Anna Signeul announced her squad for the EURO2013 qualifying games against Wales today. The game will be played at Tynecastle, the new home of the women's national side, with a 7pm kick-off
GoalkeepersGemma Fay (Celtic)Shannon Lynn (Hibs)DefendersFrankie Grown (Apollon Limassol)Rachael Corsie (Glasgow City)Ifeoma Dieke (Apollon Limassol)Nicola Docherty (Rangers)Emma Fernon (Glasgow City)Rhona Jones (Doncaster Rovers Belles)Emma Mitchell (Glasgow City)Rachael Small (Forfar Farmington)MidfieldHayley Lauder (Spartans)Kim Little (Arsenal)Joanne Love (Glasgow City)Alana Marshall (Rangers)Leanne Ross (Glasgow City)Megan Sneddon (Celtic)ForwardsJennifer Beattie (Arsenal)Lisa Evans (Glasgow City)Julie Fleeting (Arsenal)Suzanne Grant (Celtic)Jane Ross (Glasgow City)Non-playing member of squadChristie Murray (Glasgow City)Signeul can see the game with Wales being tough as she can see progress made by the Republic of Ireland and Wales as part of the progress made across Europe in the women's game over the last five of six years. She said: "Some of our players play in Apollon in Cyprus and they play with six Rumanian national team players. This means that the Romanian team improves by having their players playing a high level. You can see that actually clubs that can afford to have professional or semi-professional players that these players are not coming from the 'big' countries but come from very many countries like Switzerland have many of their players out playing as professionals and I thought that Belgium as well had developed a lot when we played them in August. Interesting results also with England-Serbia (2-2). So you see that with countries like that you cannot anything for granted. Womens football is becoming more competitive, the leagues are getting stronger and I think that the players that play in strong leagues are benefiting. A couple of years ago when the French league only had one team which was very strong, Olympique Lyonnais, which won all the games with 10-0 but now there are other teams in France which are picking up and developing so you can see that there is progress across Europe." Asked if she still thought, with the progress across Europe background, it was realistic to expect Scotland to qualify for their first major championships, Signeul said: "Well, I definitely think we are doing the right things with our players and that is the players who need to put in the hard work. It is easy if you are a full time professional but if you are not you have to do it anyway. You can't just turn around and say 'she is a professional and I can't train as much'. If you say that you just have to accept that she is better than you and I think that is the message that the players have picked up here; that they have to do it anyway. I try to explain that all these countries that have professional players, there have been players before them who have done all the hard work. They did not just get professionals from nowhere. They had a generation that worked very hard and one generation has to do this for another to follow. The professional attitude of the clubs in Scotland has improved in the last six years. Back then the players trained perhaps once or twice a week. But with so many games cancelled, they were playing twice and training once. From the outset since I have been here I could have been saying, like the USA team, let's have the players together for a number of days like a club team. However, that is not long term development, that is short term development. So we put a lot of effort in the clubs as that is where players should be developed. But then the clubs and coaches have to understand what is required to be on an elite level. I think we have educated the coaches and the clubs in this country. Glasgow City have done the most to be at that level and that is why they are the best. They train the most."Of course, Glasgow City have a full-time coach in Eddie Wolecki Black which could be seen as a benefit. Signeul went on: "Having a coach like Eddie, it is a huge help but very many say 'why should you have a full time coach when you don't have full time players' but he works at the youth structure as well. But he is available at training five nights a week and a match on Sunday, that is a full time job. Where some coaches can give up two nights and I have always said that in terms of developing the clubs and train more i have said it is not the players that say they cannot do more. It is often the coaches and the clubs that say the players can't do more. But if you ask the players, they want to develop and see how good can I be and if i can get better by training more I would like to do that. They are not the block to progress, the block is more the club and the coaches. And that was the same in Sweden when we started to say you have to train more. They clubs came back with 'the players can't train more'. Well don't blame the players as they want to do it." Signeul has set her targets throughout her career as a player and coach. One of those targets is to change the mind set of those involved around the clubs. They have to listen to the players more as they want to be the best they can be. A number of clubs are listening and more young players are coming into the game after seeing just how the investment of time now can bring rewards at a club and international level. This can only help the game in Scotland. There is still a lot of work to be done and nobody can afford to stand still and reflect on the progress made. Stop pushing yourself and somebody more ambitious will happily overtake you in the blink of an eye.
Source: FOOTYMAD
