Aberdeen Women’s defender Jess Broadrick hopes the chance to recharge the batteries after an emotional rollercoaster week can bolster her side’s Scottish Women’s Cup hopes this weekend.
The Dons welcome Celtic to Balmoral Stadium on Sunday for their Scottish Cup quarter-final and have a full week to prepare for the visit of the Hoops.
Having played three times in a week, including a first appearance at Pittodrie last midweek, Broadrick believes recovery will be key to her side’s hopes this week.
She said: “Everybody was tired after a tough week and recovery will be important after a challenging week for the squad. Some of us played the full 90 minutes in all three games.
“Celtic will be another exciting one. It’s a bit of a free game for us as it is a cup tie.
“We’re a new side coming in, so we get to go out and show what we can do without any pressure. It’s another experience for us to do as well as we can.”
Dons defender wants another chance to sample Pittodrie after homecoming success
The chance to play at Pittodrie last week is an occasion which Broadrick hopes she can savour again in the future.
The central defender said: “It’s been an amazing week. I’m lost for words even now trying to explain to people what it meant to play at Pittodrie.
“It was a dream come true.
“I dreamt as an eight-year-old of doing it. I was in the under-12s playing at half-time and I remember thinking I want to do this one day, so for that dream to come true last week was pretty amazing.
“To play in front of so many fans was an experience and opportunity I hope we can have again.”
The Pittodrie homecoming spectacle appeared to be a factor in Aberdeen’s laboured display against Spartans at Balmoral Stadium on Sunday.
Emotional week took its toll against Spartans
The Dons were not at their best in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Spartans, but the point ensured they maintain their two-point lead on Spartans having played a game less.
In the circumstances Broadrick believes the point gained could be an important one.
She said: “Spartans are always a really tough team and every time we play them it is really close.
“We could have done better in the first half. We had a lot of time, but we needed that bit of composure.
“It was something we spoke about it at half-time and came out a little bit better.
“We managed to score the goal, with Bayley Hutchison doing well, but the goal we gave away wasn’t great.
“We need to work on being better in those situations and we will review the game, look at what we can do better than work on it.”