Scottish football history will be made on Sunday when the first-ever women’s game will be broadcast live on Sky Sports.
The Sky television cameras will be at Tynecastle Park to showcase the League Cup final clash between Hibernian and Rangers.
Sky are the title sponsors of the cup – formerly known as the SWPL Cup – which was a deal that came to fruition after the women’s game moved to be governed by the SPFL.
As part of the SPFL’s deal with Sky, a minimum of five women’s games – including the final – will be broadcast on TV this season, with the option for more.
It’s been a while now since I played my club football in Scotland, but I remember when I was on loan at Glasgow City in 2015, that a moment like this seemed so far away.
The final will be the first of its kind and there’s no denying how important it will prove to be in growing the game – now and in the long-term.
It adds a bigger profile to the women’s game before you even think about the football.
And the fact it’s on Sky Sports, it does come with a little bit extra prestige because of how big a platform that they can provide as a broadcaster.
I hope that the players can play freely on such a big occasion, but I’m sure they understand how big an opportunity it is to grow the women’s game.
It’s not something players should have to think too hard about – their focus should be the football – but more money comes from the sport being an entertainment business.
So, with games being on Sky it brings commercial benefits, but it also showcases to other potential investors that the women’s game is worth being part of.
It won’t just be Scottish women’s football fans who tune in on Sunday at 12.30pm.
There will be different kinds of people who will watch from home, which increases the visibility and hopefully improve people’s attitudes towards women’s football.
A landmark moment that can help bring even more progress
It’s a landmark moment for the bigger picture of the game but also for the players.
A lot of players playing in the SWPL have played in Scotland for a long time – and a lot of them would’ve played here when the league was still entirely amateur.
It wouldn’t have been too long ago that some of the players who will play in the final would have been paying to play for their clubs.
They should take a moment to appreciate how hard they have worked to get the women’s game where it is now – because they’ve been an important part of the progress.
The final being on Sky Sports is a turning point where we will be able to see the impact.
We’ve seen it happen down south in the FA WSL where Sky have created a proper TV package which has shown the successes and encouraged more people to get involved.
That’s what we want and need to replicate in Scotland – the Sky Sports Cup final is the first opportunity to do just that.
It’s a starting point – and it has to be a manageable starting point, because there are still a lot of elements of the women’s game in Scotland that are not professional.
There is a gulf between the teams in SWPL 1 and we have to navigate that properly by ensuring the right things are being done to close that gap.
However, we can’t afford to expose the game too quickly because it could run the risk of people watching something that they will easily dismiss.
We all want progress – but it needs to be done at a steady pace rather than rushing it, to ensure we reap the benefits in the future.
Will a new name be on the trophy or will Hibs triumph again?
As for the game itself, I’m expecting it to be a close contest and I hope it will be an exciting game for those watching at the stadium and on Sky Sports.
Hibs are looking to lift the League Cup trophy for the eighth time – with their last win being in 2019 – while Rangers could win the competition for the very first time.
Although Rangers are the current league champions, they have struggled when they have been under pressure in the cup competitions in recent seasons.
They were sent out of the League Cup and Scottish Cup by Celtic last term.
We know that Rangers have a very capable team, but for me, there is still a question mark over how these players will manage a high-pressure situation like a cup final.
Historically, Hibs have had so much success in the cups, but have struggled in the league as of late – mostly because of the growth of other clubs.
However, I do believe they’re in with a good chance against Rangers on Sunday. They have players like Siobhan Hunter and Joelle Murray, who are massive Hibs fans.
They have been at the club for a very long time and are very passionate about playing for the shirt – that carries a lot of weight in an occasion like a cup final.
FA WSL and UWCL action
In the Uefa Women’s Champions League, Arsenal are now just one point away from qualifying for the quarter-finals after beating Juventus 1-0.
Vivianne Miedema scored Arsenal’s only goal of the game – like she has done in their last three matches – to put them in a good position ahead of next week’s tie with Lyon.
Chelsea could’ve reached the quarter-finals if they had picked up all three points against Real Madrid, but they were held to a 1-1 draw in Spain.
But after their disappointing campaign last year, where they didn’t get out the group, Chelsea are still in pole position to avoid that banana skin and reach the quarter-finals.
This weekend’s WSL full-card of fixtures is the last before the festive break, and there is one game that could prove to be a cracker.
Manchester City host rivals Manchester United at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday and I believe that it’s the most evenly matched the two sides have ever been.
Both sides are on really good form and scoring loads of goals so it should be a really good match and a good advert for WSL.
I’ll be back at Villa Park on Sunday afternoon as Aston Villa host Arsenal in our final league game of the calendar year.
We’ve enjoyed our games at the club stadium so far this season – we want to keep that up. It’s long festive break, so we want to go into that with positives to reflect on.
A good result puts us in a good position in the league and it would be a just reward for how well we started the season and the injury issues we’ve had to contend with.
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