By Gethin Thurlow (26/05/2025)
Above: Rangers celebrate the cup double. Photo: RangersWFC on X.
On Sunday, Rangers won their second cup of the season – and their fourth in two years. They are dominant in the cups, however consistently falter in the league. In this Impetus Football piece, Gethin Thurlow ponders why.
A week on from another final day heartbreak at Ibrox, the trophy, confetti and screens in the stadium were finally embroidered in blue. Rangers had won the Scottish Cup. They had in fact, won the cup double for the second year in a row.
Still, there was an inevitable sombreness to the celebrations. They had once again let the league slip away. After what was considered a disappointing season last year; all Rangers achieved in 2024/25 was the same except for a lack of Champions League qualifying.
Having destroyed eventual SWPL champions Hibernian 5-0 at the League Cup final in March, Rangers asserted themselves as a team who could beat anyone when they were on it. And yet, presented with a perfect opportunity to win the league: one point clear at the top with six games to play, they lost twice to Hibs – two confusing results given the outcome of the League Cup.
During that run, Rangers also lost to Glasgow City. This was the game that ultimately decided second place (and a place in Champions League qualifying), as Glasgow claimed the position by just three points. Something that defined each of those losses is a lack of a single goal. For such an unforgiving attack – that averaged over four goals per game, and that proved they could punish even the top teams, it didn’t make sense that they could falter so consistently in crucial moments.
Conversely, at Hampden Park – the home of Scottish football – this reticent Rangers was nowhere to be seen. After a frantic opening to the game, with chances for both teams it was the composure of Mia McAulay who set the tone for the rest of the game, slotting the ball into the bottom left-hand corner from the edge of the box. From then on, it only looked like the game was going one way – with a Kirsty Howat double sealing the Cup victory for Rangers.
While these two seasons haven’t been exactly the same for Rangers, they do mirror each other a lot. Fighting at the top of the league all year, winning both cups but falling short of a ‘successful’ season due to league failure. What will be particularly frustrating to the fans is that the main issue of last year was addressed. They dominated goal difference in the league yet were six points further from the title despite the influx of goals.
While it feels wrong to say, questions are being asked of Jo Potter. Four trophies in two years aside, it’s the league title that is so desperately wanted at Ibrox and for whatever reason, she can’t seem to consistently draw the best performance from her team. Whether it is a mindset issue; where they can only be motivated by a one-off game, or a tactical flaw that other teams are able to expose, the English manager will have to work hard next year to avoid being perennially labelled as a ‘cup merchant’.
To be successful next season, Rangers need to use this victory to push them on. They showed a level of performance that has the potential to blow away the league. All they have to do is be able to replicate this consistently. Perhaps a deeper squad, especially in midfield will help bring this out and the club will focus on retaining key assets from this year such as Katie Wilkinson and Lizzie Arnot.
If they can achieve this, there’s nothing that to stop them from taking the league by storm in 2025/26. Nothing that is, except themselves. This current generation of Rangers is right on the brink between being a golden era of club, and from being the bottlers who always came close but could never get it done. Ultimately, this season will be remembered based on those before and after. Their history is still to be made.
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