THIS weekend’s women’s FA Cup final will be a special occasion for everyone involved – no less Lucy Graham and Caroline Weir who both hail from Fife.

Lucy Graham will lead her Everton team out against Manchester City who boast Caroline Weir in their ranks.

Graham, who is from Benarty and went to St Columba’s High School, will be looking to take the trophy back to Merseyside for the first time in a decade.

Weir said that playing in the FA Cup final on Sunday will be no less of a huge occasion despite the “weird” prospect of having no fans in the stands.

The Dunfermline-born midfielder, 25, and her Manchester City team-mates are aiming to win the delayed 2020 competition, and retain the trophy they won last year, at Wembley.

Weir, who teamed-up with Graham on Scotland duty over the last week for two European Championship qualifiers, has already experienced playing at the home of English football without a crowd when City lost to Chelsea in August’s Community Shield.

Although she thinks that may help her side at the weekend, this year’s final will be in stark contrast to the 2019 showpiece, which saw a crowd in excess of 43,000 attend.

Speaking to Dunfermline Press Sport before Scotland’s match with Albania at Tynecastle last Friday night – in which she scored twice and was named player of the match in a 3-0 win – Weir said: “It’s a cup final so anything can happen, but I think the fact we’ve played there, not just in an FA Cup final before, but in the Community Shield only a few weeks ago under these circumstances, should help.

“But, at the same time, Everton have done so well to get there and it’s a huge occasion for their club. It’s going to be a big game for them, it’s going to be a huge game for us, and we know what we need to do.

“It’s obviously great to play at Wembley. It’s a huge, amazing stadium, pitch and everything about it. It’s so cool to be there but I just remember the first few minutes (of the Community Shield) we had a corner.

“I was just stood there waiting for it to be taken and I actually remember thinking subconsciously ‘wow, this is so quiet’.

“Obviously that’s the way it is for safety reasons but it’s weird, especially in a stadium that size.”

When she lifted the trophy last year, the former Dunfermline High School pupil had family there to watch, something that won’t be possible this time.

But Weir, who said she and Graham only had “a brief chat” about club football while away with the national side, continued: “We have to put the fan and family stuff to one side; it’s a shame, but that’s the reality.

“At the end of the day, it’s a game of football and we know what we need to do, so I think as players it’s actually quite easy to focus on the game, especially a cup final like this. It’s so important for us to win and kick-start momentum for the rest of the season.”

Ahead of that Weir won her 72nd cap, and took her goal tally to 11, against Albania as the Scots continued their quest to reach next summer’s finals in England.