Bright start for Thornton Hibs Ladies FC at official launch

They joined players from the new women’s squad, girls from pathway teams Kennoway Star Hearts and St Andrews & East Neuk Girls FC, plus local elected members headed by Mid Fife and Glenrothes MSP Jenny Gilruth, part of a crowd of around 200 people also including staff, guests and supporting businesses.

“I couldn’t have asked for better if I’d planned the weather myself,” Thornton Hibs Ladies FC chairperson Steven Hamilton said.

"I honestly couldn’t believe it. It was like one of those summer May days, it was fantastic.

“There was a bit of pomp and ceremony involved in it as well with the piper (Jack Burns) leading the ceremonial group up to the end of the park and up to the area where the girls from St Andrews & East Neuk and Kennoway Star Hearts were holding the Thornton Hibs Ladies FC green ribbon.

"It was a really successful day overall.

"Jim Leishman was telling me that the last game he ever played by complete chance was on Thornton Hibs’ Park. He went into management when he was 26 or 27 but that’s because he got a leg break.

"And Mickey Weir missed the start of the Hibs game at Celtic to be here. He’ll be glad he missed it because Celtic won obviously. He’s clearly still a big Hibs fan.”

Hamilton, a 53-year-old retired policeman of Kirkcaldy who has coached in football for several years, also hopes to one day establish a Thornton Hibs ladies development team.

Thornton Hibs Ladies’ 19 players – a mix of youth and experience – will be led by head coach Chris Laird, who has an extensive coaching background in youth, men’s and women’s football spanning 18 years.

With Scottish women’s football leagues in mid-season, it is anticipated Thornton Hibs Ladies will join the first tier of an SWF regional league in August, the start of the 2025-’26 campaign.

The team’s first match is a friendly against East Fife Development on Sunday, April 13, venue to be decided.