The 2022-23 Scottish Women’s Premier League campaign will kick off on Sunday, August 7 as Aberdeen FC Women look to build on a very impressive debut season in the top flight. First up is a trip to South Lanarkshire to play Hamilton Academical, a fixture AFC Women co-manager Emma Hunter is already looking forward to.

She said: “When the fixtures come out there is an element of excitement, you know you are going to play all the teams anyway, but you do look at the first fixture when you are going through pre-season and think, can we get off to a good start?

“It is an away game, but we’re travelling to play a team that we know very well. Probably since our inception, Hamilton is the side we have played most often. If you look at the balance of the results, we have come out on top on a good number of occasions but the scoreline is always very close, with often only a goal separating the sides.

“It does give us a chance to get the three points and get off to a good start which is very important, but both teams will be looking at the fixture and thinking they can get the win.

“It will certainly be very competitive. As all the games in the league will be this season.”

Two clubs, Dundee United and Glasgow Women, were promoted from SWPL 2 at the end of last season with none relegated from SWPL 1 due to the top league being expanded to 12 teams.

Emma added: “With two more teams in the league we have more games to look forward to and there is also a league split which will be something new for us to experience. It is a long season anyway, without the additional games and having a couple more midweek fixtures is not ideal, especially if we have to travel, but we are all very excited about the challenge ahead.

“COVID has settled down so hopefully we won’t have to worry about that disrupting the team like the last couple of years, and having to try to manage that.

“We are very excited about the squad that we have got. One of our key focusses is about our fitness levels and being able to compete at this level. So we have been working really hard, we have been back for a couple of weeks already. The players have all looked really sharp, they have obviously all looked after themselves during the break.

“Hopefully we will be able to rotate the team more this season. We have a young squad again and have brought some players in from the Aberdeen Ladies U19s. We do feel we have the players now to change the side and have been working on getting more competition for places. It will be really competitive, people will be fighting for a spot in the starting XI.

“We have also been working on how we create a philosophy and style and during pre-season we will be working really hard on that, so everyone knows their role before they step out onto the pitch. They will know what the expectations are as individuals, as a unit and as a team.”

After back-to-back promotions and a place in the top half of the SWPL 1, how is the squad shaping up for the new campaign?

“We finished fifth last season with a really good squad of players which surprised a lot of people.

“It is a similar squad to last season which hopefully will be a positive because we have managed to keep hold of some of the best young players in Scotland.

“They are a massive asset for us. Keeping the likes of Bayley Hutchison who scored a lot of goals, Jess Broadrick in defence, and Francesca Ogilvie as well, to name just a few. We have managed to keep a really strong core of players. We have lost a few experienced ones, we knew that was going to happen. But as I said we have some really fresh young players coming in from the U19 squad who are international players at Scotland U17 level.

“We are looking forward to seeing these young players continue to develop. We want to model the same philosophy as the club and look to have that pathway for young girls and bring them in at the right time, no matter their age.

“The squad is similar, it has not changed drastically. But we have brought in enough new talent that is really hungry and will push the rest on as well.

“We are very optimistic about what we have got in front of us.”

It will be an historic season as the top two women’s leagues in Scotland will now be run like the men’s game by the SPFL, after previously being the responsibility of Scottish Women’s Football (SWF). A significant moment Emma believes for the continued growth of the game in this country.

“We talked about the new set up with the girls in our pre-training meeting this week.

“Last season was full of historical moments – playing at Pittodrie, playing at Ibrox, where we finished in the league. Lots of amazing memories. But there are more to come.

“The SPFL running the league is another historical moment for women’s football in Scotland. It is something to be proud of. The players are part of a squad making history again, that moment when women’s football in Scotland comes under a professional league body. It will be interesting to see how things progress throughout the season.

“You have already seen the coverage and hype around the fixtures being released. The Euro’s in England this summer should also help with the buzz for the game with young women ahead of the new season.”