APPROPRIATELY, given today’s events at Hampden Park, the week’s big talking point in women’s football also concerned Celtic and Rangers.
When it was announced that Wednesday night’s re-arranged SWPL1 game was to be played at Celtic Park, I must admit to mixed feelings: delight at the prospect of a women’s league match being played at one of Scotland’s top grounds, but also perplexity at the decision to make it closed-doors.
My definition of closed-doors is no spectators permitted. I also associate the term with a club being punished for misdemeanours, usually involving its fans. Women’s football struggles to attract spectators at the best of times, so actively discouraging them seemed self-defeating.
There was provision for 500 spectators at Parkhead, albeit by invitation only. Most of the allocated seats were filled. And, yes, the two sets of fans were in separate areas.
The chances of trouble were negligible, but you have to bear in mind what happened at the Glasgow Cup finals from 2012-14. Despite the fact these three games involved the under-17 teams of Celtic and Rangers, seats were set on fire and ripped out, the sectarian chanting was vile, and the atmosphere generally putrid.
Faced with these circumstances, attendance on Wednesday was restricted to those who could be guaranteed to behave. Celtic have now made a promise to the women’s team that every effort will be made to play one game a season at Parkhead. The gesture is important, because it shows Celtic to be placing a growing importance on women’s football. Hibernian have staged women’s games at Easter Road, as did Rangers at Ibrox for a friendly against Hamilton last May.
The whole experience was positive. Yes, it would have been good to have had a noisier atmosphere generated by more supporters, but not at the expense of the bile we have come to expect when these clubs meet. Watching a women’s match played on a good grass surface, in a top-class stadium, made a huge difference to the whole perception of the occasion.
The 5-1 scoreline reflected Celtic’s superiority, but Rangers played their part too. The fitness levels of both sides were impressive and the standard, at least amongst the top six clubs, is clearly on the rise.
Celtic, bolstered by recent signings Suzanne Mulvey and Christie Murray, pictured, now carry a threat. I expect them to mount a challenge to Glasgow City and Hibs this season.
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