Aberdeen Women goalkeeper Anna Blanchard is looking forward to growing her confidence while on loan at SWF Championship North side Montrose.
Blanchard, 20, has joined the Angus side for the rest of the season after a lack of game time for the Dons in SWPL 1, having made only one appearance from the bench in the 8-0 defeat to Rangers.
The move came after a conversation between the shot stopper, Aberdeen’s co-managers Gavin Beith and Emma Hunter and their backroom staff, who all agreed a loan move would be best for Blanchard’s confidence and development.
She said: “It was an ongoing conversation. I think they could see that my confidence was dropping because I wasn’t getting any game time.
“They were looking out for my best interests and came to the conclusion I should go out on loan, which I was happy with, and Montrose were happy to have me.
“I’ll still be training once a week with Aberdeen so, between them and Montrose, it will allow me to work on different things. It’s a chance to build up my development, which is exactly what I’m looking to do.”
Blanchard’s Aberdeen teammates have supported her decision to seek more minutes, with the goalkeeper receiving well-wishes prior to her debut against Buchan on Sunday.
She added: “Having the support from everyone at Aberdeen is so important to me. I’ve had a lot of messages and calls from them wishing me good luck, which has been lovely.
“We’ve got quite a close group of girls at Aberdeen, and especially amongst the goalkeepers.
“I’ve been playing with Gail (Gilmour) for two or three years now, and we’ve got a really strong relationship there.
“She was supportive and happy for me to come here because she knows how important it was for my confidence and development.”
A warm welcome to the Mo
Blanchard joins an ambitious club in Montrose as they push for promotion to SWPL 2, having won every game in SWF Championship North so far.
Despite only joining up with the Mo less than two weeks ago, she has already been made to feel part of the club thanks to the friendliness of her new teammates, and the club’s professional approach.
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The goalkeeper said: “I had been on the phone to Craig Feroz (Montrose Women’s manager) and came to a couple training sessions, and just knew straight away that it’s a very professional club.
“They’ve got a good committee behind them – a good board who treat us like professional athletes.
“All the players at Montrose have been really lovely since I joined. I already feel my confidence boosting.”
Having been part of the Aberdeen squad which won consecutive promotions to SWPL 1, Blanchard is familiar with the level of opposition she will come up against in SWF Championship North.
The goalkeeper was put straight into the starting XI against Buchan, but had few saves to make as Montrose cruised to a 6-1 victory.
She said of her debut: “I was nervous before the game, but it shows how much you care if you have nerves. The nerves got out of the way as soon as the whistle blew.
“It was scrappy in the first half and Buchan put up a really good game against us, they had a solid backline and it made us panic on the ball a bit.
“In the second half, I think we started to play the way I’ve been told Montrose can play and I seen that when we started to bang in the goals.
“There is a big improvement in the league since I last played in it. It used to be a case of lumping the ball back and forward, but now it’s about getting it on the deck and passing.”