2015–16 Scottish Premiership

Football league in Scotland March 2015 March 2015 250 Scottish Premiership 2015–16 1 August 2015 – 22 May 2016 Celtic3rd Premiership title47th Scottish title Dundee United Champions League Celtic Europa League AberdeenHeart of Midlothian 228 650 Leigh Griffiths(31 goals)http://www.espnfc.co.uk/scottish-premiership/45/statistics/scorers?season=2015&seasonType=0 2015–16 Scottish Premiership scorers ESPN 9 November 2015 Celtic 8–1 Hamilton Academicalhttp://www.espnfc.co.uk/scottish-premiership/45/statistics/performance?season=2015&seasonType=0 2015–16 Scottish Premiership performance ESPN 9 November 2015(19 January 2016) Kilmarnock 0–4 Dundee(1 August 2015)Kilmarnock 0–4 Ross County(22 August 2015)Aberdeen 1–5 St Johnstone(3 October 2015)Partick Thistle 0–4 Heart of Midlothian(31 October 2015)Kilmarnock 0–4 Aberdeen(19 December 2015) Celtic 8–1 Hamilton Academical(19 January 2016) 8 matches:Aberdeen 12 matches:Aberdeen 10 matches:Dundee United 5 matches:Partick Thistle 49,050Celtic 7–0 Motherwell(15 May 2016) 1,516Hamilton Academical 0–1 Inverness CT(11 May 2016) 2,237,437 9,644 (12px838) 2014–15 2016–17 15 May 2016 The 2015–16 Scottish Premiership (known as the Ladbrokes Premiership for sponsorship reasons) was the third season of the Scottish Premiership, the highest division of Scottish football. The season began on 1 August 2015.http://sport.stv.tv/football/clubs/aberdeen/318980-scottish-premiership-201516-campaign-set-for-start-on-august-1/ Scottish Premiership 2015/16 campaign set for start on August 1 STV 30 April 2015 30 April 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150518091751/http://sport.stv.tv/football/clubs/aberdeen/318980-scottish-premiership-201516-campaign-set-for-start-on-august-1/ 18 May 2015 dead Celtic were the defending champions. Twelve teams contested the league: Aberdeen, Celtic, Dundee, Dundee United, Hamilton Academical, Heart of Midlothian, Inverness CT, Kilmarnock, Motherwell, Partick Thistle, Ross County and St Johnstone. Teams Promoted from Scottish Championship Heart of Midlothian Relegated from Scottish Premiership St Mirren Stadia and locations Aberdeen Celtic Dundee Dundee United Pittodrie Stadium Celtic Park Dens Park Tannadice Park Capacity: 20,897http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/aberdeen/ Aberdeen Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 Capacity: 60,355http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/celtic/ Celtic Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 Capacity: 11,506http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/dundee/ Dundee Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 Capacity: 14,229http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/dundee-united/ Dundee United Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 200px 200px 200px 200px Hamilton AcademicalUK Scotland 400 center Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership UK Scotland 6 57.159387 -2.088979 Aberdeen left UK Scotland 6 56.474765 -2.968894 Dundee Utd right UK Scotland 6 56.495264 -2.973194 Dundee left UK Scotland 6 55.939167 -3.232222 Heart of Midlothian top UK Scotland 6 57.494976 -4.217345 Inverness Caledonian Thistle right UK Scotland 6 55.604321 -4.508300 Kilmarnock left UK Scotland 6 57.595954 -4.419068 Ross County left UK Scotland 6 56.389979 -3.476840 St. Johnstone left UK Scotland 6 55.849705 -4.205414 UK Scotland 6 55.782156 -4.058503 UK Scotland 6 55.780279 -3.980205 UK Scotland 6 55.881584 -4.269841 UK Scotland TransparentPlaceholder.png 55.88 -4.28 Celtic left UK Scotland TransparentPlaceholder.png 55.78 -4.05 Hamilton right UK Scotland TransparentPlaceholder.png 55.75 -3.40 Motherwell bottom UK Scotland TransparentPlaceholder.png 56.00 -4.2 Partick Thistle left Heart of Midlothian New Douglas Park Tynecastle Stadium Capacity: 6,078http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/hamilton/ Hamilton Academical Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20131016083122/http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/hamilton/ 16 October 2013 dead dmy-all Capacity: 17,529http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/hearts/ Heart of Midlothian Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20131022121754/http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/hearts/ 22 October 2013 dead dmy-all 200px 200px Inverness Caledonian Thistle Kilmarnock Caledonian