Celtic FC Women opened the new season with an important 2-1 win away to Glasgow City over at Petershill…
Celtic FC Women team photo ahead of the season opener in SWPL1. Glasgow City v Celtic. Peterhill Park, Sunday 16 August 2026. Photo AJ Celtic Shorts.
There was a very good attendance to welcome the start of the 2026-2027 season – Celtic’s nineteenth – with the small Petershiil stand completely full.
Celtic introduced four new players to their starting eleven, and perhaps there was little surprise that they were rather tentative in the first 30 minutes.
Glasgow City began as usual with a studied approach, keeping possession in their own half, probing and trying to draw Celtic out. Their patience paid off early, with Lisa Forrest (Jamesy’s wee sister) scoring after 10 minutes with a confident shot from close in.
Although Celtic’s attacks were sporadic and never really threatened City, they equalised following their first corner. After a number of ricochets which favoured Celtic, the ball somehow ended in the back of Glasgow City’s net. A strange moment but no-one at Celtic cared too much about that.
A Lee Gibson OG, brings Celtic FC level. Glasgow City v Celtic. Peterhill Park, Sunday 16 August 2026. Photo AJ Celtic Shorts.
A Lee Gibson OG, brings Celtic FC level. Glasgow City v Celtic. Peterhill Park, Sunday 16 August 2026. Photo AJ Celtic Shorts.
Thereafter the pattern of the game changed a little, with the hosts showing more urgency, and Celtic, energised by their goal, perhaps playing less cautiously that in the early stages of this season opener.
Momo was prominent for Celtic FC Women. Glasgow City v Celtic. SWPL1, Peterhill Park, Sunday 16 August 2026. Photo AJ Celtic Shorts.
Momo and Lisa Robertson were prominent, getting to grips with the game, confident in possession and aggressive when necessary.
Hannah Luke was outstanding for Celtic FC Women. Glasgow City v Celtic. Peterhill Park, Sunday 16 August 2026. Photo AJ Celtic Shorts.
Another Celtic corner, swung in dangerously by Hannah Luke, provided what turned out to be the winning goal. A fine header by Fi Morgan flew into the net, giving Celtic a somewhat surprising lead after struggling to find any real rhythm in that first half.
Morgan puts Celtic FC Women in front. Glasgow City v Celtic. Peterhill Park, Sunday 16 August 2026. Photo AJ Celtic Shorts.
Holding on to their lead until the interval allowed manager Grant Scott to redirect the team’s approach to the second half.
The following 45 minutes provided an engrossing contest. Any new season nerves had vanished, and both sides adopted a very attacking approach without managing to score.
For Celtic, Robertson and Momo were outstanding, Morgan settled into a fine game, doing well at both ends, and Claire Walsh’s cool play and experience shone through.
Hannah Jordan, Celtic FC Women. Photo AJ Celtic Shorts
Perhaps the most pleasing performance came from Hannah Jordan, whose determination and powerful running on both sides of the pitch, coupled with her desire to have the ball shows great promise.
Celtic supporters celebrate the win at the final whistle .Glasgow City v Celtic. Peterhill Park, Sunday 16 August 2026. Photo AJ Celtic Shorts.
Notable, too, was the return of Chloe Arthur, one of the early Celtic Girls’ Academy products who comes back as an experienced Scottish internationalist. Her elegant, confident play will clearly be an asset for the season ahead.
A reminder that there are ten teams in the SWPL1. They play each other home and away, then the league splits and the top and bottom five play each other home and away again. This inevitably means that there are a mixture of highly competitive matches and much easier games, where perhaps goal difference is a consideration.
We’ll try to cover the competitive matches this season but will give the shootie-in games a miss.
The results yesterday in the SWPL1 were as follows:
Para Handy
HAVE YOUR SAY – Join the Celtic conversation in our comments section below…
Celtic Shorts is the new home for the team from The Celtic Star
NEW BOOK LAUNCH FROM CELTIC STAR BOOKS…Celtic in the Fifties in two volumes, available to pre-order now…
Celtic in the Fifties by Matt Corr, in two volumes, both published on 4th September 2026 by Celtic Star Books. Click on image to order.
Quick Tip –Add Celticshorts.com as your ‘Preferred Source’ on Google News for quick access to the Celtic content you value the most. It takes just a few seconds and you’ll notice the difference straight away! – Click HERE….Hail Hail!
Click to join Celtic Pools