Rangers forward Jenny Danielsson and Morgan Steedman of St Johnstone have won the first individual awards of the new Scottish Women’s Premier League (SWPL) season.
Danielsson has been named the SWPL player of the month for August with Steedman collecting the same award for SWPL 2.
Rangers have kicked off their title defence with four straight wins, scoring 29 goals and conceding none while also qualifying for the second round of the Women’s Champions League.
Danielsson has played in all four of Rangers’ domestic games, scoring two goals in their victory against Hamilton Academical.
St Johnstone also have a 100 per cent record in SWPL 2 and sit top of the table, with Steedman playing every minute and scoring three goals.
The nominees for the August SWPL award were Jenna Clark (Glasgow City), Clarissa Larisey (Celtic), and Georgia Timms (Heart of Midlothian) and for the SWPL 2 award the nominees were Ami Robertson (Gartcairn) and Abby Robinson (Kilmarnock)
McIntyre: We need to keep growing the women’s game
SWPL managing director Fiona McIntyre believes England’s Euro 2022 triumph will also help the game north of the border.
“The more the game is visible and accessible then the quicker we can grow that grassroots element of the game and have more girls playing football and the better the quality will be at the performance level.
“There’s a real palpable sense of excitement, everyone’s looking forward to the new season ahead and there’s a sense that women’s football is on a real upward curve and everyone’s willing to work together to make it happen.”
Elite women’s football in Scotland is now the responsibility of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) after previously being run by Scottish Women’s Football (SWF).
The SPFL will also run a new League Cup and the Scottish FA has announced a national cup at the dawn of a new era for the women’s game in Scotland.
Doncaster: The future is bright for the women’s game
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SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster looks ahead to the new season, discusses the introduction of VAR, growth of the Scottish Women’s Premier League and much more.
SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster said: “There’s a huge amount to look forward to and part of that is indeed the women’s game.
“Next season the top two divisions of the women’s league will come under the remit of the SPFL and we’re very excited about that.
“I think it’s a hugely-exciting development in the game in Scotland. We’ve seen the growth in women’s football across the globe and we want to be a part of that.
“It’s been led very much by the clubs and we’re certainly hopeful that we’ll be able to give whatever support we can to maximise the potential that undoubtedly exists in women’s football in Scotland.”