CITY’S LAUDER READY TO FACE A LOUD IBROX

GLASGOW CITY captain Hayley Lauder insists the league leaders are unfazed by the prospect of playing in front of another Scottish record crowd at Ibrox. Rangers are set to be backed by a 10,000-plus support tomorrow but Lauder is calm about coping with the atmosphere such numbers will generate. City lost in front of a similar crowd at Celtic Park just over a week ago after leading the game. However, Scotland international Lauder says City are capable of harnessing the energy and feeding off it tomorrow. ‘We know what we have to do,’ she said, with City currently two points ahead of the Old Firm pair going into the last day of the campaign. ‘Now we just have to implement that.’ ‘I have had many experiences of playing with bigger crowds, especially in international football. ‘Sometimes it’s harder to go and play without a crowd. ‘We want the crowds and the exposure. Hopefully, we will be better having had that experience at Celtic Park. ‘It didn’t affect how we wanted to play. Rangers will be happy that they are the home team but we won’t be bothered by it. It is not a negative for us. We want to use the energy in the stadium and take our qualities into the game. We can’t focus on crowd numbers, the size of the pitch or anything else. ‘At the end of the day, it is a football pitch with lines and with goals and our focus is the same regardless of where we would be playing it.’ Lauder already has six SWPL titles to her name and has insisted that if City prevail tomorrow at Ibrox this one won’t be any sweeter than the others. ‘I value them all,’ she said. ‘They are all hard to get.’ Her job as captain this week has been helping the squad keep their focus on the game rather than the increasing noise that has built up round about it. ‘I would love to take the pressure away from everyone and let everyone go and enjoy their game,’ she said. ‘I know what qualities this team has and I know the talent that is in the squad. ‘We have to ignore the distractions. We can only control what we do on the pitch. ‘People have been wanting to speak about it when I have been out for a coffee this week. I enjoy it. This is where we want to be and it is an exciting end to the season.’