Hamilton Academical 0-3 Celtic
By Gethin Thurlow at New Douglas Park for Impetus (1/11/25)
Above: The Hamilton squad and staff before the season Photo: @accieswfc on X
Hamilton showed why they belong in Scotland’s top division with a valiant fight against Celtic in the ‘New Douglas Park derby’. McAneny and Cross starred for Celtic as the Accies fought hard and caused Celtic issues all night long, proving that an 11-0 loss last time out does not represent them.
The Teams
Having endured a difficult start to life in SWPL1, the Accies will have appreciated the time they had during the international break to reset and go again as they aim to stay in touch with the rest of the league. Abi Paton got the start in goal over Erin Halliday, after they fell to an 11-0 loss last time against Rangers.
Giard also came back into the starting lineup, having missed out last time. Robert Watson’s main threat in the opening nine games was winger Sophie Townsley, and she would have to be on top form if Hamilton were to pull off a miracle upset in the New Douglas Park derby, with Celtic also hosting games here.
With what was ultimately an opportunity to mix the team up a bit without risking the result too much, Elena Sadiku opted for Adelaide Gay in goal ahead of Lisa Rodgers, who’s been one of the standouts of the entire league so far. There was also a rare start for Sienna McGoldrick in the midfield, as Celtic’s team still looked extremely strong.
The Action
Unsurprisingly, Celtic dominated the match right from the start, able to move down the wings with complete ease, and Morgan Cross caused problems from the first minute. The Accies actually had the first proper chance of the game, as during a counterattack, Lucy Barclay hit a beautiful outside-of-the-boot through ball to Townsley. With her exceptional pace, she won the battle for the ball but couldn’t control her shot.
Going straight down the other hand, Celtic put a dagger in the hearts of any home fans that took hope from that attack. Finding McAneny in acres of the space on the left wing, they moved quickly and eventually her cross found Smith on the right. She put the ball into Saoirse Noonan in the middle, with the ever-reliable striker picking out the corner.
The hosts were not deterred by this however and continued to compete with Celtic, showing that the 11-0 wasn’t representative of them. Winning a corner and a Barclay shot were highlights of a great five-minute period for the Accies. Paton even held her own to keep Noonan out in a one-on-one scenario and ensured the score didn’t get out of hand early on like in the last few games.
Hamilton’s defensive block was adept at clogging up the middle and forcing the Celtic to be extra creative to break through the centre, but this meant that Smith and Cross on the right, and Robertson and McAneny on the left given the space to do pretty much as they please. This is just something which cannot be gifted to such talented players, and Hamilton found this out shortly.
Moments before the half-hour mark, Cross picked up the ball and lifted the ball delicately across the face of goal, with McAneny powerfully heading home to finally extend the lead.
Hamilton’s front four of Giard, Barclay, Townsley and Muir pressed aggressively, and they were able to cause a few moments of mayhem at the back for Sadiku’s team, sometimes finding themselves with overloads in the final third. However, doing anything with this threatening possession proved difficult.
Clearly unhappy with only scoring twice in the first 45, Sadiku brought Amy Richardson on at half time and Celtic slowed down their approach, taking more time on the ball and really bringing some pace out of the game. This seemed to disrupt Watson’s game plan; which relied on a fast-paced and wide-open game, allowing Accies take advantage when Celtic’s players were caught out of position.
This brought instant success, as Amy Gallacher’s cross was put out for a corner, which McAneny whipped right into the mixer, allowing Lisa Robertson to head it home for a rare goal.
The deficit did not stop Hamilton from pushing however, and Kirstie McIntosh came close to scoring Hamilton’s first since early September. That positivity shown by the attack was matched by unwavering defensive effort and commitment from the home side, as they kept pushing to keep the result respectable.
New changes brought new legs and ideas for Celtic, and they peppered the box more and more. Cross, Gallacher, Nakao and Noonan all failed to add a fourth goal from chances of various difficulty.
Player of the Match Lucy Barclay
Despite the 3-0 defeat, the story of the match was certainly the hosts. Leading this charge was attacking midfielder Lucy Barclay. She epitomises everything the Accies were this year, a young player, overlooked by the rest of the league and using that motivation to drive her performance. Without money to attract players, this is who Hamilton went after in the window.
That underdog mindset drives everything that this club do, and up against a stellar midfield today full of full time professionals, Barclay fitted right in there, winning the ball back from Nakao and Clark in the defence, carving open the pitch with world class passes, and running after every single thing she could. Hamilton fell short of a goal or point in this match, but that wasn’t for the lack effort from Barclay and her teammates.
Where this leaves the teams
Robert Watson can be so proud of his team, the work they’ve done over the break and what they showed about themselves after a tough period. Lots was made after their last loss to Rangers about the point of them even competing in the league, but they proved to everyone that they did have a right to play in the SWPL1. They caused Celtic issues that many other teams haven’t.
If they can keep up that level of performance against some of the easier opponents in the SWPL, then no doubt points will come. Staying in the league will be a difficult challenge, but this a big step in the right direction for Hamilton Academical.
For Celtic, they will be relatively pleased. Obviously, there were lots of missed chances in there and Sadiku will be looking to clean that up for future games, but Celtic looked like a great attacking unit out there, utilising the space that was gifted to them on the wing as well and doing some really nice moves in the centre of the pitch too.
The bonus of playing on Friday night is the pressure they can put on Rangers and Hibs below them to win and maintain their positions, and remind Glasgow City that any points dropped on Sunday allow their city rivals back into the title race.
Teams: Hamilton Academical (4-2-3-1): Paton, Macdonald, McStay, Gray, Cowan, Gibb, McIntosh, Townsley, Barclay, Muir, Giard Substitutes: Docherty (for Giard 58′), Maxwell (for Muir 58′), Coakley (for McIntosh 75′), Campbell (for Gibb 75′), Ritchie (for Townsley 75′)
Celtic (4-1-4-1): Gay, Smith, Clark, Walsh, Robertson, Nakao, Cross, McGoldrick, Gallacher, McAneny, Noonan Substitutes: Richardson (for Smith 46’), Streicek (for McAneny 61′), Luke (for McGoldrick 61′), Lawton (for Noonan 83′)
Scorers: 0-1 Noonan 4′, 0-2 McAneny 29′, 0-3 Robertson 50′
Referee: Gary Train
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