Grace in favour

Grace McKimm has urged Cliftonville Ladies to focus on themselves in the countdown to Wednesday night’s Jordan’s Gift Women’s Premiership League Cup Final.

The first silverware of the season will be up for grabs when the Reds take on Sion Swifts Ladies at Blanchflower Stadium and McKimm is determined that she and her team-mates will play to their own strengths rather than becoming distracted by their opponents’ threat.

“I think a trophy for Cliftonville will highlight how our hard work’s paid off and how we’ve all been resilient in response to being runners-up in the League last year,” she says.

“We know Sion will be a tough squad to face but if we focus on them, that only wastes valuable time in preparing ourselves both mentally and physically. We can’t control what Sion do but we can control what we do – and what we do is the only important thing.”

Both sides came through nail-biting penalty shooutouts in their semi-final triumphs and McKimm believes the experience can stand Cliftonville in good stead for Wednesday’s decisive encounter.

“Mental strength is so important and sometimes the difference between a win and a loss,” she adds.

“Every player must be confident in themselves and eachother and have eachother’s back for the entirety of the 90 minutes.”

Jordan’s Gift Women’s Premiership League Cup Final
Cliftonville Ladies v Sion Swifts Ladies
Wednesday, June 29 (Blanchflower Stadium, 7.45pm)
Fans aged 16+: £5
Under-16s: Free