Ghirls ready for derby date this Sunday | OneFootball

As the saying goes it’s tough at the top, and it’s also certainly tight at top of the SWPL going into this weekend’s derby clash as the Celts host Rangers at New Douglas Park this Sunday in a 12noon kick-off.

But it’s actually Glasgow City who hold pole position at the moment with only two points separating the top four teams.

And, as far as derbies go, they probably have the more welcome task this Sunday with a trip to play second bottom Queen’s Park and the opportunity to claim another three points.

They sit on 31 points with Rangers and Hearts on 30 points, Celtic on 29 and Hibernian in fifth on 26. The Tynecastle side host Hibs this Sunday, so with the main Glasgow and Edinburgh derbies always holding the mantle of being six-pointers, that is even more so this weekend.

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So, presuming City don’t collapse against the Spiders, it would seem top spot won’t be attainable for the Ghirls this weekend, but there are still derby bragging rights up for grabs as well as the opportunity to leapfrog Rangers, and Hoops midfielder Lucy Ashworth Clifford can’t wait for Sunday.

She said: “I had come from Manchester and Liverpool derbies and even that is nothing compared to what goes on up here, and it brings you just even more into these games.

“So it’s nice to come back and to be able to play those fixtures and not have to be nervous about them anymore, and just go in full whack.”

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And as for that top spot place, she added: “It’s early days, we are only in November, I don’t know where we were at this point last season, but it was probably around the same mark.

“I think it was still neck and neck then, it was neck and neck until the very last game, and I think that makes it more exciting.

“As you can see, Hearts and Hibs are up there as well. That just shows how good the league is getting, and the quality that it has.

“Teams are taking points off teams and that just shows that what we need to do in every game is just as important as it is in the next one.

“I think it’s the same as any other game to be honest, we do the same things against Rangers that we would do against any other team.

“But, obviously it’s a good occasion and we can really sell ourselves.”

For the Celts, of course, this is the third huge game in a week after strength-sapping matches against Glasgow City in the Sky Sports Cup and Chelsea in the Champions League

They can, however, take great heart from their display against the London side in midweek, and the midfielder said: “We were saying the changing room after the game, if we can do that on the Wednesday why can’t we go and do it on the Sunday.

“It just shows the strength that we have in our squad, that no matter who comes in or comes out, it doesn’t really matter because we show the same performance week in, week out.”

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Fixtures

Celtic Women Vs. Rangers Women - Sun, Nov 17th 2024, 12:00 Final score: 2 - 3