received this year from Kirsty Fowler-Waugh, the Operations and Competitions Manager, who has engaged with me in a productive manner. Hopefully that mutually beneficial relationship can continue in 2024.
Followers – Special Thanks
It’s fair to say there have been times this year when I haven’t been in a good place mentally. I’ve had problems with depression on and off since the 1908s but a whole year of unemployment in 2023 has taken its toll as I’ve struggled to find gainful employment. Despite over 30 years of work, I’m not entitled to any benefits either. I didn’t think it would be so hard at my age to find work matching my experience and skills but it has. As a result my confidence has taken a hammering and I feel somewhat on the scrapheap. Running Girls Results has given me a focus and a purpose. At times I have thought about giving up but the constant stream of kindness and positivity from so many followers – now over 5000 – has kept me going. I am genuinely touched by these messages. I mean that. You make me realise that what I am doing is worthwhile and my service is wanted. The amount of hours I put into it is akin to a full-time job. Plus, I also try to watch games too, which takes up time and money. (In the past nine days I’ve travelled to five games – most in wintry conditions. I think I may have trenchfoot now!). There are too many individuals and clubs to mention but you’ll know who you are. You help me, I help you and everyone benefits. You make mistakes, I make mistakes but we get there in the end. When I took a weekend off to have a break in London in November, some people said Twitter had been really quiet that weekend! The following week some said they’d really missed me, which is the kind of thing that makes it all worthwhile.
STATS
Last December, when I published my first full season review, I had 3000 followers on Twitter. Currently it stands at 5100, which is phenomenal. When there was talk of Twitter imploding I started back-up accounts on Instagram, Mastodon and Threads. Thankfully I haven’t had to use the latter two…yet! Girls Results has grown to 770 followers on Instagram, where I put the completed results after the day’s fixtures. Thanks for your support, whichever platform you use. At the weekend, I have to deal with information coming in via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and WhatsApp, as well as Usqor and usually at the same time!
What will 2024 bring? A new two-tier National Performance set up, if the rumours are to be believed. If the girls and ladies game is anything like this year’s, then we’ll also have plenty of on and off-field drama. If my DMs could talk they’d shock you!
Finally, a big thanks to all the teams and individuals who provided photos for this review. It is much appreciated. Also, much love and gratitude to anyone who bought me a coffee this year via the Buy Me a Coffee link in my Twitter profile. I fully appreciate we’re living in tough times, where every penny counts, and your generosity is appreciated.
That’s all for this year. Enjoy your festive break and let’s all reconvene in January when we can do it all again!
14s Scottish Challenge Cup – 1st Round* (Ties to be played Sat/Sun 23/24 March 2024)
Bathgate Thistle Whites v Ross County Finnart Blues v Winchburgh Albion Stenhousemuir v West Park United Navy Stonehaven Strollers v Spartans Clelland Athena Glasgow v Grampian Girls United Bathgate Thistle Blacks v Rossvale Thistle Drumchapel United Blacks v Finnart Blacks Morton Blues v Morton Whites Bayside Bears v Burnbank Blues Bonnyrigg Rose Reds v TASS Thistle Glasgow Girls v Giffnock SC Reds Inverness Caledonian Thistle Reds v The Swifts Sabres Edinburgh South Phoenix v Phoenix Blacks Arbroath Youth v Buchan Fire St Cadoc’s Caley v Grampian Girls Athletic Isla Thistle Pinks v Central Girls West Park United Sky v Stonehaven Dynamos Arbroath Youth Yellows v Dundee United Montrose Youth v Dumbarton United Yellows Forfar Farmington v Giffnock SC Blacks Dean Thistle v Donside Cumbernauld Colts Yellows v EKFC Girls Aberdeen Reds v Buchan Braves Jeanfield Swifts Jets v Musselburgh Windsor Blues Clark Drive v Kirkfield United Sauchie Juniors v Hutchison Vale Blacks Blairgowrie v Motherwell Kintore United v North Berwick Auchtermuchty Bellvue Colts v Phoenix Oranges Hamilton v Bayside Lauderdale or Holytown Colts Blacks v Glasgow City Parkmoor v Calderbraes Pollok United v Arniston Rangers Cambusdoon Blacks v Hibernian Whites Stewarton Annick v Dunipace Banchory Girls v Holytown Colts Reds Rossvale Reds v Bishopton Dunfermline Athletic Reds v Penicuik Athletic Murieston United Reds v Raith Rovers Rockets Bo’ness United v Kirriemuir Thistle Jeanfield Swifts Jazz v The Swifts Blues Stirling Albion Reds v Westdyke Giffnock SC Whites v Thorn Athletic Shotts Bon Accord Blacks v Dumbarton United Blacks Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Culter Diamonds Aberdeen West End v Larkhall Thistle Formartine United Reds v Glenburn MW or Drumsagard Blantyre Celtic v Deveronvale Dunfermline Athletic Whites v Renfrew Dunbar United Colts v Queen of the South Melrose FC v Milton Girls Drumchapel United v Dundee West Reds Hutchison Vale v Castlevale YDC Phoenix Pinks v Wishaw Wycombe Wanderers St Andrews & East Neuk v Stirling Albion Whites Kilwinning FA v Colony Quines Bo’ness United Navy v Houston United Ardrossan Winton Rovers Blacks v Dryburgh Athletic Glenrothes Strollers v St Mirren Burnbank FC v Giffnock SC Purples Boroughmuir Thistle Purples v Murieston United Blues Dundee West Royals v Cumbernauld Colts Blues
BYES: Riverside Sky Turriff United Youth
*Note: The SWF has referred to this round as “Preliminary Round 2” but I don’t understand why. I believe it should be the 1st Round.
