Kirsty Elizabeth Howat (born 19 May 1997) is a Scottish footballer who plays as a forward for Rangers in the Scottish Women's Premier League, and for the Scotland national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Kirsty Elizabeth Howat-Thomson | ||
| Date of birth | 19 May 1997 | ||
| Place of birth | Dumfries, Scotland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Rangers | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2004–2010 | Lochar Thistle | ||
| 2010–2012 | Dumfries Girls | ||
| 2012–2014 | Rangers | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2014–2016 | Rangers | ||
| 2016–2018 | Celtic | ||
| 2018–2020 | Glasgow City | ||
| 2020– | Rangers | 53+ | (40+) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2013 | Scotland U16 | 3 | (1) |
| 2013 | Scotland U17 | 14 | (4) |
| 2014–2016 | Scotland U19 | 15 | (5) |
| 2024– | Scotland | 1 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 27 May 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 15 July 2024 | |||
Career
editHowat started her career with youth teams Lochar Thistle, Dumfries and Rangers before debuting with the latter in the Scottish Women's Premier League in 2014. The following year she joined Celtic[1] where she spent two seasons. On 18 January 2018 she moved to rivals and reigning champions Glasgow City,[2] winning her first SWPL title and also making her debut in the UEFA Women's Champions League. She left the club with two league titles and one Scottish Women's Cup medal.
In December 2020, Howat returned to Rangers[3] on a pre-contract arrangement agreed six months earlier;[4] her teammate Sam Kerr made the same switch,[5] soon followed by Rachel McLauchlan[6] while Nicola Docherty had made the move across the city some months previously. In her first full season back with the Gers, 2021–22, Howat was part of the squad that won the SWPL for the first time in club history;[7] in the second season they won the Scottish Women's Premier League Cup for the first time (she was among the scorers in the final),[8] and in the third season they retained the SWPL Cup[9] and won their first Scottish Cup,[10] also narrowly missing out on the league title in both years.
International career
editHowat was called up to the Scotland national under-16 team for a friendly tournament in Portugal,[11] where she made appearances in games against Portugal, Netherlands and Austria, scoring her first goal in the match against Austria. A few months later she was drafted into the under-17 team by coach Pauline Hamill for two friendly games against Wales, scoring on her debut. Howat was a member of the squad that contested the qualifiers for the 2014 European Championship in England; these games were played before the end of 2013 to serve as qualification for the Costa Rica World Cup which was scheduled for spring 2014. She was then named in the squad for the 2013 European Championship and played in all three matches: Scotland lost against France 1–0 and Germany 4–2, and drew in the final game against Spain.
In 2014 she was named in the under-19 team and played in the 2014 European Championship; Howat featured in two of the three matches, a 2–0 victory against Belgium and 3–2 defeat against Netherlands, missing the 5–0 loss to Norway. She also played in the 2015 and 2016 European Championship qualification games.[12]
Howat was added to the full Scotland squad for the first time in September 2023, as a replacement for the injured Emma Watson.[13] She was an unused substitute on several occasions before making her debut from the bench against Slovakia in a UEFA Women's Euro 2025 qualifying fixture in Nitra on 13 July 2024.[14]
Honours
editClub
editGlasgow City[15]
Rangers
- Scottish Women's Premier League: 2021–22
- Scottish Women's Cup: 2023–24
- Scottish Women's Premier League Cup: 2022–23, 2023–24
References
edit- ^ "Kirsty Howat is the latest recruit for Celtic's Women's team". www.celticfc.com. Celtic Football Club. 1 January 2016. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
I thought during this close season that joining Celtic would be a good move for me
- ^ Frith, Wilf (18 January 2018). "Glasgow City sign Howat and Paterson". shekicks.net. She Kicks. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
"I am looking forward to a new challenge and to surround myself and play alongside some of the best players in the country."
- ^ "Kirsty Howat Delighted To Sign For Rangers". rangers.co.uk. Rangers F.C. 6 January 2021. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
"To be a professional footballer is a dream come true but to do it here at Rangers is amazing and I can't quite get my head round it"
- ^ "Gers Sign Kirsty Howat". Rangers F.C. 7 July 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
We are looking forward to welcoming Kirsty to the club when her contract ends with Glasgow City.
- ^ Smith, Aidan (7 July 2020). "Rangers complete double signing from Glasgow City as Malcolm Thomson adds to squad". glasgowtimes.co.uk. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
Howat was top goal scorer in the SWPL1 last year with 24 goals and will join the Light Blues in 2021 after signing a pre contract agreement.
- ^ Gers Sign Rachel McLauchlan, Rangers FC, 24 September 2020
- ^ Rangers end 14 years of Glasgow City dominance with historic SWPL title win, Rangers News, 8 May 2022
- ^
"Sky Sports Cup final - Rangers 2-0 Hibernian: Lizzie Arnot scores screamer and Kirsty Howat adds second to seal victory". Sky Sports. 11 December 2022. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
Rangers win the first domestic trophy of the Scottish women's season with a 2-0 victory against seven-time champions Hibernian
- ^
"Report | Rangers 4-1 Partick Thistle". Rangers FC. 24 March 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
Rangers retained the Sky Sports Cup with a commanding 4-1 win over Partick Thistle at Tynecastle this afternoon.
- ^ Canavan, Amy (26 May 2024). "Rangers 2-0 Hearts". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ Garin, Erik (12 July 2018). "Various Youth Tournaments Portugal". RSSSF. Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
- ^ "Kirsty Howat". Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
- ^ "Women's Nations League: Scotland v Belgium - Kirsty Howat replaces Emma Watson in squad". BBC Sport. 25 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ Slovakia 0–2 Scotland, BBC Sport, 13 July 2024
- ^ "Scotland - K. Howat - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway".