Swifts travelled to Barrowfield hoping to finish a successful season positively.
The game settled quickly into a hard fought midfield battle with Celtic enjoying more of the possession. Their pressure however only resulted in one opportunity when the striker fired over from a good position. Although they had struggled to test the home side it was the Swifts who had the best chance when McGinley found Smith with a through ball and the striker who was causing problems found her first touch taking her away from goal leaving her with an angle that defeated her shot. Smith wasn’t to be denied however when on the half-hour mark she again slipped in behind the defence to reach a Martin pass and rounded the keeper to open the scoring.
The second half started with the home side on the attack. Just as it looked as if the Swifts had coped a long ball in from the right deceived McIlravey and Nicholson and the striker nodded home.
The game then opened up for the next 30mins with both teams looking for the decisive second goal. A neat move saw McGinley find McIntyre’s clever run and the striker was thwarted when she wanted an extra touch. The Swifts were now looking more likely and were finding their passes more consistently but the breakthrough wasn’t forthcoming.
In the last quarter the game sprung into life when Celtic took the lead when the striker beat the offside trap to slot home. Minutes later they increased the lead when McIlravey made an excellent stop only for the attacker to react quickest and stab home. A mad 5 minutes was completed when McIlravey again made a great stop only for the attacker to react quickest again to the second ball and stab home.
It was a cruel five minute spell for the Swifts who responded positively when McIntyre fired home from 20 yards
A disappointing end to a very good season for the Swifts. Moving up a level they have competed well and shown great improvement and can be very pleased with their efforts