Motherwell beat Stirling University.
Report / Image: Motherwell FC
Motherwell closed the gap on Spartans and Rangers in SWPL1 with a 2-1 home win over Stirling University on Sunday.
Chelsea McEachran’s strike and a Kerry Montgomery penalty put the women of steel in control in the first half, before Claire Petersen halved the deficit in the second.
Donald Jennow made two changes to the team which won 5-0 over Inverness CT in the cup two weeks previous.
Morgan Hunter and Nicole Cairney came into the team. Anna Vincenti and Kirsten Rolph dropped to the bench.
Motherwell started the brighter side, hitting the post early on and testing the visiting goalkeeper on a number of occasions.
The breakthrough came just over 20 minutes into the match. McEachran, who netted a double in the last outing, firing home.
Then, with 15 minutes left in the first half, Montgomery stepped up to steer home a penalty to put her side in the driving seat.
Stirling got a goal back in the second half through Petersen, but the hosts were more than good for their victory.
The win, paired with defeats for Spartans and Rangers, means ‘Well are now two points behind fourth-placed Spartans, and one behind Rangers.
Victory also opened a 13-point gap over Stirling at the bottom of the table, with eight games left to play in the league season.
Next up for Motherwell is a home SSE Scottish Women’s Cup quarter-final with Queen’s Park at Ravenscraig on Sunday, 15 September.
Motherwell: Hunter, Doran-Barr, Roberts, Rafferty, Adams, Cairney, Crooks, Montgomery, Callaghan, McEachran, Rice.
Subs: Vincenti, Rolph, Arbuckle, Fyfe, Knox, Otto.
