SWPL: Celtic score six goals for the third time this season against Aberdeen

Kirsty Howat (left) was on the score sheet for Celtic

Celtic put six goals past Aberdeen for the third time this season as they moved clear in third place in the SWPL.

Sarah Ewens scored a hat-trick while Kirsty Howat, Ruesha Littlejohn and Natalie Ross also got in on the act in the 6-0 win.

Glasgow City beat Rangers 2-0 before their trip to Kazakhstan to face BIIK-Kazygurt in the Champions League.

Hibernian beat Hamilton Academical 4-0 and Stirling University came from 2-0 down to draw with Spartans.

Don in again

Aberdeen had gone down 6-1 to Celtic on their last visit to the K Park in East Kilbride, and had also lost 7-0 at home to David Haley's team.

However, after a morale-boosting 2-2 draw with Rangers last week, just their third point of the season, they arrived in Glasgow with their tails up.

For half an hour they defended well, but the deadlock was broken by a horrible mistake when the Dons goalkeeper's goal kick went straight to Celtic's Littlejohn, who had the easy task of marching forward unmarked and knocking home.

That opened the floodgates, and four minutes later Howat's free-kick was headed into the path of Ewens who finished on the goal line.

Aberdeen could have pulled one back when Chloe Fitzpatrick thumped a shot off the crossbar, but two minutes before the break Howat knocked the ball in at the back post to make it 3-0.

Celtic's Natalie Ross battles Aberdeen's Shannon McGregor

In front of watching Scotland manager Shelley Kerr, who names her squad for the double header with Belarus and Albania on Monday, Celtic were keen to press home their advantage, and four minutes into the second half Ross headed in after Courtney Whyte's initial header had been saved.

Ross had a goal disallowed after she slid the ball into the net; the referee instead awarding the Dons a free-kick after Ross was penalised for going in with her studs showing on the goalkeeper.

It only delayed the fifth goal by two minutes when a low cross from Heather Richards found Ewens at the back post.

And soon it was six when a long ball from the back found Ewens, the goalkeeper getting a touch but failing to stop the shot crossing the line.

Aberdeen, one point adrift at the bottom of the table, kept battling and a great ball forward from Hannah-Emilie Stewart picked out Shannon McGregor who cracked her shot off the post.

Celtic could have made it seven when Stephanie Knox's shot was saved and Ewens put the rebound into the side netting.

Celtic head coach David Haley: "In the first half, we were 3-0 up but we were not as fluent as I would like us to be, but I think the weather had a big part to play in that. But overall we were very comfortable.

"Shelley (Kerr) has been to a few of our games and hopefully one or two have put in a performance that maybe gives her something to think about.

"I thought Kirsty Howat was excellent today and obviously Sarah Ewens has got her three goals. Kirsty worked really hard and created a number of chances and got herself on the score sheet as well.

"Wednesday against Hibs should be a good one. We've got a wee something to prove, we let ourselves down the last time we played Hibs so we need to have a better performance all round against a very good side and hopefully we'll do that on Wednesday."

Nicola Docherty celebrates putting Glasgow City 2-0 ahead against Rangers