Costello forecasts bright future for Scotland’s women

Amy Costello celebrated her first Player of the Tournament award in France as Scotland lifted the gold medal and qualified for the top tier of European hockey in Germany next summer.

But the hugely-talented player was quick to salute her teammates who won all three of their games in the EuroHockey qualifiers in Dunkirk, beating Austria 4-0, France 2-0 and Switzerland 4-2.

She was still at school when she made her debut for the Scotland senior team in the EuroHockey Indoor Championships in 2016 and she made here first senior appearance outdoors against South Africa only a month later.

Costello (pictured in training with green bib) has continued to develop her game since then and is now a regular in the Great Britain squad having made her first appearance for them in February 2018.

The ice cool defender was key as Scotland earned sixth position in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham recently and was pivotal in the EuroHockey qualifers.

She said: “It’s the first time I’ve won an award like this but to secure our position in A Division was crucial and I am really proud of the team and what they have achieved here.

“It was a team effort and everybody contributed on and off the pitch, the coaching staff included. It was great to get a result at the end of the day and the future is bright.

“We’ve had a really good summer, giving first caps to players and giving experience to newcomers in the squad and we have put Scottish hockey on the map. It’s positive.”

The 24-year-old returns to the Great Britain set-up later this year and added: “Hopefully, we’ll get some Pro League games and I’m looking forward to a new challenge.”

Costello, a former Inverleith player, said the experience of playing teams like Australia (No 3 in the world) and New Zealand (No 8) was invaluable during the summer and it allowed the Scots to rest their ability against some of the best players in the world.

She added: “It is teams like that that we want to keep playing against on a regular basis and that will allow us to get better and hopefully compete for medals at major events.”