The Ghirls Title Charge Challenge

The Ghirls' Title Charge Challenge



Elena Sadiku and her Celtic side are currently embroiled in a 5-way battle as they look to retain their League crown, when hostilities resume this weekend.

In the past two seasons, the SWPL has gone down to the last few minutes of the last day of the season. In 2023/24, it went from hope to euphoria to heartbreak in about 2 minutes for Fran Alonso's side as they were pipped to the post by Glasgow City.

Last season's nail biting triumph was very much still in doubt until Amy Gallacher's 90th minute winner against Hibernian secured the title. And even then it was only due to goal difference that they managed to get over the line!

This season is shaping up every bit as tight and dramatic. The Hoops have 11 games remaining. They are no other distractions, just 11 football matches to be played. Win those and they will be Champions once again.

As things stand it is in their own hands without having to rely upon results elsewhere.

The thing is, there are literally four other teams that this is entirely true of also.


May 2024: Amy Gallacher scores the unforgettable title winning goal & will want more this season

As They Stand

With Glasgow City, Sevco, Hibernian and Celtic all sitting on 51 points, it is currently again simply a matter of goal difference that seperates these teams and each of them have at the very least taken points off of each other during the course of the season.

It would be remiss to overlook Hearts also, who are well within striking distance, just 6 points off the pace. With 11 games to be go and heading into the Split, noone can afford to treat them lightly.

Motherwell may not be in the race itself, but they can be a bit of a thorn in the side to some of the other sides and could still have a massive impact in determining where the title does eventually end up.

Ironically, with the Split just around the corner and one 'Regular' season match left to be played, all of the sides that will be involved in the race for the title will be squaring off against each other this weekend also.

On Sunday afternoon City host Motherwell, Sevco and Hearts are set to do battle and the Celts will be travelling through to the Capital to take on Hibernian.

With a race this close, every result matters.


Captain Kelly Clark is looking to lead her side to lifting the League trophy once again

How Celtic Have Fared This Season

Elena Sadiku and her team have faced quite a few challenges this season, and it has made it far from smooth sailing in terms of the League title defence.

They were able to overcome qualifying for the Champions League - just the second time any Scottish side has done so - and while the experience of going up against the likes of Chelsea and Real Madrid will be something that the Ghirls will want to repeat again next season, the added fixtures, the step up in quality and the travel all understandably had an effect when it came to domestic matters.

There has been the disappointment in both Cups, however this may be a silver lining for Celtic. While no doubt they would want to have progressed and still be in the running, having the extra week off to prepare for the Split, get over any niggles, freshen up and work on some new ideas, while none of the other teams have that luxury.

So, how have Celtic fared, when it comes to the teams they will be having to face over the last couple of months of the season? Well, lets have a look...

The stats tell a story. Won 4, Drawn 3, Loss 2 with 1 pre-split game still to be played. However, two of those 4 wins have come against Motherwell, so against the real contenders that record is far less clear cut with regards to some of the results.

Such as having both defeated Hearts and lost to them also. That loss came in the midst of their Champions League campaign in October, so there is some context to be taken into account, but the Hoops were far more impressive in January's 4-0 win.

The Ghirls are set to play Hibs this coming Sunday in the last 'Regular' season match before the Split. Indeed, it was against the Edinburgh club that Amy Gallacher scored her title winning goal last season, and it has almost been as long since the last encounter, back in August when they played out a 0-0 draw.

Given how long it has been, no doubt this weekend's clash will draw a lot of attention.


Kelsey Daugherty saves against City. Her shot stopping will be critical in the title run-in

Over the past couple of seasons, Sevco, City and the Celts have fought this SWPL battle to literally the last minute of the last game, so it is these head to head results that do especially deserve a bit of a deep dive though.

Against City, the Hoops won their first SWPL meeting in August, 1-0, although their most recent encounter finished in a 2-2 draw, just before the current International break. Celtic did manage to squeeze past City in the League Cup (courtesy of penalties), but it was a different story in the Scottish Cup, when City prevailed, 3-2.

