FRIDAY’S win over an Australian side ranked 10th in the world was a much-needed boost for Scotland ahead of the inaugural women’s Nations League. As reported here last week, Pedro Martinez Losa’s side will be in the League A draw on May 2. Australia came into the match having won their previous seven, including a 3-2 victory over Spain in Sydney. They had several players out on Friday, including strikers Sam Kerr and Caitlin Foord, but Scotland were also missing Rachel Corsie and Erin Cuthbert. The squad Martinez Losa selected for the Australia and Costa Rica friendlies was notable for a fairly high turnover of players, with some long-established personnel dropping out and uncapped players brought in. I was surprised it hadn’t been done for the Pinatar Cup in February, but better late than never was the apposite adage in London. It was also a bold call for the head coach to start 17-year-old Rangers midfielder Emma Watson but, again, it was fully vindicated throughout her 66 minutes on the pitch. Watson’s exit brought a first cap for her Rangers midfield team-mate Chelsea Cornet, while Nicola Docherty’s superb second goal for her country rounded off an auspicious match for a club which had been showered with bad publicity following the Craig McPherson incident. While the woodwork saved Scotland twice just after the Docherty goal, what was most encouraging was the amount of chances the team made. It was particularly disappointing, therefore, to see striker Martha Thomas not take advantage of her opportunities. There was a feel-good factor in Claire Emslie wearing the armband in Corsie’s absence and Caroline Weir being her deputy. They’ve come a long way since I watched the pair, who remain best pals to this day, making their Scotland debuts off the bench against Iceland in Reykjavik in 2013.
IDENTICAL twins who played youth football in Aberdeen against Rachel Corsie look fated never to play a competitive game against each other. What was probably the last opportunity came and went last Sunday. Born and brought up in the Granite City, Sammy and Rachel Hyett went their separate ways after choosing different universities. The former moved to the capital and now plays for and helps coach Edinburgh Caledonia, the club she founded in 2011, while Rachel stayed in the Granite City and now plays for and is secretary of Grampian Ladies – a club she and husband George Duncan set up. The twins should have faced each other almost exactly ten years ago. Rachel was playing for Banks O’Dee and her side were drawn against Edinburgh Caley in the Scottish League Division 2 Cup. It didn’t happen. Banks O’Dee were found to have fielded an ineligible player in the previous round and Sammy’s team were given a free passage into the next one. This season the twins have been playing in the same league for the first time, and it looked as if the long-awaited showdown had arrived on December 13. The match was postponed because of adverse weather. The next instalment was scheduled for March 5. This time the Scottish Women’s League 1 fixture did go ahead, but Sammy couldn’t play due to a hamstring injury (Sammy’s hammy). So, it all came down to last Sunday. With the league splitting into a top six and bottom six after the game, Grampian Ladies were sitting sixth and Edinburgh Caley seventh. When the teams were due to meet in December, Grampian were fifth, and Caley 14 points behind in eighth. The gap had been reduced to just one point on Sunday so there was all to play for at Meadowbank Stadium. Sammy’s side won 4-1 to demote Rachel’s team to the bottom six – which, of course, means they can’t meet again this season. But they didn’t play against each other last Sunday either. This time Sammy was fit, but having missed a few games because of the injury, the player-coach said: “I didn’t feel it was fair to play over others who have trained and got us into this good position in the league. “I had 19 players available and could only list 18. I’m gutted Rachel and I didn’t finally play competitively against each other, but felt it was the right decision for the team.” With the twins having turned 37 on Valentine’s Day, and both having busy lives, this particular ship may have now sailed out into the North Sea.