16s Scottish Challenge Cup – 2nd Round (Ties to be played: Sat/Sun 20/21 Apr 2024)
Morton Community v Cockenzie Star Blackburn United v Rossvale Bo’ness United v St Mirren Cumbernauld Colts v Thistle Youth Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Falkirk Central Girls v Holytown Colts Stonehaven Youth v Aberdeen West End Glenburn MW v Musselburgh Windsor YPL Aberdeen Reds v West Park United Riverside v Glasgow City YPL Queen of the South v Westdyke Wishaw Wycombe Wanderers v Ardrossan Winton Rovers Blacks Glasgow City Dev v Hibernian YPL St Andrews & East Neuk v East Fife Montrose v Gartcairn Cambusdoon FC v Aberdeen Blacks Strathaven Dynamos v Bonnyrigg Rose Renfrew Ladies v Lauderdale Turriff United v Dundee East Dundee West Royals v Kirriemuir Thistle Evro Girls Academ v Athena Glasgow Huntly v Moray Girls Grampian Girls United v Falkirk YPL Spartans Beveridge v Bayside 16s YPL Clark Drive v Murieston United Reds Dumbarton United v Forfar Farmington Gullane Athletic v Westerton United Glasgow Girls Pinks v Kilwinning FA Millennium v Glasgow Girls Purples Musselburgh Windsor Blues v Bayside 15s
BYES: Port Glasgow Spartans Reilly YPL
18s Scottish Challenge Cup – 2nd Round (Ties to be played: Sat/Sun 20/21 Apr 2024)
Falkirk v Gartcairn Renfrew v Turriff United Youth Grampian Girls v Inverness Caledonian Thistle Ayr United v EKFC Girls Jeanfield Swifts v Ross County Raith Rovers Colts v Spartans Harrison Blackhall Athletic v Dunfermline Athletic Boroughmuir Thistle Jags v East Fife Forfar Farmington v Cumbernauld Colts Glasgow Girls v Harmony Row Musselburgh Windsor Blues v Westdyke Giffnock v Dundee West Reds Bo’ness United v Queen of the South Edinburgh South v St Mirren
This is very much a tongue-in-cheek look at some of the things we can do to help each other produce the best possible results service, for the benefit of everybody, on @GirlsResults.
Stuck in the Middle With You
We all make mistakes, especially me and my big sausage fingers typing away like a whirling dervish every weekend as results fly in from here, there and everywhere. But one of the major issues last season was the number of games where the two teams just couldn’t agree on the score. It got to the point where it was at least once a week.
This is frustrating for all concerned but especially me as I’m left as piggy in the middle, with my light blue UN helmet on, between two coaches who are adamant they’re right. The knock-on effect of this means that I can’t put up the full results round-up for that league and, in turn, can’t put up the up-to-date table either.
You Know The Score
At the last count, I was following almost 100 teams on Usqor. A few of those accounts are now dormant but it’s still a lot of teams that actively use the app. Usqor is a great app for providing commentary, or just the goals, to anyone who can’t make a game but still wants to follow the action.
I used to run the app for a few teams and it was a godsend for at least one parent who was able to follow his daughter’s team from his workplace in Azerbaijan.
Teams seem to use the app in different ways, which is entirely up to them, but there are some things that all teams can do to make it easier for themselves and me.
