Sunday 25th September, 2022 at 8:24pm
Thistle collected their first three-point haul of the season when they made the short trip across the city to face Glasgow Women, and did so in emphatic fashion. Once the dust had settled on a sparking performance from the Thistle girls it showed that they had run out 8-1 winners.
The tone for what was going to follow was set inside the first 60 seconds of the match. Cara Henderson lifted a pass over the top of the home defence finding Abbie Ferguson, who was making her first start as a Thistle player. Ferguson though was forced to check back with Linzi Taylor’s follow up shot blocked by a defender.
Thistle were close again a short time later with Henderson again involved, this time wide on the right with Ferguson unfortunate not to convert her cross.
Rebecca McGowan sent a shot over the bar as Thistle looked for the early goal that their enterprising play merited, and it duly arrived after 8 minutes.
Taylor found Henderson to her right and although Henderson’s first cross was cleared, she immediately got the ball back. Ferguson stretched but couldn’t quite reach Henderson’s second cross, but Jordan McLintock was lurking behind her to tuck the ball home.
Clare Docherty was denied by a smart save from Burgon in the home goal as Thistle looked to press home that early advantage, but they had to wait just a further 7 minutes to double their lead.
A gem of a pass from McLintock put Ferguson clear on goal and her composed and confident finish gave Thistle a two-goal lead.
It wasn’t quite all one way traffic in the opening 45 minutes and a free kick from wide on the Glasgow Women left hand side from Campbell did strike the frame of the Thistle goal and a goal for the home side at this point may well have changed the complexion of the game.
The game’s next goal though was at the other end. A Henderson cross was cleared only as far as McLintock at the edge of the box and her left foot shot was destined for the back of the net from the second it left her foot.
Right on the stroke of half-time, Thistle extended their lead further with McLintock completing a first-half hat-trick. Henderson’s long ball forward picked out the energetic Ferguson and it took the illegal intervention from Hoole to halt her progress for an obvious penalty. Obvious it seemed but at first the referee signalled a corner, and it was only after a brief conversation with his assistant that he pointed to the spot.
Jordan McLintock ignored all the fuss and the delay before she permitted to take the penalty and slammed the ball home sending Thistle into the dressing room at the interval four goals to the good.
The points were surely secured now but any thoughts that Thistle might let up in the second half were quickly dispelled with McGowan striking the base of the post within seconds of the restart and Taylor seeing a header saved a short time later.
A fifth goal did arrive, however, after 50 minutes and it was a deserved goal for McGowan. Ferguson nodded the ball on for McGowan and this time the frame of the goal didn’t come to Glasgow Women’s rescue.
King did hit the bar for the home side, but the overwhelming direction of the game was towards the home side’s goal and Thistle netted a sixth goal after 77 minutes when Cheryl McCulloch was the first to react to a loose ball inside the six-yard box and she forced the ball home for the second goal of the season for the defender.
Thistle’s impressive fitness levels really showed as the game neared a conclusion and a seventh goal followed with 10 minutes remaining. Rachel Donaldson was able to meet a Docherty cross from the right on the half volley and the ball flew into the back of the net.
There was still time for an eighth Thistle goal. The vision of Abbie Ferguson created the opening for Cara Henderson and her neat finish saw her get the goal that her performance so richly deserved.
There could even have been further Thistle goals before the finish. Substitute Leah Robinson saw a long-range free kick well saved and Henderson had a shot touched onto the crossbar.
With the game in injury time the home side were able to notch a consolation goal when Campbell converted a corner kick but although the loss of a potential clean sheet infuriated keeper Megan Cunningham and her defenders in truth it took next to no gloss off what had been a hugely impressive Thistle performance.
