SWPL: Rangers' Kirsty Howat and Queen's Park's Ellie Kane win Player of Month awards for September

Rangers' Kirsty Howat and Queen's Park's Ellie Kane have won the SWPL and SWPL 2 Player of the Month awards respectively for September.

Howat, 26, scored seven of Rangers' 25 goals last month, including the vital finish in their 1-0 win over Partick Thistle.

Her impressive form also earned her a call-up to the Scotland Women's National Team, replacing the injured Emma Watson, for their recent match against Belgium.

Meanwhile, in the ScottishPower Women's Premier League 2, Kane becomes the first player to win back-to-back awards after Queen's Park's incredible start to the new season.

She has scored in every single match she has played this season, taking her total to 11 goals and four assists.

Queen's Park had scored a total of 23 goals by the end of September, meaning she had a contribution rate of just over 65 percent.

The other nominees for the September 2023 SWPL award were Jorian Baucom (Hibernian), Rio Hardy (Rangers), and Meikayla Moore (Glasgow City); and for the SWPL 2 award, they were Erin Burns (Livingston) and Fiona Gibson (Boroughmuir Thistle).

The SWPL announced record-breaking attendances for the start of the new season - with crowds up 30 per cent in August compared to the same period last year.

Rangers' home game against champions Glasgow City attracted the biggest crowd last month, with 1,196 watching the 1-1 draw at Broadwood Stadium.

More than 100,000 fans watched SWPL matches across last season, while the domestic record attendance for a single game was also broken on three occasions.

Celtic hold that record with 15,822 turning out to watch their 2-0 win over Hearts on the final day.

SWPL managing director Fiona McIntyre said: "We are thrilled, at this early stage in the season, to observe a significant