If Firhill was in celebratory mood on Tuesday evening as Scotland topped their European Championships group, the real party is yet to come.
Pedro Martinez Losa donned a Saltire as he congratulated his players and Erin Cuthbert appeared at the post-match presser full of all the joys as she larked around with funny shades and talked about the last few months while looking ahead to what is to come.
The high spirits were in sharp contrast to last December when Scotland ended a winless Nations League campaign with a 6-0 humiliation at the hands of England at Hampden. Then, dejected, grey and battered they looked more than just forlorn and beaten; they looked a team disjointed, disorganised and in disarray.
There is no question that the relegation from League A to League B worked in Scotland’s favour in terms of offering them scope to reset. It might sound a little like amputation being a rich cure for a migraine but the drop in level has enabled a swift recovery in morale and enabled a tentative belief to take root.
Having taken 16 points from a possible 18 and conceded just one goal along the way, Scotland were right to be in good voice after seeing off Serbia, their biggest challengers from top spot, on Tuesday.
Friday’s draw has paired them up with Hungary in the first play-off with the two-legged round one tie taking place in October. Should they prevail they will take on the winner of Montenegro and Hungary in another two-legged play-off in December.
That is where the real evidence of just how much progress Scotland have made will be properly measured. The draw has been kind given some of the names that Martinez Losa’s side have avoided and the fact that Scotland beat Hungary twice in their last FIFA World Cup qualification campaign – and are currently raked 20 places ahead of them in the world rankings – ought to augur well.
But the proof, of course, will be in the pudding.
The crucial element across the next few months will be in just how Scotland handle the pressure of the situation as they come within touching distance of being back on a major stage. When it came to the World Cup play-off finals in 2022, they did the hard work in the semi-final against Austria.
The play-off final defeat to the Republic of Ireland is a wound that gnawed significantly afterwards, its echoes resonating as the squad watched the biggest and most commercially viable women’s tournament pass them by.
The portents of the last few months have been promising but the play-offs are a different beast entirely.
Both Cuthbert and Martinez Losa felt, fairly strongly, that this team is in a better place than when they faced Ireland at Hampden and the Irish could be heard singing their hearts out from the Hampden dressing rooms as Scotland choked back the tears.
The play-offs see Martinez Losa’s side head into them in very different circumstances than they did the World Cup play-offs. There is more conviction about them, albeit there remain areas that one suspects better teams would penalise.
But there has been a slow shift within the team as players have been introduced and there has been some encouragement in the younger players called up. Caroline Weir’s imminent return, too, cannot be downplayed while Emma Watson too will offer another bit of quality in the play-offs.
Ultimately, though, these games offer a serious chance to get back to playing at a major tournament. Having qualified for back-to-back tournaments – and made history in the process – with their appearance at the 2017 European Championships and the 2019 World Cup, Scotland can ill afford for a third successive competition to pass them by.
For players like Cuthbert who spend their days in multi-cultured dressing rooms south of the border, there has been a sense of having her nose rubbed in it as she has endured all the chat of the Lionesses and their respective successes. She is not alone given the breadth of players within the squad plying their trade south of the border.
The only solution is to ensure that Scotland are in the mix next summer. Until then the champagne is on ice.
AND ANOTHER THING
Jo Love signing a Glasgow City contract extension at the ripe old age of 38 is indicative of the esteem in which she is held by the Petershill club.
Love has been at the club since 2011 and her vast experience will be necessary as City to look to recapture a standing within the women’s game that she helped to establish.
With 11 SWPL titles, six Women’s Scottish Cups and four SWPL Cups, Love has done it all. She is also still Scotland’s most capped outfield player.
As City look to reclaim a title that Celtic took last term, Love’s influence will be felt as keenly off the pitch as it will be on it.
AND FINALLY
The SWPL announced an official partner this week as inspiresport, a company which specialises in sports development tours for schools and youth football clubs.
It is vital to the development of the league and the structure of the women’s game that the commercial side is looked after and enhanced.
The SWPL repeatedly boasts the most competitive stats in Europe after the split with ample eyes on photo finishes. Pushing ultimately for a league that can offer proper full-time salaries across the board, it is vital that such partnerships are encouraged and promoted.
