Alan Campbell: Traditional giants of women’s game face threat

Few would challenge the notion that the pair will also contest next month’s SSE Scottish Women’s Cup final at Tynecastle, although Rangers and Motherwell have the opportunity to prevent that happening today, at Forthbank, where both semi-finals are being played.

But, given that City have not lost

a league match since 2016, nor Hibernian a domestic cup tie since 2015, looking beyond this year is where it gets interesting. Emma Brownlie, the former Celtic and Hibs defender who joined Rangers from Everton last month, feels her new club’s decision to change the goalposts could upset the established order.

As of January, the entire Rangers first-team squad will be on semi-professional contracts. A side which has never won a major trophy hopes to challenge for all three very soon.

“Rangers are a huge club and the intent and ambition they have for women’s football is massive,” Brownlie confirmed. “We’re not so naïve to think we can throw a lot of money at it and win the league next season because it doesn’t just happen overnight, but investing brings you better players, which definitely helps.”

The second point is pertinent because there is no way Brownlie would have joined Rangers had they not announced their ambitious plans and offered her a paid contract. She won three Scottish Cups and three League Cups at Hibs and admitted: “They will always be a club close to my heart because of what they’ve done for me as a player. But in football there’s a point where you have to be selfish and progress your game.”

With players at some top clubs arguably already committing to the 18-20 hour week Rangers will contractually expect of their semi-pro squad next season, the key to a power shift will be winter recruitment.

While Celtic, to their cost, failed to land their top targets in the previous close season, Brownlie’s decision could signal the inevitable – that just as in men’s football, money will talk the loudest.

Glasgow City already have some players on professional contracts and will be able to offer Champions League football again next season. They may, in the short to medium term at least, survive any repercussions from the established Scottish clubs moving towards paid women’s teams.

“The fact is that Rangers will be offering players contracts, and Celtic will hopefully be doing it as well,” the Scotland midfielder Leanne Crichton said. “Glasgow City have professional players already and want to keep making positive moves forward. The more teams that bring a challenge to us will only make us better.”

Hibs may have bigger problems. Because the national performance academy is in Edinburgh, and because the club has been so successful in the cup competitions especially, they are an attractive option for the country’s best young players. Will that continue?

Stewart McGuire, the assistant head coach, says he is aware of what other clubs’ moves to paid football might mean for Hibs. Speaking at the Hampden press conference to promote the semi-finals he nevertheless said: “I don’t think we’ll be left behind. We are preparing for things in the background as well. We can’t go into too much detail at the moment because none of these things are written in stone as yet. We’re doing our own preparation and we’ll let our girls know as soon as possible what we’re planning.”

Motherwell will be trying to ease memories of last season’s 8-0 Scottish Cup final defeat against Hibs when they play the holders in today’s second semi-final. They have almost a new team and looking beyond this season, head coach Donald Jennow knows where the club stands.

“Right now we’re not in a position where we’re competing with Glasgow City, Hibs, Rangers and Celtic from a financial standpoint,” he pointed out. “They can do what’s right for their clubs.”