There are astonishingly few gaps in Erin McGarrachan’s basketball CV but of those that do exist, there’s a vanishingly short time for her to plug them.

McGarrachan is Scotland’s most successful-ever female basketball player.

Over a decade playing top-level basketball has seen the 32-year-old impress on the club scene both north and south of the border, as well as establish herself as a regular for the GB national team.

The clock is ticking on McGarrachan’s career, however; the Glaswegian has announced this season will be her last as a professional basketball player and she’s hoping to close things out in style.

Today, McGarrachan will lead Caledonia Gladiators out in the Trophy Finals and they’re taking to the court gunning not only for major silverware, they’re playing to achieve history.

Gladiators’ women’s team has never won a major trophy and so victory today over Oakland Wolves would be monumental for the club, something McGarrachan is well aware of.

“This final a massive deal,” the forward says.

“It's about getting recognition for the club, having that special moment of playing a final and having the chance to showcase Scottish basketball to the rest of the UK.

“That's what is really special to me.

“And of course, winning would be the icing on the cake, especially at this time in my career.”

Gladiators reached this final with a thrilling victory over Sheffield Hatters last month and their semi-final win was the culmination of several years of consistently impressive results, most notably two second-place league finishes in 2023 and 2024.

These league placings are an indication of Gladiators’ strength but there is, acknowledges McGarrachan, a significant difference between the week-to-week league matches and a major final.

(Image: Caledonia Gladiators)

With today’s opponents, Oakland Wolves, the form team and current league leaders, Gladiators, who are in third place in the Women’s Superleague, go into today’s final, on paper at least, as underdogs.

But with the sides one apiece in their head-to-heads this season, there is belief in abundance within the Gladiators camp that they can come out on top in Birmingham today.

And, as captain, McGarrachan will play a pivotal role in ensuring her players focus on the minutiae rather than the potentially overwhelming prospect of winning Gladiators’ women’s team’s first-ever trophy.

“Today, it’s one and done. We won't get a second chance at this," she says.

“But I believe there's enough experience on our team that we’ll handle the pressure - it's the art of channelling the nervous excitement into positive energy.

“We have to remember that this is what we do every day. Yes, there's heightened pressure in this final but all the fundamentals are still the same.”

Gladiators have a somewhat unusual tradition which sees the names of players who win a trophy for the club have their names engraved on the club’s sword, something the men’s team managed in 2023 with victory in the BBL Trophy.

And while McGarrachan, of course, harbours personal goals as well as ambitions for her team, it’s the bigger impact a win today could have on the sport in Scotland that really excites her.

“If we can win this trophy, it’d be huge for basketball in Scotland, and particularly women’s basketball,” she says.

“Us doing well opens up different doors in young people's minds which, hopefully, changes the culture and the mood and drives excitement around the sport. It shows young people, and especially young girls, there's opportunities in this sport."

For some athletes, the prospect of retirement is a daunting one but in contrast, McGarrachan is comfortable with her decision to call time on her lengthy career at the end of this campaign.

And while a win this afternoon would be a fitting addition to McGarrachan’s resumé, she’s in the enviable position of being entirely content with her career whatever today’s outcome.

“I’m at peace with my decision retire - I'm quite sure that this is the right time," she says.

“I'm really happy that I'm retiring  with the club I grew up in.

“It just feels right and so instead of feeling sad, I'm just cherishing the rest of the season and making the most of every game and every chance that I get to go out and compete with my teammates.

“And so in this final, I want to just enjoy the moment for what it is.”