Avoch star Rachel McLauchlan out to show young Highland talents what is possible in football ahead of return to Inverness for cup tie with Rangers
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Rachel McLauchlan is looking forward to taking on former teammates when Rangers face Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Women's Scottish Cup this afternoon – but she has no intention of taking it easy on them.
The 26-year-old Scotland international broke into senior football at Caley Thistle, then known as Inverness City, and has since gone on to have a brilliant career.
Multiple cup and league trophies with Hibernian and Glasgow City have been supplemented by Scotland caps, more trophies with Rangers and – perhaps most importantly of all – being able to go full time as a professional.
Even amongst all that success though, McLauchlan, originally from Avoch on the Black Isle, has not forgotten her roots.
Ahead of a first return to the Highland capital since going full time, Rangers' number three says she is thankful for the impact that Inverness had on her at a formative stage of her career.
"It is a bit mad when you look back on it," McLauchlan reflected.
"I remember at that point just wanting to go as far as I could in the game, and there are still things I want to do now but I can also be really happy with how my career has gone.
"I think it was about 10 years ago now I left Inverness, and I was so new. I learned a lot from everyone at Inverness, so it's a mad twist to go back up but it's quite exciting.
"It was always just such a good group, they helped me a lot when I was younger to enjoy my football in a ladies' team. I've got a lot to thank them for with how much they supported me on and off the pitch and helped me grow up.
"There are quite a few girls that are still there. There's a good group in there that I still check in with, and some of them are newer but I still know them because it's a small area.
"I don't get home as much now since my parents moved out, so it will just be nice to get a catch up and see everyone, and hopefully it's a good game of football."
From Caley Thistle's point of view, playing the top team in the country at the Caledonian Stadium makes it one of the team's biggest occasions in recent history.
McLauchlan will have friends and family in attendance, and the significance of the occasion – and potential impact it could have on girls' and women's football in the area – is not lost on her.
Many people in the crowd, and even some players in the Inverness team, will have looked up to the Rangers star as an example of how far someone from the Highlands can go in the game.
Youngsters trying to make their way certainly have more opportunities now than McLauchlan did in her early days, so she believes anything is possible for Scottish football's future talents.
"It would be so good to make it into a big situation, get a big crowd and make it a good game for everyone to watch – which I'm sure it will be," McLauchlan explained.
"I find it funny to say I'm a role model – I would love to be one, and if people are looking up to me I would love to be showing them what they can do.
"Ever since I was a wee girl, this is the kind of life I wanted. Sometimes you need to remind yourself that you're actually there after all that.
"Inverness did so much for me, I was in training when I was really young and getting games, so I have so much to be thankful for. It's been a great experience, and I'm excited to see where the rest of my career takes me as well.
"It's tough when you're growing up without as many opportunities, but you can still make it and have as good of a career as people who are born in the central belt and have facilities beside them.
"For those girls, I just want to do a good job and show they can do exactly that.
"There have been a few times where I've gone back up, and now seeing girls' sessions being held, it seems like such a small thing but when I was growing up we were always with the boys.
"I don't think there were any girls' teams, so my mum and dad unfortunately had to drive me about the country. It just shows how the game is growing, and everyone deserves the same chances. Hopefully that's something that will come as it grows."
From a Rangers perspective, McLauchlan will be looking to help her side continue their unbeaten season so far and send them on another trophy tilt.
Even against a side two tiers below them, then, the Glasgow giants have approached the cup tie as they would any other game to kick off what they hope will be a successful cup run.
"We're quite good within the club in approaching every game like you don't know what's going to happen," McLauchlan added.
"It has been a normal week, the girls have come back in and put a shift in during training the same as we would for any game. The girls are really looking forward to getting going again.
"Obviously with being in the League Cup at the moment still, we want to start off our Scottish Cup run in a good way too. We want to win, so if we can start off a good run that's exactly what we'll be looking to do."
