GLASGOW CITY celebrated their first game at the Excelsior Stadium for almost two months with a crushing 7-0 win over Rangers. Captain Leanne Ross also marked the occasion with a record-equalling 231st competitive goal for the club.
Nearest challengers Hibernian bounced back from last week’s defeat with a 6-1 win at Spartans and stay 10 points clear of third-placed Celtic, who beat Aberdeen 4-0 at the K Park.
The most significant result was Stirling University’s 1-0 defeat of Forfar Farmington. The win all but ensures Stirling’s SWPL1 status for another season as they are now 10 points ahead of their opponents and six clear of Aberdeen with just seven games remaining.
City brought in Hayley Lauder from the start. Julie Fleeting continued her scoring streak with the first from a rebound after 10 minutes and Cheryl McCulloch quickly made it two.
Clare Shine met a cross from Ross to score the third midway through the half and Erin Cuthbert got the fourth just after the half-hour to continue a testing start to the afternoon for Rangers’ trialist goalkeeper Megan Brothwick.
Injury casualty Nicky Docherty made a return after the break for Cuthbert and her side notched five with Ross’s record-equalling goal on 61 minutes. The Scotland internationalist’s free kick put her alongside former striker Sue Lappin.
Another substitute, Haley Rosen, set Fleeting up for her second, and City’s sixth, 14 minutes from time. The American then fed Lauder for the seventh near the end.
Hibs also got off to a fast start at Ainslie Park, with Lizzie Arnot providing the assist for Sarah Ewens after nine minutes before heading the second from a Lisa Robertson cross.
Lucy Graham made it three after 54 minutes before Spartans pulled one back through Michelle Russell. Arnot and Abi Harrison (2) finished off the proceedings.
There was yet another early goal at the K Park, this time from Celtic’s Alex Middleton against Aberdeen. Suzanne Mulvey scored the second on 31 minutes, having earlier had a penalty saved.
Kirsty Howat made it three before the interval and a Natalie Ross goal in the second half rounded off a dominant home performance.
Predictably, matters were much tighter between Stirling and Forfar. Nevertheless, in keeping with the other three games, the goal which separated the teams arrived after just five minutes when Rachel Donaldson headed home from a corner.
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