Scottish international Sarah Jamieson (pictured by Nigel Duncan) netted a double as Watsonians retained the women’s Premiership in a nervy, 2-1 win over Glasgow combine, GHK.
The Edinburgh side’s coach Keith Smith said that the girls clicked in their 14-0 victory over Glasgow University in midweek, but admitted that they failed to fire on all cylinders on Saturday, possibly because of the occasion.
The girls, he said, missed a number of chances, then they had to survive real pressure in the final minute when GHK withdrew their in-form goalkeeper Ally Westwood, who had produced some telling stops earlier, to have 11 outfield players.
The Edinburgh side have led the league for most of the season but slipped to a 4-2 defeat to runners-up Edinburgh University recently to ignite the title race again, but Smith said: “We got the win and that’s what matters.”
The club set a target of securing a place in Europe and Smith said: “That has been achieved and now we move into the play-offs.”
At Fettes, Grange coach Stevie Grubb admitted that the title win, secured thanks to a 4-1 victory over Watsonians and having to come from 1-0 down, was his first ever champonship success.
He said: “I won two European Cups but never managed to win the league as a player. It has been a long season but the boys have coped with it well.
“It is amazing how fit they have all kept and we have had very few injuries. At the start of the season they got fit and had strength and conditioning advice and that has really paid off throughout the season.”
The silverware was annexed despite Grange missing their top marksman, Fraser Heigh, for the second-half of the campaign, the Great Britain under-age international having gone to Australia to play hockey.
Grubb said that his men stepped-up to fill the void and, reflecting on the game against their city rivals, Grubb said: “They (Watsonians) scored against the run of play but it is always worrying and you never know if it is going to be a day when you just don’t score.
“David Nairn hit the post for us but some days you have lots of pressure but can’t get across that white line but we stuck to it and in that third quarter. As soon as the first one came then that opened the floodgates.”
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