Aberdeen: Can the SWPL 1 newcomers live up to high expectations?
Anyone's Game runs the rule over Aberdeen's early form and the challenges ahead
“We’ve got a lot of confidence that we can come into this league and compete” said Aberdeen boss Emma Hunter after their 5-2 SWPL Cup loss away to Rangers last month.
Hunter’s side are back in the top-flight of Scottish women’s football for the first time since 2017 after winning back-to-back promotions in emphatic style.
The expectation on them is high. Their location gives them both an advantage and a disadvantage in obtaining the best talents. On one hand they have an almost unrivalled access to the best of what the north-east can provide. On the other hand, they don’t yet have the funds of the Glasgow teams and it’s harder to encourage players not on full-time contracts away from the central belt.
But Hunter - who is now joined in the dugout by former Dundee United boss Gavin Beith as co-manager - knows the Dons support, and even their opposition, expect a big season. Not so much a title challenge just yet, but the bottom-of-the-table finish that befell Hearts last season will not be tolerated.
Do the Dons have what it takes to handle the step up? Are they destined for a relegation fight, or can they frighten the bigger teams and even aim for a top-half finish?
Anyone’s Game takes a look at last season’s SWPL 2 winners.
Early season form
Aberdeen have already taken on both Rangers and Celtic this season. A 5-2 loss to Rangers in the SWPL Cup group stage, and a 4-2 SWPL 1 opening day defeat to Celtic.
Losing those games were probably to be expected. Neither side lost to anyone from outwith their own city last season, and regularly hand out severe hammerings. That Aberdeen scored four goals in both games and produced two promising performances is about as good as expected for now.
Hunter told Anyone’s Game: “I just told the players if they are leaving disappointed, they shouldn’t because they scored two goals against a Rangers team that have been in the SWPL 1 for a long time and have obviously a lot of resources and investment. I said that they should leave with their heads held high.
“We treated it as a mini pre-season [the SWPL Cup] but obviously you want to go out and do well so it’s a bonus that we have managed to get through to the next round.”
They made it to the last eight with victories against Motherwell, Queen’s Park and Boroughmuir Thistle. They also beat Partick Thistle 2-0 in their second league game, and this Sunday host Hamilton.
What we’ve noticed so far
If the Dons can emulate their first half showing against Rangers, they will be more than a match for any side in the league this season.
Each player looked like they knew the system that they were meant to be playing in and pressed high while showing the opposition no fear.
Last seasons SWPL 2 top scorer Bayley Hutchison was out of the squad due to injury and was a huge loss to the Aberdeen attack. Lauren Gordon deputised for her with Eva Thomson and Francesca Ogilvie deployed either side. Gordon worked her socks off and closed down the Rangers defenders at every opportunity although she’s less of a natural goal scorer than Hutchison.
On a positive note, summer signing Louise Brown looked bright when she came on in the second half to lead the line and it’s clear that having depth in every position is key at this level if they want to compete at the right end of the table.
Hunter said: “I thought Louise did really well tonight when she came on, causing them a bit of problems at times. I think we just need to solidify this group. They’ve all got areas they can learn and develop this season.”
Experience required
Hunter hinted there’s a challenge to get players to move up to join Aberdeen.
She said: “I am always looking for players and if we can strengthen the squad we will. Being in the Aberdeen catchment area makes things slightly more challenging. For me it’s about looking at the youth players and trying to keep developing youth players which is something I think at Aberdeen we can be particularly good at.
“There’s a couple of good players coming up through the Scotland squads that we have had in training a few times, so I don’t want to block that entry for some of these young talented players, I feel it’s a bit of a balancing act with building the squad.”
Dons Captain Kelly Forrest has been through it all with the club and is an experienced head in the back line, as is Loren Campbell at full-back who always particularly impresses with her athleticism and drive to win.
Summer recruit Donna Paterson also has SWPL 1 experience having been a mainstay in the Forfar Farmington side last season and has also been at Glasgow City before. Her start to her Dons career has been stop start due to injury but having someone who knows what it’s like to come up against the likes of Celtic, Rangers and City can only benefit the Aberdeen side. She’s also a very talented player who can play in a number of positions.
‘We are into a higher league with a higher demand’
Aberdeen picked up their first three points back in the SWPL 1 with a battling 2-0 victory over Partick Thistle at Petershill Park last weekend, but it wasn’t all plain sailing.
Second half goals from Eva Thomson and debutant Mya Christie sealed the win after a tense first half of very little goal mouth action. This left Aberdeen attacker Francesca Ogilvie frustrated by the shot shy opening 45 minutes.
“It was a game where we had a lot of possession but just weren’t creating enough chances,” Ogilvie told Anyone’s Game. “So in the second half to get those two goals, settle us down and get the three points. We are happy with that.
“It is really really frustrating when you have got loads of the ball but you just can’t get into the final third and get it in the net. So, as I say when we did get the first, it spurred us on to get another one.”
The Dons were without regular attackers Gordon and Hutchison with both players nursing injuries. Captain Forrest was also missing from the squad. This resulted in summer recruit Brown being deployed up front and she worked her socks off without really having a clear cut chance to test Lauren McGregor in the Thistle net.
“The injuries are also frustrating but you can’t help that,” continued Ogilvie, who post-match was presented with her 2020-21 SWPL 2 Anyone’s Game player of the year trophy.
“We are into a higher league with a higher demand. We are training more and playing harder games so of course we know we are going to get injuries so the two strikers we did have come in, Louise and Mya. Mya got a goal so she’s happy with that.
“That’s her (Mya) first time in with the first team. She trained with us during the week and then got up, came off the bench and scored. Easy as that.”
It was only 1-0 in Aberdeen’s favour with minutes to go before substitute Christie secured the points but it was the hosts who looked extremely threatening in their quest for an equaliser.
Thistle debutant London Pollard, on loan from Celtic, impressed and it took some brave goalkeeping from Dons goalkeeper Gail Gilmour to deny her a goal late on. Pollard’s movement, pace and trickery caused the Dons defence problems throughout the second half.
Ogilvie said: “They were fighting really hard for a point and just to get a goal. We could really feel it [the pressure] that they were pushing us hard. We set our expectations to go down here and get the three points.
“We knew it wasn’t going to be as hard as the Rangers and Celtic games we just played, but we had to give them respect at the time.”
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