Former Raith Rovers women's team play first game since split from club

Val McDermid turned out to watch the breakaway Raith Rovers women's side in their first game since they split from the club and rebranded following the signing of David Goodwillie.

The team renamed themselves McDermid Ladies in honour of the crime writer, after she withdrew her sponsorship and support for the men's side and switched her focus to the women's club to protest the signing.

Goodwillie was found to have raped a woman and ordered to pay damages in a 2017 civil court case.

The striker signed an 18-month contract with Raith Rovers after joining from Clyde in the January transfer window, leading to a number of club directors and staff members stepping down and women's captain Tayler Rattray quitting after a decade at the club.

Raith Rovers have since said that Goodwillie will not play for the club.

The women's team chose to disassociate themselves from Raith Rovers following the decision to sign Goodwillie, and have undergone a complete rebrand.

They renamed themselves McDermid Ladies, printed new kit with a different badge and sponsor, and moved to a new home ground.

On Sunday, they played their first game as McDermid Ladies - a friendly against Livingston Development - at their new home, Windmill Community Campus in Kirkcaldy,

The team also wore their new kit, which bore the message 'Zero Tolerance' across the front, in support of the Scottish charity Zero Tolerance. The charity aims to end male violence against women. The Raith Rovers crest was also replaced with a 'Z'.

The match ended in a 4-0 loss for McDermid ladies.

“Today’s game is not about the unfortunate events of this week," captain Rattray said ahead of the fixture (via The Courier.) "This game is about turning a negative into a positive.

“As a team, we just want to play football. This is the game we love. The badge on the shirt won’t define who we are. We are happy to be able to support Rape Crisis Scotland and Zero Tolerance — and we are thankful to Livingston for agreeing to play this fixture.

“Thank you to Val [McDermid], and Paul [Greig] and Wayne [Carroll] from the Community Foundation for their support. Thank you for all the messages of support that the girls and ladies section has received this week.

“But, lastly, thank you to our coaches, all the volunteers and my teammates for sticking together, no matter where we go or who we will be. It’s an honour to be McDermid Ladies captain today.”