Casey Howe's Journey from Maguiresbridge to Celtic
From the main street in Maguiresbridge to the roar of Celtic Park, Casey Howe’s journey has never been the easy route. It has been the long one. Long roads, long nights, long odds. And now, at 23, she finds herself at one of the biggest clubs in Scottish women’s football, scoring decisive goals and daring to think even bigger.
Her latest step forward came with a trademark swing of her left boot. Just her second appearance for Celtic, the game still locked at 0-0 against Montrose, the clock creeping into the 82nd minute. One touch, a curl into the far corner, and the deadlock shattered in what became a 3-0 win in the SWPL. A small moment in a long season, but a huge one for a young forward who has never been handed anything.
“Being just a young girl from Maguiresbridge, it is pretty surreal to do this,” she told BBC Sport NI. The word “surreal” fits. Few from her corner of County Fermanagh make it this far.
Miles on the clock, miles in the legs
Before Barrowfield’s pristine pitches and Celtic’s professional rhythm, there were car journeys. Endless ones.
Her parents ferried her to Ballinamallard, Cookstown and Belfast four or five days a week as she climbed through the age groups, a teenager chasing a dream that demanded fuel, time and patience.
“They wanted to give me the best platform to be the best I can,” Howe said. “They were massive in enabling me to take these opportunities and get these opportunities because if it wasn't for them sacrificing a lot of driving, a lot of miles, I wouldn't be here.”
Those miles built a foundation. A Northern Ireland debut at 17. A treble with Glentoran. Spells with Linfield and Sligo Rovers. A prolific run at Athlone Town in the League of Ireland Women’s Premier Division that made clubs across the water take notice. Then Nottingham Forest. Promotion with Wolves. Each move a step up, each club another test.
Now comes the biggest yet.
Finding her football at Celtic
At Celtic, Howe believes she has landed in the right place at the right time. The training ground is elite, the expectations unforgiving, the style of play tailor-made for a forward who thrives on movement and invention.
“I think as a player, you're always looking to develop in any training session,” she said. “It's definitely a big improvement tactically, and we're adapting to different styles, getting used to how Grant Scott wants us to play, so we're always adapting tactically and keeping on top of the technical stuff.”
Celtic want to attack. Not in theory. In practice, in numbers, with tempo and intent. For a 14-cap international whose game is built on sharp runs, quick feet and direct dribbling, it is a dream brief.
“We're trying to play a nice attacking brand of football, and as an attacker myself, that's the way you want to play and want to be a part of, is when you're attacking and playing free-flowing football.
“I think that's when you get the best out of people, is when you have that freedom to go forward and make different runs, make different movements, and dribble and drive at people so it's definitely perfect for the way I like to play.”
That freedom matters. Howe has lived the other side of it.
“I've played under people in the past where it's almost robotic. You have to do this movement, that movement, but to have the freedom to be allowed to run into different areas or make different movements, it just makes for an all-round performance, team-wise, because everyone's moving.
“It makes it difficult to play against, so it definitely gives you confidence as a player. I think you're being backed to do that, and you're being allowed to do that. It definitely gives you confidence.”
The goal against Montrose was an early sign of that trust. Space found, angle judged, finish delivered. The kind of moment that turns a new signing into a real option, not just a squad name.
Fermanagh in the rear-view, never out of sight
For all the new surroundings, Howe’s story is still rooted in home. She knows how hard it is for young players in Fermanagh, and across Northern Ireland, to even get to a decent training pitch, never mind a professional contract.
“I think sometimes it's hard because being from Fermanagh you don't necessarily have the facilities on your doorstep,” she explained. “A lot of the time, a lot of girls, even young girls now, will still have to travel up and down.”
She did it. Her family did it. And she is adamant that the grind is worth it.
“All the sacrifices, as we spoke about earlier, like, winning makes it all worth it.”
Those wins are no longer just about medals or promotions. They are about what she can send back down the road to the next generation.
A green shirt and a bigger legacy
Celtic may be the current stage, but the green of Northern Ireland remains central to Howe’s ambitions. She has already tasted the senior stage; now she wants to help shape what comes next.
“I want to leave the Northern Ireland shirt in a better place than when I came in. I always want that legacy to continue to build and grow.”
That responsibility stretches beyond Windsor Park or a qualifying campaign. It reaches back to the girls watching from Fermanagh, Derry, Tyrone, wondering if there is a path for them.
“If I can leave women's football in Northern Ireland, in Scotland, in England that 1% better than when I joined it - that's a win for me and if that inspires young girls in Fermanagh to push on and know that there is a path there then that's good enough for me,” she said.
From Ballinamallard United to Barrowfield, from family cars to professional dressing rooms, Howe has already covered a remarkable distance. Yet the sense around her now is not of a journey completed, but of one just hitting its stride.
There are trophies to chase with Celtic. There is a national team still trying to climb. There are young girls back in Fermanagh plotting their own escape routes.
For Casey Howe, the miles haven’t run out. They’re just starting to count.
