Suzanne Shepherd (née Robertson; born 3 July 1975) is a Scottish football manager and former player whose position was defender. She has been the head coach of Dundee United Women since March 2024.
Playing career Raised in Edinburgh, Robertson did not play organised football until the age of 19.Leading the Line Meets: Boroughmuir Thistle Head Coach Suzy Shepherd, Chris Marshall, Leading the Line, 4 September 2020 She joined Hibernian around the time the team was formed in 1997, and was a major part of their success in the first decade of the 21st century, winning three Scottish Women's Premier League championships, three Scottish Women's Cups and one SWPL Cup. She also spent time on loan in the United States with New Jersey WildcatsMcWhinnie nets game winner, The Trentonian, June 18, 2001 (alongside compatriot Debbie McWhinnie) and in Iceland with ÍBV (with fellow Scot Suzanne Malone).Tvær skoskar stúlkur til ÍBV [Two Scottish girls to ÍBV], Morgunblaðið, 29 May 2005 (in Icelandic)
In 2007, Robertson was recruited to be part of the new women's football setup at Celtic – the team reached the Scottish Cup final in their first season but were defeated by Hibs,Hibernian Ladies 3 - 1 Celtic Ladies: Women's team show male counterparts how it's done, The Scotsman, 19 May 2008 and were unable to dethrone the increasingly dominant Glasgow City in the league. Robertson returned to Hibs in 2009 and lifted a further Scottish Cup and SWPL Cup before moving on to smaller Edinburgh teams Hutchison ValeS. Robertson, Soccerway and finally Spartans, where she began to transition into a coaching role but also appeared in one more Scottish Cup final at the age of 39 – Spartans were beaten 5–0 by Glasgow City.Scottish Cup Final: Spartans fall at Final hurdle against City, Spartans FC Women, 16 November 2014
During her first spell with Hibs, Robertson was selected 11 times by Scotland between 2001 and 2005.Scotland Women’s National Team from 1998: a Complete Record, Andy Mitchell, Scottish Sport History, October 2022
Coaching career As her playing days drew to a close, Shepherd was appointed as the Spartans manager to succeed Debbi McCulloch in late 2015,appoint Suzy Shepherd as new SWPL Manager, North Edinburgh News, 24 September 2015Football: New manager Suzy Shepherd aiming to steer Spartans to League Cup semi-finals, Alan Campbell, The National, 26 March 2016 taking up the role for the 2016 season in which the club finished 6th. They improved to 5th in 2017, but she stepped down at the end of the year.Suzy Departs Spartans, Spartans FC Women, 5 November 2017 At that time she was also working as the assistant to Pauline Hamill, coach of the Scotland under-19 team.
Intending to take a break from the game, she was soon invited to take a leading role at Boroughmuir Thistle, an Edinburgh club with an extensive youth team network for girls but no financial backing from a men's club. She remained there for over five years, in which Boroughmuir consolidated their position in the third tier SWFL First Division, then were promoted to the Scottish Women's Premier League 2 in 2020 after the withdrawal of Hutchison Vale from the competition.SWPL: Boroughmuir Thistle take Hutchison Vale’s place, SheKicks.net, 8 January 2020 The club survived at that level for three seasons, but Shepherd resigned as head coach at the end of 2022–23 campaign.Former Boroughmuir manager Suzy Shepherd felt the “time was right” to leave the club, Jack Dawson, Edinburgh Evening News, 14 April 2023 In her vocation as a personal trainer, she had also overseen the development of Boroughmuir's most promising young player, Emma Watson, who soon moved on to a professional contract at Rangers and became a full international.Boroughmuir manager Suzy Shepherd ‘isn’t surprised’ by Emma Watson’s success, Jack Dawson, Edinburgh Evening News, 14 April 2023
In March 2024, Shepherd was appointed head coach at Dundee United, after Graeme Hart was sacked with the side struggling near the foot of the table in their first-ever season in SWPL1.Suzy Shepherd Takes DUFCW Reins, Dundee United FC, 1 March 2024Dundee United Women appoint Suzy Shepherd as head coach, BBC Sport, 1 March 2024 Two months later, the team retained their place in the top division by defeating Kilmarnock in the relegation/promotion play-off.Dundee United come from behind to win SWPL Play-Off, She Kicks, 24 May 2024 Tipped again as likely relegation candidates before the 2024–25 season with three clubs to go down as the league was restructured, the young Terrors squad struggled badly (big defeats in the opening months of the campaign including 9–0 to Celtic on the opening day, 10–0 to Rangers and 13–0 to Glasgow City)Celtic kick off SWPL title defence with impressive victory at Paradise, Celtic FC, 10 August 2025Report: Dundee United 0-10 Rangers, Rangers FC, 1 September 2024Dundee United 0-13 Glasgow City - Match Summary, Glasgow City FC, 20 October 2024 and were confirmed as relegated with a month of the season remaining.Dundee United 3-4 Partick Thistle, BBC Sport, 13 April 2025
Honours Hibernian Scottish Women's Premier League: 2003–04, 2005–06, 2006–07 Scottish Women's Cup: 2002–03, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2010 Runner-up 2011 Scottish Women's Premier League Cup: 2004–05, 2011 Runner-up 2006–07
Celtic Scottish Women's Cup: Runner-up 2007–08
Spartans Scottish Women's Cup: Runner-up 2014
Individual Hibernian F.C. Hall of Fame inductee: 2024Six Hibs legends inducted into Hall of Fame, Hibernian FC, 17 October 2024
References