Key points

• Lisa Forrest, sister of Celtic legend James Forrest, scored a decisive brace in Glasgow City’s 2–1 victory over Rangers Women in the Sky Sports Cup final at Fir Park.
• The two goals came within 89 seconds of each other in the second half and proved the difference between the sides.
• Glasgow City lifted the Sky Sports Cup for the first time since 2015, while Rangers were left still seeking a major cup in the women’s game.
• Lisa Forrest, a 19‑year‑old midfielder, is the younger sister of Celtic’s James Forrest and also of Hearts winger Alan Forrest.
• The result has intensified the rivalry between Glasgow City and Rangers and added a new chapter to the Forrest family’s Old Firm‑linked narrative.

Glasgow (Glasgow Express) May 25, 2026 – Glasgow City’s Lisa Forrest, sister of Celtic legend James Forrest, shredded Rangers Women’s resistance with a second‑half brace as the Ibrox club’s Sky Sports Cup challenge ended in a 2–1 defeat at Fir Park. The 19‑year‑old attacker struck twice within 89 seconds, underlining her growing status in the Scottish Women’s Premier League (SWPL) and handing Rangers a painful reminder of their continued struggles in domestic cups.

How did Lisa Forrest’s hat‑trick‑style impact unfold?

Although the match report specifies a brace rather than a full hat‑trick, the speed and quality of Lisa Forrest’s double gave the same impression of a personal demolition job on the Rangers defence. As covered by Ali McDowall of The Celtic Star, the first goal came from a set‑piece situation when Forrest reacted quickest at the back post to turn home a corner delivered from the left, giving Glasgow City the lead. Less than 90 seconds later, the 19‑year‑old showed a striker’s instinct and composure, cutting in from the left flank and firing a powerful long‑range effort from outside the box that nestled into the top corner of the Rangers goal.

BBC Sport’s live coverage later described the sequence as “devastating 89‑second brace that settled it”, noting that Rangers never truly recovered once the momentum shifted so abruptly. The strike drew comparisons to the kind of match‑winning finishes regularly associated with her brother James Forrest, with the Daily Mail’s match report remarking that Lisa’s second goal was “a finish her brother would have been proud of”.

What did the result mean for Rangers’ title and cup ambitions?

Despite finishing the season in strong league form, Rangers Women left Fir Park empty‑handed after Katie Wilkinson’s late reply failed to overturn the damage inflicted by Forrest’s double. According to the Daily Mail’s tournament‑specific coverage, the result kept Rangers without a major domestic cup since their last SWPL Cup triumph, extending a drought that has become a talking point in the Ibrox women’s section.

Writing in The Celtic Star, reporter Ali McDowall framed the outcome as a “crucial statement” from Glasgow City, which had already been viewed as the leading challenger to Rangers in the league table. The victory gave City their first Sky Sports Cup win since 2015 and reinforced their status as a side capable of punishing Rangers on the big stage, even when the Ibrox outfit arrived as one of the favourites.

How did Lisa Forrest’s personal story shape the narrative?

The media coverage of the match placed heavy emphasis on Lisa Forrest’s family background, repeatedly highlighting her status as the younger sister of Celtic winger James Forrest and Hearts midfielder Alan Forrest. BBC Sport’s player profile portal notes that Lisa, born on 7 April 2006, plays as a midfielder for Glasgow City and has been steadily building her own reputation in the SWPL.

In the immediate aftermath, titles such as The Celtic Star stressed that Lisa “followed in the footsteps of her brother” by proving the match‑winner on the big stage, a phrasing echoed by the Daily Mail, which described her as “the sibling of Celtic’s most celebrated player, James Forrest”. The Celts Are Here website added that the “Forrest name” was back in the spotlight, underscoring how the family’s contributions to Scottish football now span both men’s and women’s clubs.

How did the match‑day context frame the encounter?