Firstly, start the game on time. That might seem obvious but you amazed at how many times the person running it forgets. Similarly, don’t forget to end the first half, restart the second half and press End Match at the appropriate time. You wouldn’t believe the number of teams who forget to end the games. Hours after the game has finished it’s still showing as being in the fifth minute of injury time! I know some of the time added on in recent TV matches has been extreme but two hours?!
Secondly, if you’re the away team make sure you tick the box that says Away when setting up that game. (See “If You Go Away” below)
For those who don’t know, Usqor is a free app (with adverts, but not once games begin), with an ad-free premium version that allows you to follow as many teams as you want. (Note: I am not on commission, mores the pity!)
Thanks to the decision to split 14s and 16s NAP games over four periods (why?) , it might not be so suitable for NAP teams anymore, unless Usqor can find a way to split games into four periods.
You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone
Unlike the multi-staffed governing body, I am a one-man operation. I spend a large part of my week, especially the weekends, preparing fixture lists, checking fixtures, collating results, updating tables in my spreadsheets and a whole lot more besides. And all while trying to watch games too. You might only have to worry about one result; I have to search for results from over 400 teams! So, if you can message me the result as soon as you can that would be much appreciated. The less I have to chase up the better. I do appreciate that some people are driving home or to another game straight after. That’s fair enough. We all have busy lives but I’d rather not still be chasing up results at 9pm on a Saturday night when everyone else is doing the Slosh at the local miners club or watching Match of the Day!
Anyone Can Make a Mistake
Due to the sheer volume of results I have to deal with sometimes there are mistakes. It happens. I’m only human. Always feel free to let me know If I do. Generally, I can amend the error within minutes. I would rather know than not know.
Sometimes I’m at the mercy of the SWF. I’m not privy to information such as when a game has been “awarded”. Sometimes these awarded results are missing from tables I publish but I do catch up with them eventually as I do a weekly audit between what I have and what the SWF has. Occasionally, I get told by a coach or secretary that a match has been “awarded” but I tend not to update my tables until it’s official.
If You Go Away
I understand that teams on their own social media platforms are looking to emphasise their own team and do so by putting their own teams name first. This can be confusing especially if the team were actually playing away from home. If you can put the home team first and the away team second that would be great and saves me asking, “were you home or away?”, which I do frequently. It might seem obvious to you who is home and away but there are quite a few fixtures each season that are reversed for whatever reason.
Give Give Give Me More More More
This list is not exhaustive and I may add things to it as they crop up during the season. Please note that if I bring up a recent issue that may be personal to you I’m not having a go at you, or taking sides and I’ll avoid naming names. I’m just bringing it up in case it affects others.
What (Goal) Difference Does It Make?
At least once a week, I have to remind new followers that you can’t show more than a 9-goal winning winning margin on social media for youth football. (Note: This is different from not showing than 9 goals scored). You can show 9-0, 10-1, 11-2, 12-3 etc, always giving credit to the losing teams for their goals. So 12-2 becomes 11-2, 14-0 becomes 9-0 and 17-1 becomes 10-1 etc. Goal difference isn’t used in youth football. Nobody in their right mind wants to see 23-0 results.
With a Little Help From My Friends
If there are any ideas you might have for improving the page for the benefit of all then don’t hesitate to DM me (assuming Twitter lets me access them) but please be aware there are only so many hours in the day and now and again I need to eat, sleep and talk to my family!
If you like what I do and would like to show your appreciation then feel free to buy me a coffee. But only if you can afford it. I know times are tough.
Best Wishes Paul
P.S. Most of that was written last week but a few things reared their head yesterday (Saturday 19 August 2023) on the first day of the season for most regional and NAP teams.
The main issue was that unbeknownst to me Twitter has instigated a daily limit on the number of DMs you can send and by mid-afternoon yesterday (Saturday) I had apparently reached mine. I’m not convinced I had sent 500 DMs but there you go. They wanted to know if I would be willing to pay to be verified and therefore alleviate the problem. “Jog on!”, says I. The egg-headed gazillionaire can go and raffle himself. We’ll see if I get to start from zero tomorrow. As a friend kindly pointed out, “it’s because you like a blether” and she’s not wrong. So from now on, unless I have a specific question, I’ll simply click the thumbs up icon, which is still allowed.
The other issue was the sheer volume of games. Hunting down the scores for over 120 games was tough. Another 60 odd today. If you find I haven’t got back to you within a short space of time it’s because I’m taking a wee break to recharge the batteries. My heid was nippin’ around dinner time/tea time (delete as applicable) so I took a break for food and some family time.
Jocknroll Ain't Noise Pollution 