Joelle Murray says that the Hibernian Ladies’ squad are looking forward to taking on Celtic at Easter Road Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The captain is a diehard Hibernain fan and still attends matches at Easter Road with her father, so she says that it will be a special occasion for herself, but also for the squad as they take to the pitch.
With the game kicking off at 7:45pm and being played under the floodlights, Joelle is looking for Hibernian supporters to back the side in the SBS SWPL clash.
She told the club website: “Everyone is absolutely buzzing for the game at Easter Road. We’ve played there a few times now and on every occasion, it has been great.
“The stadium itself is fantastic, so everyone is looking forward to it and the pitch is looking great – the groundsman has done a great job.
“He has done a great job all season as it has looked fantastic every time Hibs have played on it, so we’re really looking forward to playing on such an amazing pitch at a fantastic stadium.”
“We play on artificial surfaces, so that will be different, but I’m a Hibs fan, so playing at Easter Road, the stadium I always went to, and still go to, with my dad makes it a special occasion.
“It’s a special occasion for me, and also for all the other girls who aren’t Hibs fans because playing at such a great stadium is great and we hope we can get a good support through because we’ve had a great season and I think we deserve it.”
“Celtic are always really well organised and they have a team full of really good players and some internationals in there, both past and present.
“We always know that a game against Celtic is a tough one and we need to go in focussed and start from the very first whistle and play as well as we can right up until the last.
“In recent matches we have had the upper hand against Celtic, but we can’t take that for granted. We know the strength that they bring and we need to be on it from the very first whistle.”
Six Hibernian Ladies players have also been called-up to the Scotland Women’s National Team squad for their upcoming FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against Belarus and Albania by Shelley Kerr.
Rachel McLauchlan, Kirsty Smith, Rachael Small, Lucy Graham and Jenna Fife all join Joelle in the squad for the crucial matches, with the defender feeling that all the call-ups are deserved.
She continued: “The girls have been playing so well domestically that it is really good that it has been recognised and that they have been rewarded with that call-up.
“They more than deserve the call-up and with Jenna I am really delighted, it’s been a long-time coming.
“I’m also delighted for Smally and Lucy who came in for the Hungary game and have been called-up again.
“It shows a lot about the club and about what we’re trying to achieve at Hibs, and it says a lot about Chris (Roberts) as well.
“He plays down his part in these things, but he’s fantastic. The way he takes us for training, his preparation and everything he puts into it, we certainly owe a lot to him for not only the domestic success, but the international call-ups as well.”
Entry to the Hibernian Ladies’ game against Celtic is via pay-at-the-gate at Easter Road Stadium, and is priced at £5 for adults and £2 for under-16s.
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
