Following a valuable loan spell at Hibernian which ended with her lifting silverware, Erin Clachers returned home to Glasgow City. The long-serving goalkeeper is determined to show where her ceiling is.
The 26-year-old, who has spent more than 10 years at our club, is currently in the midst of rehabilitation from a hip injury sustained during the latter stages of her time with Hibs last season.
And even though it ended on a disappointing personal note with that injury, her time on loan was no doubt a success. She kept 11 clean sheets over 20 appearances as Hibs won their first Scottish Women’s Premier League title since 2006/07.
It may have been her loan club’s first triumph in the best part of two decades, but it marked a seventh title for Clachers, having been a part of six league-winning squads with City.
Now back with City and progressing well through rehab, Clachers is embracing both familiar surroundings and a squad that has been through some changes.
“It’s nice to be back,” she said. “I was in once a week for the most part last season, but it feels different coming back because there are new faces and other faces have left, so things have changed.
“I’m excited. It’s familiar to me because I've been here for a long time. It’s home to me and has been for a while.”
Clachers' move to Edinburgh was her first loan spell, and while not the most conventional route for a player of her experience, she has no doubt it was the right one.
“Valuable probably is the word,” the goalkeeper said. “It was a massive amount of development, and the timing was right for me to go out and get minutes.
“I don’t think anyone foresaw the season that Hibs were going to have, but it was fun to be a part of. It was 20 games I ended up playing, so hopefully, I can come back here and show how I’ve developed as a player.
“Everyone always says how important game time is for your development, but I don’t think you realise how important it is.
“As a goalkeeper, decision-making is massive so it’s not until you’re in game situations and you’re making those decisions where you can learn from it. And then the following week, you get that opportunity to put it right, so you see the development happening.
“Each week, I felt I was getting better, and I could feel that in myself. I feel like I've come back more mature and more confident.”
And it wasn’t just on the pitch where she noticed the difference. While City is a club that feels like family, stepping out of that comfort zone challenged Clachers in new ways.
“It has been massive for me,” she added. “I have been at City for years and it is comfortable for me. I know the people.
“To go outside of my comfort zone and develop in that way as well was incredibly valuable. Just things like being in a different changing room, seeing how different things are done, different styles of play – everything like that.
“It has helped build me as an all-round person and as a player.”
With her rehab progressing – including reaching the milestone of getting back running on the pitch – Clachers hopes to put everything she learned to good use when she’s back in action with City.
But while returning to full fitness is motivation enough, for someone as invested in City’s history as Clachers, there is an added sense of purpose and responsibility.
“I’ve grown up here at City,” she explained. “I know both Leannes (Ross and Crichton) well because I grew up playing with them, so I know how they work, and I can help with that side of things with the new players.
“The club means a lot to me. I understand the story and how far we’ve come. I’ve seen the development from training in the evenings, to going part-time to now being full-time.
“I can appreciate that because I’ve seen it and lived it. It’s important to try and relay that to new players and to show what this club is all about.”
Clachers has certainly lived it. She is approaching 100 appearances for City and to reach that landmark would mean everything to our goalkeeper. Another reason, she says, to get back fit playing during the upcoming season.
“I did think I was getting there,” Clachers said. “It would be massive. Having come through the Academy and to play for the first team – even to have played for the first team just once would’ve been an honour.
“My first game was against Glasgow Women in the League Cup. They had centre at kick-off and tried to shoot from the half-way line!
“It was at Airdrie and that’s a very big pitch, so they didn’t get very far but they tried to test me from the start. We got a comfortable win in the end.”
With almost a century of appearances behind her and a fresh perspective, Clachers is ready to write another meaningful chapter in her City story.