Stadium Rugby Park Capacity: 7,800http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/inverness-caledonian-thistle/ Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 Capacity: 18,128http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/kilmarnock/ Kilmarnock Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 200px 200px Motherwell Partick Thistle Ross County St Johnstone Fir Park Firhill Stadium Victoria Park McDiarmid Park Capacity: 13,677http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/motherwell/ Motherwell Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 Capacity: 10,102http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/partick/ Partick Thistle Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 6 May 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170506192335/http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/partick/ dead Capacity: 6,541http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/ross-county/ Ross County Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 Capacity: 10,696http://spfl.co.uk/clubs/st-johnstone/ St Johnstone Football Club Scottish Professional Football League 11 November 2013 200px 200px 200px 200px Personnel and kits Team Manager Captain Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsorAberdeen SCO Derek McInnes SCO Ryan Jack Adidas Saltire EnergyCeltic NOR Ronny Deila SCO Scott Brown footballer, born June 1985 New Balance MagnersDundee SCO Paul Hartley NIR James McPake Puma Kilmac EnergyDundee United SCO Gordon Young (interim) IRL Seán Dillon Nike CalorHamilton Academical SCO Martin Canning NIR Michael McGovern Michael McGovern (footballer) Adidashttp://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/hamilton-chairman-les-gray-says-5904034 Hamilton chairman Les Gray says signing a striker is the club's priority Andy McGilvray 19 June 2015 dailyrecord Nevis (H), Scotia Aid (A)Heart of Midlothian SCO Robbie Neilson TUR Alim Öztürk Puma Save the ChildrenInverness CT SCO John Hughes footballer born 1964 IRL Richie Foran Carbrini SubwayKilmarnock ENG Lee Clark footballer IRL Mark Connolly Erreà QTSMotherwell SCO Mark McGhee SCO Keith Lasley Macron Cash ConvertersPartick Thistle SCO Alan Archibald GHA Abdul Osman Joma Kingsford Capital ManagementRoss County SCO Jim McIntyre footballer ENG Andrew Davies footballer Carbrini Stanley CRC Evans OffshoreSt Johnstone NIR Tommy Wright footballer, born 1963 SCO Dave Mackay footballer born 1980 Joma Invest in Perth Managerial changes Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in table Incoming manager Date of appointment Motherwell ENG Ian BaracloughSacked 23 September 2015https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/34339870 Ian Baraclough: Motherwell part with manager after nine months BBC Sport BBC 23 September 2015 23 September 2015 10th SCO Mark McGhee 13 October 2015https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/34511651 Motherwell name Mark McGhee as manager for second spell BBC Sport BBC 13 October 2015 13 October 2015 Dundee United SCO Jackie McNamara 26 September 2015https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/34339870 Jackie McNamara: Dundee United confirm manager's exit BBC Sport BBC 26 September 2015 26 September 2015 11th FIN Mixu Paatelainen 14 October 2015https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/34517775 Mixu Paatelainen: Dundee United appoint Finn as new manager BBC Sport BBC 14 October 2015 14 October 2015 Kilmarnock SCO Gary Locke Scottish footballer Resigned 30 January 2016https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/35452208 Kilmarnock manager Gary Locke resigns after Hamilton loss BBC Sport BBC 30 January 2016 30 January 2016 SCO Lee McCulloch (interim) 30 January 2016 SCO Lee McCulloch End of interim 15 February 2016https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/35575303 Lee Clark: Kilmarnock appoint former Blackpool manager BBC Sport BBC 15 February 2016 15 February 2016 10th ENG Lee Clark15 February 2016 Dundee United FIN Mixu Paatelainen Sacked 4 May 2016https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/36201456 Dundee United: Mixu Paatelainen leaves as manager BBC Sport BBC 4 May 2016 14 May 2016 12th SCO Gordon Young (interim) 4 May 2016https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/sport/football/dundee-united/172580/dundee-united-caretaker-boss-gordon-young-insists-plenty-play-kilmarnock/ Dundee United caretaker boss Gordon Young insists there is plenty to play for at Kilmarnock The Courier DC Thomson 14 May 2016 14 May 2016 Tournament format and regulations Basic In the initial phase of the season, the 12 teams will play a round-robin tournament whereby each team plays each one of the other teams three times. After 33 games, the league splits into two sections of six teams, with each team playing each other in that section. The league attempts to balance the fixture list so that teams in the same section play each other twice at home and twice away, but sometimes this is impossible. A total of 228 matches will be played, with 38 matches played by each team. Promotion and relegation Heart of Midlothian were promoted as 2014–15 Scottish Championship winners. On 2 May, bottom club Dundee United were defeated 2–1 away to their city rivals Dundee, a defeat which confined them to relegation of the Championship. Craig Wighton, a local Dundee fan, scored the winning goal in the 92nd minute of the game. The champion of that league will be promoted to the Premiership for the 2016–17 season. The team that finishes 11th in the Premiership will play the winner of the Championship playoffs (teams that finish 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the Championship) in two playoff games, with the winner securing a Premiership spot for the 2016–17 season. League table main WDL SPFL Archive CEL ABE HOM STJ MOT ROS INV DND PAR HAM KIL DUN CL2Q EL1Q EL1Q RPO REL complete 22 5 11 62 48 26 8 4 93 31 11 15 12 53 57 8 7 23 45 70 11 10 17 42 63 18 11 9 59 40 14 10 14 54 48 9 9 20 41 64 15 5 18 47 63 12 10 16 41 50 14 6 18 55 61 16 8 14 58 55 C O R -3 Dundee United were deducted three points for fielding an ineligible player in their win over Inverness Caledonian Thistle on 6 May 2016.Dundee Utd docked points for fielding ineligible player Ali Coote v ICT https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/36265268 BBC Sport 11 May 2016 11 May 2016 yes Aberdeen Celtic Dundee Dundee United Hamilton Academical Heart of Midlothian Inverness Caledonian Thistle Kilmarnock Motherwell Partick Thistle Ross County St Johnstone 5 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Play-off (only if deciding champion, UEFA competitions qualification and second stage group allocation).http://www.scoresway.com/?sport=soccer&page=season&id=11644&view=rules Premiership 2015/2016 - Season rules Scoresway 1 August 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20181210174207/http://www.scoresway.com/?sport=soccer&page=season&id=11644&view=rules 10 December 2018 dead Teams play each other three times (33 matches), before the league is split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six). QR green1 Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round blue1 Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round red2 Qualification for the Premiership play-off final red1 Relegation to the Championship Results Matches 1–22 Teams play each other twice, once at home and once away. main FBR grey ABE CEL DND DUN HAM HOM INV KIL MOT PAR ROS STJ Aberdeen 2–1 2–0 2–0 1–0 1–0 2–2 2–0 1–1 0–0 3–1 1–5 Celtic 3–1 6–0 5–0 8–1 0–0 4–2 0–0 1–2 1–0 2–0 3–1 Dundee 0–2 0–0 2–1 4–0 1–2 1–1 1–2 2–1 1–1 3–3 2–1 Dundee United 0–1 1–3 2–2 1–2 0–1 1–1 1–2 0–3 0–1 1–0 1–2 Hamilton Academical 1–1 1–2 1–1 4–0 3–2 3–4 0–1 1–0 0–0 1–3 2–4 Heart of Midlothian 1–3 2–2 1–1 3–2 2–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 3–0 2–0 4–3 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 2–1 1–3 1–1 2–2 0–2 2–0 2–1 0–1 0–0 2–0 0–1 Kilmarnock 0–4 2–2 0–4 1–1 1–2 2–2 2–0 0–1 2–5 0–4 2–1 Motherwell 1–2 0–1 3–1 0–2 3–3 2–2 1–3 1–0 2–1 1–1 2–0 Partick Thistle 0–2 0–2 0–1 3–0 1–1 0–4 2–1 2–2 1–0 1–0 2–0 Ross County 2–0 1–4 5–2 2–1 2–0 1–2 1–2 3–2 3–0 1–0 2–3 St Johnstone 3–4 0–3 1–1 2–1 4–1 0–0 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–2 1–1 complete Scottish Premiership Matches 23–33 Teams play every other team once (either at home or away). main FBR grey ABE CEL DND DUN HAM HOM INV KIL MOT PAR ROS STJ Aberdeen 2–1 1–0 null 3–0 null null 2–1 null null null 1–1 Celtic null 0–0 null null 3–1 3–0 null null null 2–0 3–1 Dundee null null null null 0–1 1–1 null 2–2 null 5–2 2–0 Dundee United 0–1 1–4 2–2 null 2–1 0–2 5–1 null null null null Hamilton Academical null 1–1 2–1 0–0 0–0 null null 0–1 1–2 null null Heart of Midlothian 2–1 null null null null null 1–0 6–0 1–0 