Dundee United women lived to fight another day in the SWPL despite slipping to a 1-0 defeat against Motherwell on the final day of the regular season.
Suzy Shepherd’s side, who went in to Sunday’s contest one point ahead of rock-bottom Hamilton, owe a debt of gratitude to Montrose following the Mo’s 3-0 win at Accies.
It ensured United finished 11th and will now contest a one-off playoff on Thursday against Kilmarnock, the second-placed team in SWPL2, for a spot in next term’s top-flight.
That Falkirk Stadium showdown will be televised live on BBC Alba on Thursday night.
Shepherd said: “We didn’t want to rely on Hamilton getting beat. We wanted to pick up points on Sunday and we have fallen short.
“But there were positives to take, especially in the second half, and considering it was our third game in a week; a lot of tired legs out there. The players showed character to keep going and pushing.
“I can definitely see improvement in the group every week, in and out of possession. We have a better shape defensively and we are asking the players to put a shift in – and they are giving us everything.”
A narrow defeat
The visitors claimed a deserved lead on the stroke of half-time when Brooke Nunn skipped past Natasha Bruce before delivering a dangerous cross.
Laura Berry beat United keeper Megan Sidey, who enjoyed an otherwise excellent afternoon between the sticks, to the ball and tapped into the empty net.
However, any nerves in the Terrors’ ranks were eased with the news from Lanarkshire, with Hamilton already three-down to Montrose at the break.
United threatened to restore parity during a much-improved second half showing, with Morgan Steedman warming the palms of Emily Mutch from the edge of the box.
However, the scores ultimately remained unchanged at Foundation Park and New Douglas Park, leaving United to turn their attention to a winner-takes-all survival shootout.
Shepherd continued: “We’ll need to rest and recover and see how the injured players are; there are a few tired legs. But we’ll be in on Tuesday for analysis and to assess where we are.
“And we’ll start prepping for Thursday night, hopefully with every player fit and well. We’ll do our homework and we’ll be ready.”
Smith injury mars defeat
Of those knocks, by far the most concerning was the knee injury sustained by star forward Robyn Smith. United’s No.9 and vice-captain received treatment for 10 minutes in the second period before being taken to Ninewells Hospital.
Shepherd added: “Robyn went away in an ambulance so we’ll get an update. Hopefully, she is okay and it was more of a fright than anything. But we’ll know more soon.”
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