Renfrew Ladies cut Falkirk’s Barclays Championship lead to five points after thriller

Renfrew Ladies have cut the gap at the top of the Barclays Scottish Women’s Championship to five points after a pulsating end-to-end 4-3 win against Forfar Farmington.

Forfar had opened the scoring through Sophie Young within ten minutes, but Renfrew immediately equalised through an own goal. The home side scored a quick double at the start of the second half through Paige Henry and Louise Cameron before Melissa Regmi struck for the visitors ahead of the hour mark. Henry restored the two-goal lead with a deft turn and volley, but Farmington forward Cheryl Kilcoyne grabbed their third after 75 minutes. The Angus side chased an equaliser, but Renfrew would claim their second win since the winter break to start to put pressure on the top of the table, as leaders Falkirk and Rossvale played out a goalless Championship stalemate.

Inverness Caledonian Thistle took three points back to the Highlands after a 7-2 win at Glasgow Girls, Dryburgh Athletic and Armadale Thistle played out a 2-2 draw in Dundee and a Gidney penalty helped Stenhousemuir to a 3-2 win at Morton.

A Kyha McGurk hat-trick didn’t prevent Bonnyrigg Rose falling to a 3-4 defeat by visitors Ayr United. Ayr had gone 2-0 up before McGurk scored a quick brace just ahead of half-time to level at the break. Bonnyrigg began the second period with intent and McGurk completed her hat-trick just before the hour, but Ayr found an equaliser through Jen Nicol to set up a tense final 20 minutes. With just a minute or two left Leah Patterson broke the deadlock for Ayr to send her side home with the points.

Barclays League One saw a similar scale of drama, with bottom side Edinburgh Caley securing a vital three points in a 4-3 win over Airdrie CC Ladies at Meadowbank, St Mirren going top after beating Glenrothes Strollers in Fife and Dunipace hot on their heels with a 4-2 win against Cambusdoon. This competitive league also served up a twelve-goal thriller in Moray, with most goals coming in a dramatic final half-hour.

Elgin City were 3-1 up on the hour mark after Carly Sewell had given her side a cushion to add to Darcy Matheson’s first-half double, but Westdyke came storming back with 3 goals in ten minutes, only for the home side’s Norwegian forward Mia Lundberg to a quickfire brace to restore Elgin’s lead. Lauren Doherty added a late sixth for City before Westdyke too added a late goal. Lundberg completed her hat trick in the final minute to cap off a crazy second half of football.

Helen Templeton and Alex Davie had Dunfermline Athletic in front in Inverurie, but Freya Smith got Loco Works back in it with a goal on 63 minutes before Antonia Adams equalised with seven minutes left for a share of the spoils.

In SWF’s regional divisions, Cumbernauld United won their local derby, beating Cumbernauld Colts 6-2 in SWFL Central/West, while Edinburgh South set down a marker in SWFL East by beating Loanhead Ladies 12-0, keeping them a point behind league leaders Edinburgh University Thistle. Grampian returned to the top of SWFL North by sweeping aside Blairgowrie & Rattray while Arbroath were held 2-2 at home by Huntly. Giffnock remain top of SWFL South after beating Dalbeattie Star 14-0.