And after another flight and a long coach journey they finally ended up in the host town of Subotica. The opening group qualifier was against the local side ŽFK Spartak and this marked the first outing for the new strip and club badge. TV coverage however used the old logo on team line up and match stats captions. Serbia’s RTS Channel being the unlikely last hoorah for the cheerfully naff old club badge. The local TV viewers would have been pleased with the opening few minutes, when both Mirela Tenkov and Jelena ?ubrilo had chances for the home side.

City though came more into the game and with just seven minutes in Christie Murray let fly from just outside the area. Two quick fire goals from Kat Lindner and another from Murray sent them in 3-0 up at half time. It was into injury time before the fouth goal came, Emma Woolley's shot was cleared off the line but Lindner was on hand to stroke the ball home.

Despite the heat City were straight out of the blocks for second match against Mosta. Creating numerous chances, Jane Ross forced a save from the Mosta keeper Costantino inside the opening minute before Jane Ross, Emma Mitchell, Danica Dalziel and a Leanne Ross penalty for a 4-0 helf time lead. In the second half the rout continued, with Jane Ross, Woolley, Lisa Evans and Rachel Corsie scoring with the game finishing 8-0.

So far so good and for the final match Glasgow City needed to avoid losing 3-0 to go through but they guaranteed their qualifying place within the first half hour against Klaksvík, Christie Murray, Kat Lindner and Leanne Ross scoring via a penalty. Jo Love pretty much sealed the tie with the forth goal just before half time and Eilish McSorley rounded things off when she made it 5-0.

For this season's Euro campaign City got themselves a theme tune. The song titled 'City of Dreams' was played at home games in the run up to the competition and became a bit of a download hit reaching No 30 in the itunes chart and who better to supply this little ditty than former player Sharon Martin. Sharon played in City’s inaugural season way back in 1998. Playing in the old Scottish First Division West at the home ground at Maryhill Juniors the side battled through tough league campaign with a win against East Kilbride ensuring that City took the title and Sharon speaking to the club programme recalled her early career. ‘I remember Carol Anne Stewart and Laura Montgomery telling us as potential new players that the club they were building from scratch would one day be the most successful women's team in Scotland. At the time, as a teenager, I found this idea and the girls' enthusiasm a little 'crazy'...but sure enough they've done it..’

The plan originally had been to have a fundraising gig to help pay off the £15,000 spent so far on competing in the Champions League. When the idea of a single came up it was too good an opportunity to pass up and so City of Dreams was born. For the round of 32 City were drawn with Valur of Reykjavik and as the tie approached a bit of a fuss developed when BBC Scotland declared that they had no plans to cover the club’s opening home match, as a result club officials and members of the playing squad started up a Facebook campaign for the match to be screened. In a separate development, the club’s geeky programme editor discovered in the course of historical research that City’s home ground of Petershill Park was less than 300 yards from the site of the first women’s football match. The game played at the Hyde Park football ground was a warm up for their opening tour match in Edinburgh which took place in May 1881. So the weight of history was on the side in more ways than one.

As it turned out, Petershill Park was crawling with camera crews on the evening of the match. Including this correspondent who was perched on top of a scaffold to record the training video. It was dangerous up there as well with high clearances missing my head on numerious occasions. ‘They’re shooting at me,’ I shouted like Yossarian out of Catch 22, only for a crowd member to shout back. ‘They’re shooting at everyone.’ Among the big wigs in the 700+ crowd to enjoy City’s opening goal were Sports Secretary Shona Robison, SFA President Campbell Ogilvie and Chief Secretary Stewart Regan.

The opening goal came after twenty minutes when Lisa Evans got clear to hit a low shot past Megan McCray in the Valur goal. Jane Ross forced an acrobatic save from McCray, Evans then had the ball in the net but Portuguese official, Sandra Braz Bastos ruled out the goal. Valur had their own chance when Hólmfríður Magnúsdóttir fired a free kick off the underside of the crossbar in the first half, then drew level after a bizarre incident. A loose ball sent across the City penalty area was gathered by Claire Johnstone, who was adjudged to have picked up a back pass. From an indirect free kick, the ball was rolled to Mist Edvardsdóttir whose blocked shot was finally turned in by Laufey Ólafsdóttir six yards from goal. Valur returned to Reykjavik the happier of the two sides especially getting an away goal in the 1-1 draw. On the following Saturday’s edition of Radio Scotland’s Sportsound, Richard Gordon, during yet another debate about the standard of refereeing, announced to the nation that. ‘No one gives indirect free kicks any more.’ Ha, yea think….

City went into the away leg in Reykjavik knowing that they needed to get at least a goal to go through. The match was supposed to be streamed online but for whatever reason that didn’t happen, so I had to make do with Facebook updates. Rachel Corsie was missing through suspension so Leanne Ross took the captain’s armband and after a bright start they were given a gift after ten minutes. Evans sent a dipping cross to the far post, McCray got a hand to it, however the ball came off Hallbera Gísladóttir and into the net. On the 60th minute, Jane Ross sent in a great cross which McCray could only parry into the path of Evans to stroke home. Things were looking good for City but they got better straight after the restart when McSorley sent a long ball forward and Evans managed to latch onto it before drilling past McCray.

The Reporting Scotland programme showed the goals the following evening and now with City set to face FFC Turbine Potsdam in the quarter finals next month, a bidding war is now hotting up between Eurosport and BBC Alba for the screening rights.

Pictured - the packed stand at Petershill Park.

Tweet

She Kicks - the online community for women's football