Premier League Winners
Congratulations to the University of St Andrews Women’s football 1st team, who secured their first ever British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) Premier North title on 24 January.
The team completed their remarkable inaugural year in the Premier North League with a 2 – 0 away victory over reigning BUCS Championship Cup winners Nottingham.
Goals from Ellie Venters (1st year English Literature) and Olivia Boscaccy (2nd year Management) gave St Andrews an early two goal lead, which the team worked hard to maintain for a crucial win.
The St Andrews team’s journey to the league title includes some truly impressive results against talented teams from the Universities of Loughborough, Stirling, Northumbria, and Durham.
Team captain Liva Holt said, “The moment we won the Premier North league title, I was in shock and disbelief – we came into this league with the goal of giving everything we had, on and off the pitch, and taking pride in wherever that took us. I now know that there was no reason to be shocked, considering the unwavering commitment and support each teammate dedicated to this team. I am so incredibly proud of being a part of this team and proving what a force Scottish Women’s football not only can be, but already is.”
Director of Football, Stuart Milne, said, “What this team has achieved in its debut season in premier north league is incredible. When we first came into the league the first goal we set for the players was to establish ourselves as quickly as possible against some really top and established teams. To have produced some of the performances and results has been a joy to watch and to have been in contention to win the league going into the last game was an achievement in itself.
I am delighted that the players have been given a truly special moment for all they put into the programme. They work extremely hard each week on the pitch, in the gym with our strength and conditioning team, with analysis as well as handling some of the challenges we face with travel. On top of maintaining their high level of academia this group are a real credit to themselves, the football club and university.
It was a really proud moment for me as Director of Football and Head Coach of the team to be a part of this group and its accomplishments to this point in the season. Fourteen years ago this team was in the Scottish 2nd tier (3 leagues below where they are now), so the progression in that time is wonderful to see and many people have played their part to this point. Thank you to everyone, past and present, for their contributions – I am really excited to see where this group can go next.”
Women’s football is one of a small number of targeted performance teams at St Andrews. It provides a comprehensive programme of training, competition and support to enable our top student players to harness their full potential and to achieve both sporting and academic excellence.
Read more about women’s football at St Andrews: https://football.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk/