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Date: 19th August 2025
All the drama of the top-flight?
Donald C Stewart
And so we are off.
The new season is well upon us in terms of the men’s game, but the women’s game is about to kick off in the most dramatic fashion ever. They have reduced their 12 teams in the top-flight down to 10 and are now looking to use as a platform for full-time football.
It is an exciting time, not least because there is genuine competition at the top of the SWPL, which hopefully allows for real competition. The have a split too, like in the men’s game, but with the top six playing each other twice, not once, and the bottom four doing exactly the same.
Whilst it would appear that revenue, therefore, for the bottom four is not going to be as high for the top six, there is at least real competition in the league and perhaps we’re going to get some surprising results along the way.
It’s a particularly great time to be a Hibernian supporter, not least because the men have demonstrated in Europe that they are in the right place at the right time, but also, if the men want to know what it’s like to be champions of the league, all they have to do is to go and talk to the people who share their dressing rooms at Easter Road in the women’s game because Hibs are champions of Scotland.
It is that level of competition that makes this a very exciting league to watch.
However, there are still neanderthal elements.
As an Ayr United fan, you might think that I am not going to be that interested in the fortunes of my greatest rivals. Our season last year involved relegation from SWPL2. So, this year is hopefully going to be a more successful one for the women’s team at Somerset Park.
But then I hear of Sky Stout, 16-year-old, tremendous player signing for Kilmarnock FC. I am told she has graced the game beautifully and looks like a real prospect. I’m saying that not because I’ve seen her, but because of the people that I would trust telling me that she happens to be fantastic. Boo hoo for us. But the vile abuse that she has received which led to former First Minister Hamza Yousaf posting online a video in support of her has been shocking. All of us should stand with Skye Stout. All of us should be in her dugout, shouting and pointing at just how beautiful and wonderful she plays the game. And if any of the trolls are Ayr United supporters, I would absolutely support a ban from Somerset Park because that vile behaviour should not be tolerated in society. Full stop.
No place for it, and especially not in football.
Once again it brings a very negative aspect to what could be a very exciting year.
Aside from Hibs attempting to defend their title, there is Leanne Crichton starting her journey as a football manager as she takes on the role at Rangers Football Club, coming in from her role as a BBC pundit. Crichton does, at times, divide the room when it comes to her punditry, and sometimes I find her in Sportsound being overly eager to contribute, sometimes cutting across and off others. However, there’s no doubting her passion and the opportunity here, having moved from Glasgow City into the main role, is going to be one that many eyes are going to be on.
As for Glasgow City, a club that I have got a lot of time for because they were the Scottish vanguard when it came to women’s football and have done so much for the Scottish game. When I heard that there were rumours that they were folding, I was delighted to see that they came out robustly and said, we are going nowhere. They shall again have European football and going along to Petershill in order to support a Glasgow club that is neither green nor blue but has real prospects of winning titles is something that we should all celebrate.
As well as Hibs, Hearts, look as though they’re in the strongest they’ve been for a while and whilst Motherwell and Partick Thistle are teams that are going to be there or thereabouts – of course Partick Thistle are going to have to deal with the loss of Brian Graham as their head coach, the man who got them to a cup final last year. – there are plenty of twists and turns to come.
This is going to be a highly interesting season for all.
The split adds in, as it has done in the men’s game, a lot of drama and given that the drama last year included Hibernian winning the league at Ibrox in the last game of the season, pipping the Glasgow Giants to the title this is going to be a fascinating year ahead.
And so, if you like your top-flight competitive switch off the men’s game and switch on to the women’s game. If your team are playing away, catch your local women’s team and why not support a team not attached to you men’s… You might rediscover some passion…
Posted in: Latest News
Tags: new season, oor Donald, SPFL