McDermid Ladies 'overwhelmed' by support worldwide as more than £1,500 raised for Zero Tolerance and Rape Crisis Scotland

McDermid Ladies has been "overwhelmed" by support from all over the world, with the side playing their first game since disassociating themselves from Raith Rovers.

The match took place in Kirkcaldy yesterday amid heightened media interest, with writer Val McDermid present at Windmill Community Campus and the team's captain Tyler Rattray delivering a message prior to kick-off against Livingston.

It comes after Raith Rovers signed David Goodwillie a week ago, with the Stark's Park club apologising on Thursday for the transfer after he and a former team-mate at another football club David Robertson, now retired from the sport, were branded as rapists in a civil court case in 2017.

The Stark's Park club said that Goodwillie will not play for them.

Raith Rovers Community Club Girls Section released a statement on Twitter on Thursday condemning the decision to sign the player.

It says that its focus is on supporting more than 140 women and girls who want to keep playing football.

Also according to its statement issued on Friday, while Raith Rovers Community Club Girls Section is no longer part of Raith Rovers Football Club, it remains part of Raith Rovers Community Foundation.

The Foundation, which is a stand-alone organisation, released a statement of its own on Facebook last Wednesday to express its disagreement with the decision to sign Goodwillie.

Meanwhile, a fundraiser for Zero Tolerance and Rape Crisis Scotland on the JustGiving website has raised more than £1,500 so far, exceeding the fundraiser's original target of just £500.

Neil Sinclair, the coach of McDermid Ladies, tells Kingdom FM that the players want to help both charities: