JAMES ANDERSON has made a further donation to Scottish football - this time in the way of the women's game.

The Edinburgh based philanthropist has donated £250,000 to the Scottish Football Partnership Trust to help sustain the women’s game through the Covid-19 crisis.

The donation to the SFP Trust, who have supported Scottish Women’s Football (SWF) with grants and sponsorship over the last decade, follows on from Anderson’s £3million backing for the Scottish professional men’s game last week.

It is hoped that following the processing of Gift Aid, the donation will increase to £312,500 with 100% of the funds going to support SWF and Member clubs.

This initial phase of funding will be distributed by the SFP Trust to SWPL 1 and SWPL 2 clubs as well as SWF to sustain non-playing staff and key club infrastructure, dealing with the operational challenges brought about by Covid-19.

Benefits will also filter down to other SWF member clubs, including those at grassroots level.

James Clydesdale, chair of the SFP Trust, said: “We are delighted James Anderson has also chosen to help Scottish Women’s Football. The women’s game has been making great progress in the last five years and we don’t want to see this momentum lost due to the COVID-19 crisis.”

Vivienne MacLaren, chair of Scottish Women’s Football, continued: “This support will help provide an incredibly powerful message to all girls and women in Scotland that their sport matters and has not been forgotten in the midst of this pandemic. We are very grateful to James Anderson for recognising this. We are delighted that we are able to deliver this funding via the SFP Trust and thank them for their support.”

And James Anderson added: “Football for girls and women in Scotland continues to make incredible progress across every level and this has really inspired me to support SWF through this partnership approach with The SFP Trust. Football is at the heart of communities across Scotland and the women’s game is a key part of this.”