All of which really highlights the difficulty in securing results against Leanne Ross' side, which is to be expected, as they have been the most dominant force in women's football in this country. Considering that the two most recent clashes between these teams have slightly favoured City underlines the difficulty confronting the Ghirls in the weeks ahead.

And then there is the other Glasgow derby. Celtic's record under Sadiku against Sevco does not make for pleasant reading. Since she took over from Fran Alonso in January 2024, Celtic have won just 1 of the 7 meetings between these sides overall - with that sole success coming almost a year ago, in March 2024. And while there have been 3 draws, 2 of which also came last season, and the 3rd was back in October.

Matters have been worse in the two Cup competitions, where these sides have met three times since Sadiku's arrival, and each has ended in Celtic being knocked out.

To put some of this into context, the draws last season are understandable, due to Celtic's significant goal difference advantage in that title race, they simply needed to avoid defeat.

However, it's a very different scenario this season, and since then Jo Potter has had the wood over Sadiku, including defeats in their two most recent meetings, in the League in November. as well as January's League Cup loss.

While the two SWPL meetings this season came during the period when Celtic were also competing in the Champions League, can perhaps go some way to providing context, there can be no such mitigating circumstance for January's defeat however.

So quite clearly Elena Sadiku and her Celtic side have some work to do, if they are to find a way to win against these two other Glasgow sides, who appear to have the edge, especially in the must-win situations of late.


Lucy Ashworth-Clifford was often provided the inspiration from out wide this season

On Any Given Day...

So, while Celtic know if they win all of the remaining 11 games they will retain their title, the reality is, given how tight and how competitive the race is, on any given day anyone could beat anyone, and this is especially true at the top of the table.

Hibs have beaten City. City have beaten Sevco. Sevco have beaten Hearts. Hearts have beaten Hibs. And so it goes. It is unlikely that any team will be perfect enough through the rest of the season and there are sure to be plenty of twists and turns along the way.

Of the 5 genuine contenders against each other (and Motherwell), Hibs actually pose the best record at this stage, with 5 wins, 2 draw and 2 losses. City, Sevco and Celtic have all won 4, drawn 3 and lost 2, while Hearts have won 3, drawn 2 and lost 4.

Heartbreak makes for a powerful motivator, and just as it had done for Celtic in 2023/24, it appears that this is now true of the other sides involved in this season's title race. No doubt each of the sides in pursuit of the silverware will be gearing up during the current International break in preparation for the run in, and Elena Sadiku will be no different.


Murphy Agnew scores against Chelsea in the Champions League earlier this season

Obviously the recent departure of Caitlin Hayes and the continued absence of Chloe Craig has robbed the Ghirls of a big part of their title winning defence from last season, which means more responsibility has been placed on figures like skipper Kelly Clark, Ceyla Barclais and American shot stopper, Kelsey Daugherty.

Up top, it is the likes of Saoirse Noonan, Murphy Agnew and Kit Loferski who will need to fire the goals for Celtic and the engine room of Amy Gallacher, Natalie Ross and Sbannon McGregor will have their work cut out for them, meanwhile Lucy Ashforth-Clifford and Emma Lawton will hope to provide some magic of their own from out wide.

Every team will believe that 2025 is their year. Celtic must believe as much as they must prove that they are worthy to be once again the SWPL Champions. The challenge is theirs, to add to the Club's legend and their own legacy. It will not be easy. It is going to be a battle every step of the way, but one they must believe they can win.

They know they can, because they have done it before.

'The shirt does not shrink', the expression goes and neither will Celtic. They've proven that in each of the past two seasons, that they will fight to the last minute of the last day - because, quite literally that is what they have had to do. No distractions. No illusions.

This is the time. The title race is about to start for real now. Whatever else that has happened before now no longer matters. 11 games is all that matters.

Good Luck, Ghirls!


Manager Elena Sadiku's goal must be to replicate the 2023/24 League title triumph​