Looking back over the last month for Celtic FC Women will not make for particularly joyful reading. It has been one of the trickiest months to endure for everyone invested in the success of this team. Three league games, three losses and ending the month nine points adrift of the top of the table.
The first game came off the back of a prolonged break in fixtures due to international duties. The optimistic among us saw this as a huge opportunity for the squad to regroup and reset after a tricky February where we played Glasgow City twice without a win. However, in typical SWPL fashion, the drama was very much alive with four teams all on the same number of points as we headed into the international break. This was the point from which we had to start taking points off each of those title rivals and first up it was Hibs at Meadowbank. Always a challenge, especially on current form and especially at their home ground, the game started to slip away in the twenty-third minute following a close range Eilidh Adams header ably assisted by former Celt, Tegan Bowie. Celtic were unable to pull things back from there and the 1-0 scoreline remained until the final whistle, the first three of nine points to be dropped.
A chance to redeem themselves back in the capital came after another extended break without competition due to an early exit from the Scottish Cup. This time it was the first post-split fixture and a trip to the dreaded Oriam to face Hearts, a team we had beaten convincingly at home at the end of January. With time to prepare and the confidence of a previous win against Eva Olid’s side in the bag, you would have been forgiven for writing the Hibs result off as a blip and having confidence in Celtic to turn things around and bring home three points from Edinburgh. It only took nine minutes however for hopes to fade as Emma Brownlie scored a header from a free kick which exposed the frailty we have been seeing in the Celtic defence in recent times. Unable to retaliate, Celtic went into the break a goal down and far from coming out fighting in the second half, the performance looked lacklustre, devoid of the flair and confidence required to beat the top teams in this league. Despite a Soirse Noonan goal, Celtic never held the advantage and Hearts got the better of them, scoring another two goals through the accuracy and skill of Georgia Timms, outranking our ability to solidly defend the box. A frustrated manager spoke afterwards of the need to bring a more consistent level of energy and intensity and take our chances better in these games, but it was at this point in the season that fans and observers really began to start questioning the psychology of this team and the coaching staff. There is a feeling that all is not well behind the scenes resulting in poor performances and lack of positive results.
Another long cup induced break before we faced Glasgow City, at home for the first time in seven games. The previous two results had turned this fixture into an absolute must-win and if nerves were high amongst the fans, they must have been equally apparent among the squad. While it was good to see Bruna and Kit Loferski getting starting places, their ability to make an impact was challenged by the failure of the team to create a cohesive impact on the park, the midfield looking devoid of ideas. When you have a player of the calibre of Amy Gallacher dropping off so dramatically and hardly getting a touch of the ball, serious questions need to be answered. A slightly improved overall performance failed to yield a result, conceding a late goal at 1-1 and being unable to put in the last minute efforts required to even draw back level for a point.
Post Glasgow City Elena Sadiku was insistent that this is still a team that can go on to successfully defend their league title and take it to the wire but she will have to work some kind of magic in the two weeks before the Rangers game to turn things around. March has shown us a continued lack of confidence from the players, problematic tactics and an inability to adapt in game when playing the teams at this level. We’ve seen players like Abi Harrison and Maria McAneny trying to boost their team mates into a response mid game, but seemingly to no avail. Moments of frustration from the dugout are starting to add up to create a wider picture of issues that run deeper than just what is happening on the park. As the saying goes, we can’t keep doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Things need to change and they need to change quickly.
