Women’s Challenge Cup final: Glentoran beat Cliftonville 4–2 on penalties
Ellie Scott’s late save kept the match goalless before Kelly Bailie, 46, scored the winning penalty in her final game after 30 years at Glentoran.
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Ellie Scott’s late save kept the match goalless before Kelly Bailie, 46, scored the winning penalty in her final game after 30 years at Glentoran.
Glentoran beat Cliftonville 4–2 on penalties after a 0–0 draw to win the Women’s Challenge Cup at Windsor Park in Belfast on 27 October.
Kelly Bailie, 46, struck the decisive penalty in her final appearance after 30 years with the east Belfast club.
The final had been postponed by three days from 24 October. The Irish FA said strong winds forecast because of Storm Boelo had prompted the move to protect players, officials, supporters and match staff.
Cliftonville had more possession but struggled to find gaps in Glentoran’s defence, BBC Sport said. One of their clearest chances came in the 68th minute, when Caitlin McGuinness set up Vicky Carleton, who could not put her effort on target.
In the final seconds of added time, Glentoran goalkeeper Ellie Scott saved from Toni-Leigh Finnegan to prevent a late Cliftonville winner. The final went to penalties, where Bailie’s powerful fifth kick settled the contest.
| Round | Glentoran | Cliftonville |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jess Foy — scored | Caitlin McGuinness — missed |
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| 2 |
| Demi Vance — did not convert |
| Vicky Carleton — did not convert |
| 3 | Aimee Kerr — scored | Toni-Leigh Finnegan — scored |
| 4 | Faye Loughan — scored | Anna Rose Robinson — scored |
| 5 | Kelly Bailie — scored the winner | — |
Cliftonville entered as Challenge Cup holders and league champions. By 23 October, they had beaten Glentoran on the pitch in all four meetings that season, although one result had been overturned.
That decision concerned July’s League Cup final, a different competition. Cliftonville’s 4–0 win was changed to a 3–0 victory for Glentoran after a ruling that Cliftonville had fielded two ineligible players. Glentoran had therefore already been awarded the League Cup before winning the Challenge Cup.
Cliftonville manager Brendan Lynch called losing the chance to complete a domestic treble — three trophies in one season — “unfair”, but said his team had to move on. Glentoran manager Kim Turner acknowledged that her side had “lost the game fair and square” on the pitch.
In a tribute published on 28 September, Glentoran said Bailie had joined at 16 in 1996 and credited her at that point with 800 appearances and 37 major trophies. She had also made 56 international appearances for Northern Ireland and became the first woman inducted into Glentoran’s Hall of Fame in 2025.
The key to playing for so long is loving what you do.
The Challenge Cup final completed the season for both clubs and brought Bailie’s playing career to a close.
The appeal tribunal removed an additional suspended spectator ban, but each club must still play its next home Scottish Cup tie without fans and pay the visiting side £100,000.
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