Broxburn girls celebrate shield win
Academy takes home the U15 Scottish Shield
Broxburn Academy have made history after becoming the first West Lothian school to win the girls’ football under- 15 Scottish Shield.
Broxburn proved too strong for Banff in the final, played at Forfar Athletic’s Station Park, sealing a 3-1 victory.
Playing into a blustering wind in the first half, the girls fell behind and trailed 1-0 at the break before a commanding second half performance saw them clinch the trophy.
Goalkeeper Tegayn Hamilton put in an assured display with several key saves and kept her side in the game before the Broxburn girls inevitably turned on the style after the break.
Broxburn had relied on their brilliant attacking play to get them to the showdown final, having scored 30 goals in their four previous rounds leading up to the clash.
And that came to the fore in the second half as Emma McFadyen rolled home an equaliser before giving her side the lead their play had deserved with 15 minutes remaining.
Broxburn were handed a brilliant opportunity to put the game to bed when Abbie McKay was dragged down inside the box, only for Zoe Evans to squander the penalty-kick.
She made amends moments later though, scoring a cracking goal from the edge of the box in the final stages to spark scenes of joy amongst the players, staff and large group of parents, friends and supporters who made the journey north.
West Lothian’s Executive councillor for education David Dodds paid tribute to the side’s historic achievement, saying: “Congratulations to Broxburn Academy’s under 15 girls team for bringing the Scottish Shield back to West Lothian for the very first time.
“The team showed their talent and dedication to win the trophy in the face of tough opposition.
“The whole Broxburn Academy community can be rightly proud of their achievement.”