Team To Beat The Sheep ?

[ian1964 10,707]

Tash Targets Two

 

By Andrew Dickson

 

SLAYER of Spartans Natasha Anderson has Glasgow City in her sights as Rangers Ladies prepare for their first Unite Scottish Cup final this weekend.

 

Drew Todd's team will meet their Premier Division opponents at Stirling Albion's Forthbank Stadium on Sunday afternoon as they go for a glorious double.

 

Natasha Anderson celebrates scoring a goalIn their debut season, things could hardly have gone any better for the Light Blues as they've yet to taste defeat in a competitive game.

 

Having won each of their first 16 First Division fixtures, they became champions when they won 4-2 at closest challengers Inverness with two matches to spare 10 days ago.

 

Now, having won promotion to the top flight, their focus has turned to knockout success against the side which represented Scotland in European competition this season.

 

Rangers' route to the final has been packed with excitement, with 42 goals scored in the five tournament matches they've been involved in up to now.

 

After seeing off Boroughmuir Thistle B 7-0 then beating Dee Vale 11-0 in the opening two rounds, things got a lot tougher for the Murray Park squad.

 

Premier League outfit Raith Rovers stood in the way of Todd's side in round three but they were beaten 5-2 after extra-time.

 

A 4-2 win at Glasgow City Girls in the last eight then led to a semi-final clash with Spartans, one of the teams in contention to win this term's national championship.

 

In a thrilling encounter at Toryglen Football Centre, Rangers trailed three times against their more experienced opponents.

 

Natasha Anderson in action against CelticBut Anderson played a big part in their revival and scored four goals - including the winner - to swing the match in the underdogs' favour as they edged it 6-5 in 120 minutes.

 

The 18-year-old has been a key player for coach Todd over the last few months, striking in other important matches such as the 2-0 Old Firm win over Celtic last August.

 

Gers' success hasn't surprised the teenager too much but while even she didn't expect to be on the verge of a double, Anderson sees no reason why her team can't now get it.

 

"It has been a really good season for us," the winger said. "We had a feeling we'd do quite well in the league but we didn't think we'd win every game so far.

 

"Likewise, we didn't think we would get so far in the cup and everything has been perfect.

 

"We've only been together as a group for nine months and from that point of view, we've definitely exceeded what we thought we could do.

 

"Now we're looking to make our campaign even better and we feel we could shock Glasgow.

 

"They're a great team with plenty of experience and a few Scotland internationalists but you never know what could happen on the day.

 

Rangers Ladies captain Jayne Somerville, left, and Natasha Anderson"Nobody expected us to beat Spartans in the last round but we did. That was a great day and there was a lot of tension but we handled it well.

 

"It's up to us to try to pull off a shock again this weekend so we'll pull together and fight for each other as we try to do that.

 

"We are the underdogs and Glasgow are clear favourites but we'll take everything as it comes."

 

Admission to this Sunday's game costs just �£4 for adults and �£2 for children and concessions.

 

Families of four (two adults and two children) can also gain entry for �£10 and kick-off is at 2.15pm.

 

If you are interested in becoming involved with either Rangers Ladies or the under-17 side, contact the Football in the Community department at Ibrox on 0141 580 8819.

 

Alternatively, if you wish to take part in the girls-only training sessions at Murray Park every Sunday from 5.15pm to 6.45pm, call 0871 702 1972 to book.

[Frankie 8,485]

I reckon they'd be harder in the tackle than some of our players...