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Edinburgh Reporter
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Edinburgh Reporter
Hibernian defender Ellis Notley signs two-year contract extension
Ellis Notley has signed a two-year contract extension with Hibernian Women. With the 26-year-old's deal originally set to expire at the end of this season, Notley has penned a new deal that will run until Summer 2027. She joined the Club aged 13 before rapidly rising through the youth ranks to make her First Team debut in 2016, going on to become a key player in the senior squad – making 227 Hibs appearances to date. Ellis Notley The versatile defender has been a part of five cup-winning squads, lifting three Scottish Cups and two Scottish League Cups as a Hibernian player. In the 2018 SWPL Cup Final, she scored the opening goal, paving the way for Hibernian's emphatic 9-0 rout over Celtic at the Falkirk Stadium. Appointed Hibs Women Vice-Captain at the start of the 2024/25 season, Notley has played a key role in the team's charge for the ScottishPower Women's Premier League title and securing a place in March's Sky Sports Cup Final. After signing the new deal, she told HibsTV: 'I'm obviously delighted. I've been at the club a long time and it's been a great season so far. 'I'm happy that I've extended my contract and that I'm staying here.' Hibs Women Head Coach Grant Scott commented: 'Ellis is a great servant to the club, a consistent performer, and someone who leads by example every single day. 'Her character and leadership make her a vital part of this squad, and we're delighted to have her commit her future to Hibs.' Like this: Like Related
Edinburgh Reporter
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Edinburgh Reporter
Hibs boss ‘humbled' to win PFA Scotland SWPL Manager of the Year award
Hibs Women Head Coach Grant Scott says he is very 'humbled' and 'priviliged' to have won the PFA Scotland SWPL Manager of the Year award. The 51-year-old collected the award on Sunday (4 May 2025 ) evening in Glasgow as he was voted the best manager in Scottish Women's football during the 2024/25 campaign by his peers. Scott had overseen a remarkable season to date in his second season back in charge, improving upon last season's fifth-place finish with a title charge and Sky Sports Cup Final appearance. The team have lost just one of their last 21 league matches, pushing them three points clear at the top of the ScottishPower Women's Premier League with three matches remaining. Speaking to PFA Scotland, Scott spoke of his delight and thankfulness after picking up the award just hours after leading his side to a memorable Derby Day victory over Hearts at Oriam. 'It feels fantastic. And it's very humbling at the same time. 'It's a privilege to be in the role that I do and have the support around me that I do at home. 'It's like any of those kind of votes,' Scott added. 'You put your wits against each other week-to-week, season-to-season. 'For them to recognise that we have done a good job, because it's not all about me, it's about the whole function that goes on behind the team. I'm delighted to get that recognition from my peers. It's very humbling.' With games against second-place Glasgow City, fourth-place Celtic and third-place Rangers still to come, Scott is well aware the season is far from over but insists any silverware achieved would be a massive achievement for the Club. 'The league [title] is the standard for who have been the best across a sustained period. We have not done it yet. There's a lot of work left to do, as strange as that is with just three games to go. 'There is very difficult opponents for us left to play, but we will continue to push. 'If, and it is a massive if because of the competition out there, we manage to be successful, it would be absolutely huge in this new era of Scottish Women's football where the teams are properly professional with top-calibre managers and players arriving in the league. It would be a huge thing for Hibernian.' Like this: Like Related
Scotsman
21-04-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
A Hibs SWPL title win would be a game changer for Scottish women's football
Watch more of our videos on and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565 Visit Shots! now 'We fight to the end' vow as players enjoy 'revenge' over Rangers Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... After serving up a cold dish of revenge in the Meadowbank sunshine, Hibs have some down time before they resume their SWPL title challenge. Providing a chance to reflect on a remarkable season to date – and add some context to the enormity of what they're trying to achieve. At a crucial stage in the continued development of women's football in Scotland, Hibs winning their first title since 2007 might just be the best thing to happen. Not that the other clubs vying for the crown should be expected to acknowledge as much, even in private. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad But Grant Scott's team, operating on a fraction of the budget available to the biggest spenders in the land, returning to the cut-and-thrust of a genuine title race definitely adds something special to the mix. Think back to Leicester's men winning the Premier League, if you like, and consider the excitement, attention and growth generated by that shattering of the established order. Whether or not Hibs could stick around to contend for more honours in the reshaped SWPL 1, which will be cut to 10 teams next year as authorities seek to create a more competitive elite division, may be down to economics. They'd have to invest significant sums simply to hold onto players. But putting the trophy in the boardroom would certainly help gaffer Scott make his case for more backing. With five rounds of fixtures to go, Hibs are back on top of the table. Yesterday's 2-0 home win over Rangers – avenging their 5-0 loss to Jo Potter's side in the Sky Sports Cup Final just four weeks earlier – saw them leapfrog the visitors AND climb above Glasgow City, who dropped points in a 0-0 draw with Hearts at Oriam earlier in the day. So impressive was yesterday's performance that, putting aside all club rivalries, Hearts head of girls' academy Emma Hunter hailed her club's rivals for 'winning in style' as she said simply: 'Wow.' Pretty much capturing the mood across women's football, as seasoned/cynical observers watch Hibs continue to defy the odds. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad To put what they're doing in perspective, 2007 may not sound like so long ago, depending on your age. But it was an entirely different era for women's football in Scotland, which was effectively an amateur game, long before the Old Firm had begun adding their commercial might to the mix. Potential Ibrox title decider on Helicopter Sunday if SWPL flag still up for grabs With everyone to play each other one more time in the post-split schedule, there is enormous potential for everything to change between now and the final round of fixtures on May 18. Hibs are away to Rangers on the final weekend, with the Govan club likely to move the game to Ibrox if it's looking like a title decider on yet another dramatic 'Helicopter Sunday' for the women's game. It currently looks like a three-way tussle between three sides separated by extremely slender margins; Rangers are two points adrift of the leaders, with City one further behind. Even trailing by eight points, however, Celtic and Hearts will feel they have a chance to get into the mix by winning every game. For now, Hibs have the luxury of a weekend off because of the Scottish Cup semi-finals. Time to rest up and prepare for an SWPL title classic likely – again – to go right to the wire. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Scott's squad looks durable enough to go the distance, Eilidh Adams summing up the difference between this season and previous campaigns by explaining: 'I think there is just a togetherness in the squad. And we fight to the end. 'Before, maybe we would go a goal behind and not always stick together. We would lose our heads. But I think this year it's a brilliant group of girls, you can see that on the pitch.' Reflecting on the win over Rangers, Adams told BBC Alba: 'It feels good. After the cup final we almost wanted to get some revenge; we know that wasn't a good day for us. 'To put on a good performance, it's a big three points. But there is a long way to go, still a lot to come.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Hunter, who was on TV commentary duty, said of the Hibs triumph: 'Wow. They just keep doing it, don't they? They're doing it in style, as well. 'They're not just winning one-nil. They're scoring some fantastic goals – and demonstrating different sides to their game, whether that's game management or taking their chances. Huge credit to them for being top of the table. It's brilliant.' The title run-in: Wed, April 30 (Meadowbank) - Hibs v Motherwell Sunday, May 4 (Oriam) - Hearts v Hibs Sunday, May 11 (Meadowbank) - Hibs v Glasgow City Wednesday, May 14 (Meadowbank) - Hibs v Celtic Sunday, May 18 (Venue TBC) - Rangers v Hibs
