Heart of Midlothian Women Football Club, commonly known as Hearts Women, is a Scottish women's association football club affiliated with the Edinburgh-based professional men's club, Heart of Midlothian. They are members of the Scottish Women's Premier League (SWPL), the highest level women's football league in Scotland, and currently compete in its top tier, SWPL 1.
 | ||||
| Full name | Heart of Midlothian Women Football Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Hearts Women | |||
| Founded | 2009 | |||
| Ground | Oriam, Edinburgh | |||
| Chairperson | Ann Budge[1] | |||
| Manager | Eva Olid | |||
| League | SWPL 1 | |||
| 2023–24 | SWPL 1, 4th of 12 | |||
| Website | https://www.heartsfc.co.uk/pages/hearts-women | |||
|
| ||||
History
editIn 2009 Hearts took over Musselburgh Windsor Ladies Football Club, changing their name to Hearts Ladies F.C.[2] The name was changed once again in 2018, when the club became known as Hearts Women F.C.
At the December 2018 AGM, Hearts owner Ann Budge announced a "six-figure investment year on year" into Hearts Women, alongside an expansion to their academy in order to integrate the women's team further into the club.[3] Hearts intended to "invest significantly in women and girls' football in 2019 and beyond". This included the recruitment of Kevin Murphy as First Team Manager, who previously oversaw all football operations within Manchester City Women's Academy Department.[4][5] Hearts Women hosted two games at Tynecastle in 2019[6] and clinched the SWPL 2 title with a 3–0 win against Partick Thistle on the final day of the season, gaining promotion to SWPL 1.[7]
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the SWPL 2020 season was declared null and void.[8] The league reverted to winter football in the 2020–21 season.[8] On 14 July 2020, Kevin Murphy stepped down as First Team Manager to join Rangers as First Team Assistant Coach and Girls Academy Manager, being replaced by previous Hearts Men's first team coach Andy Kirk in August 2020.[9][10]
In June 2021, Kirk left the club to join Highland League side Brechin City as first team manager.[11] In July, Eva Olid was announced as the new first team manager.[12]
Ground
editHearts Women play their home games at The Oriam, Riccarton.[13]
Players
editCurrent squad
editNote: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
On loan
editNote: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
Coaching staff
edit- As of 10 April 2024[16]
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| First Team Manager |  Eva Olid
|
| Assistant Coach |  Gavin Beith
|
| Goalkeeping Coach | Chris Flockhart
|
| Head of Womens Recruitment | Sean Burt
|
| Head of Girls Academy | Emma Hunter
|
| Operations Manager | Lisa MacFarlane
|
References
edit- ^ "Ann Budge to start at Tynecastle on Monday". BBC Sport. 9 May 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
- ^ "Women's football club launched!". Heartsfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
- ^ "Hearts to invest six-figure sum in ladies side". www.scotsman.com. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
- ^ "Kevin Murphy: Hearts Women recruit Manchester City Women's technical director". BBC Sport. 9 January 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
- ^ "Kevin Murphy set to join Hearts". Heart of Midlothian Football Club. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
- ^ "The History of Women's Football at Tynecastle". Leading the Line. 18 Nov 2019. Archived from the original on 12 Aug 2020.
- ^ "SWPL: Hearts promoted in front of record home crowd". BBC Sport. 2019-11-17. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
- ^ a b "SWPL season declared null and void after one round of games". BBC Sport. 29 Jul 2020. Archived from the original on 29 Jul 2020.
- ^ "Kevin moves on | Heart Of Midlothian Football Club". www.heartsfc.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-07-14.
- ^ "Andy Kirk new Women's First Team and Girls' Academy Manager | Heart Of Midlothian Football Club". www.heartsfc.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-08-24.
- ^ "Kirk leaves Hearts | Heart Of Midlothian Football Club". www.heartsfc.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-06-07.
- ^ "Eva Olid appointed Hearts Women Manager | Heart Of Midlothian Football Club". www.heartsfc.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-07-11.
- ^ "[...]Home games are played at @Oriamscotland with tickets available at the gate[...]". Twitter. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
- ^ "First Team Squad". Heart of Midlothian F.C. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ "News – tagged "category_Hearts_Women" – Hearts". www.heartsfc.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
- ^ "First Team Coaching Staff". Heart of Midlothian F.C. Retrieved 10 April 2024.