The Sky Sports Cup final at Fir Park was billed as a clash between Rangers’ quest for a breakthrough silverware moment and Glasgow City’s ambition to reclaim major‑cup status after years of being overshadowed. Coverage from the BBC’s live‑text feed for SWPL matches had earlier highlighted Glasgow City’s attacking depth, with assistant commentary noting that the side had previously scored multiple goals in quick bursts, including a 7–0 win over Hamilton Accies where Lisa Forrest had contributed to a rapid‑fire scoring spree.

In the cup‑final context, however, it was the 89‑second double that proved the decisive passage of play. Rangers manager Leanne Crichton was quoted in the Daily Mail’s report as lamenting the “quick second goal” that left her side chasing the game, while Glasgow City boss Leanne Ross praised Lisa Forrest’s composure in front of the crossbar.

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What was the immediate reaction from club‑side coverage?

Writing for The Celtic Star, Ali McDowall underlined that Lisa Forrest’s performance “earned her family bragging rights”, a line that has since been widely paraphrased across social‑media clips and fan forums. The piece recalled that the breakthrough came from a corner, with Forrest “reacting quickest” to the loose ball, before the second strike was lauded as a “pick‑of‑the‑bunch” long‑range finish.

The Daily Mail’s match report expanded on this, noting that the attacking midfielder “played a pivotal role” in guiding Glasgow City to their first silverware of the season, “overcoming Leanne Crichton’s Rangers” at Fir Park. The article also reminded readers that the Forrest name carries substantial weight in Scottish football, explicitly linking Lisa to her more‑established siblings and saying the goals “added to the family scrapbook” in a competitive sense.

Background of the development

The Sky Sports Cup final between Glasgow City and Rangers Women belongs to a broader shift in the Scottish women’s game, where established men’s‑club names such as Rangers and Celtic have sought to dominate the SWPL while independent clubs like Glasgow City have clung to their own legacy of success. Glasgow City, once the dominant force in Scottish women’s football, had seen their share of league titles diminish as Rangers and Celtic poured greater resources into their women’s squads, making a cup victory in 2026 a symbolic reassertion of their status.

Within that context, Lisa Forrest’s emergence as a match‑winner for the club adds a human‑interest layer rooted in her famous family ties. Her brother James Forrest, celebrated for his long career at Celtic and his role in multiple Old Firm and cup‑final clashes, has repeatedly been highlighted in media profiles as one of the club’s most decorated modern players. That same narrative now includes his sister making her own mark in a high‑profile women’s‑football fixture, reinforcing how the Forrest name spans generations and gendered branches of the professional game.

Historically, Rangers Women have struggled to translate league competitiveness into cup‑winning consistency, while Glasgow City’s trophy‑drought since the mid‑2010s had bred frustration among their support base. The 2026 Sky Sports Cup final, therefore, was framed not only as a one‑off match but as a potential turning point in the balance of power between the two clubs, with Lisa Forrest’s performance acting as a focal point of that broader narrative.

Prediction for the particular audience

For fans of Celtic and Rangers in the men’s game, the prominence of the Forrest name in a Glasgow‑area women’s final will likely deepen interest in the SWPL, encouraging them to watch future fixtures involving Glasgow City, Rangers and Celtic Women as part of a wider “family rivalry” theme. This could translate into higher attendance and streaming figures for women’s‑football matches in Glasgow, as supporters seek out the kind of dramatic, story‑driven encounters that the 2026 Sky Sports Cup final delivered.

For younger aspiring female players in Scotland, especially those in the Central Belt, Lisa Forrest’s brace against Rangers may serve as a reference point for how individual flair can shape a major cup final, normalising the idea that women’s‑football milestones can be as widely discussed as men’s‑league headlines. Scottish clubs and media may increasingly highlight sibling and family connections across the men’s and women’s games, using stories like the Forrest sisters’ and brothers’ careers to build cross‑platform narratives and broaden the sport’s appeal beyond traditional, male‑dominated fan‑bases.