null 0–3 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 3–1 null null null 0–1 0–0 null 1–2 0–0 null null Kilmarnock null 0–1 0–0 null 0–1 null 2–1 null null 0–2 3–0 Motherwell 2–1 1–2 null 2–1 null null null 0–2 3–1 1–2 null Partick Thistle 1–2 1–2 2–4 1–0 null null null 0–0 null null null Ross County 2–3 null null 0–3 2–1 0–3 0–3 null null 1–0 null St Johnstone null null null 0–1 0–0 null 1–0 null 2–1 1–2 1–1 complete Scottish Premiership Matches 34–38 After 33 matches, the league splits into two sections of six teams each, with teams playing every other team in their section once (either at home or away). The exact matches are determined upon the league table at the time of the split. Top six main FBR grey ABE CEL HOM MOT ROS STJ Aberdeen null 0–1 4–1 0–4 null Celtic 3–2 null 7–0 1–1 null Heart of Midlothian null 1–3 null 1–1 2–2 Motherwell null null 1–0 null 1–2 Ross County null null null 1–3 0–1 St Johnstone 3–0 2–1 null null null Scottish Premiership complete Bottom six main FBR grey DND DUN HAM INV KIL PAR Dundee 2–1 0–1 null 1–1 null Dundee United null 1–3 null null 3–3 Hamilton Academical null null 0–1 0–4 null Inverness Caledonian Thistle 4–0 2–3 null 3–1 null Kilmarnock null 2–4 null null 0–2 Partick Thistle 1–2 null 2–2 1–4 null Scottish Premiership complete Top scorers matches played on 15 May 2016https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/scottish-premiership/top-scorers Scottish Premiership Top Scorers BBC 23 September 2015 RankPlayerClubGoals1SCO Leigh GriffithsCeltic312ENG Kane HemmingsDundee213IRE Adam RooneyAberdeen204ENG Louis Moult Motherwell15NIR Liam BoyceRoss County6SCO Kris DoolanPartick Thistle14SCO Steven MacLeanSt Johnstone8NIR Billy MckayDundee United12SPA Juanma Hearts10ENG Miles StoreyInverness CT11 Awards MonthManager of the MonthPlayer of the MonthRef.ManagerClubPlayerClubAugustSCO Derek McInnesAberdeenSCO Leigh GriffithsCeltic http://spfl.co.uk/awards SPFL monthly awards www.spfl.co.uk Scottish Professional Football League 9 November 2015 9 November 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20160531033109/http://spfl.co.uk/awards 31 May 2016 dead dmy-allSeptemberSCO Derek McInnesAberdeenNIR Niall McGinnAberdeenOctoberNOR Ronny DeilaCelticSCO Leigh GriffithsCelticNovemberSCO Alan ArchibaldPartick ThistleSCO Michael O'HalloranSt JohnstoneDecemberSCO Mark McGheeMotherwellNIR Liam BoyceRoss CountyJanuaryNOR Ronny DeilaCelticENG Kane HemmingsDundeeFebruaryFIN Mixu PaatelainenDundee UnitedNIR Paul PatonDundee UnitedMarchSCO Mark McGheeMotherwellAUS Jackson IrvineRoss CountyAprilSCO John HughesInverness CTENG Patrick RobertsCeltic Annual awards Award Winner Club Ladbrokes Premiership Player of the Year icon SCO Leigh Griffiths Celtic PFA Scotland Premiership Player of the Year icon SCO Leigh Griffiths Celtic PFA Scotland SPFL Young Player of the Year icon SCO Kieran Tierney Celtic PFA Scotland SPFL Manager of the Year icon ENG Mark Warburton Rangers PFA Scotland Goal of the Season icon SCO Barrie McKay Rangers SFWA Player of the Year icon SCO Leigh Griffiths Celtic PFA Scotland Team of the Yearhttps://spfl.co.uk/news/pfa-scotland-teams-of-the-year-15 PFA Scotland Teams of the Year SPFL 29 April 2016 7 September 2026 Goalkeeper icon SCO Scott Bain(Dundee) Defenders icon ENG Shay Logan(Aberdeen) icon TUR Alim Öztürk(Heart of Midlothian) icon ENG Andrew Davies(Ross County) icon SCO Kieran Tierney(Celtic) Midfielders icon IRL Jonny Hayes(Aberdeen) icon SCO Kenny McLean(Aberdeen) icon SCO Graeme Shinnie(Aberdeen) Forwards icon ENG Kane Hemmings(Dundee) icon SCO Leigh Griffiths(Celtic) icon SCO Greg Stewart(Dundee) Premiership play-offs The quarter-finals were contested between the 3rd and 4th placed teams in the Scottish Championship; Hibernian and Raith Rovers. Hibernian, the winners, advanced to the semi-finals to face the 2nd placed team in the Championship; Falkirk. Falkirk, the winners, advanced to the final to play-off against the 11th placed team in the Premiership, Kilmarnock, with the winners securing a place in the 2016–17 Scottish Premiership. y y y Quarter-final Semi-final Final 3 Hibernian 0 2 2 4 Raith Rovers 1 0 1 2 Falkirk 2 3 5 3 Hibernian 2 2 4 1 Kilmarnock 0 4 4 2 Falkirk 1 0 1 Quarter-final First leg 1 4 May 2016 1–0 19:45 BBC Report Raith Rovers Hibernian Panayiotou 75 Stark's Park, Kirkcaldy 5,330 Kevin Clancy Second leg 1 7 May 2016 2–0 2–1 12:30 BBC Report Hibernian Raith Rovers McGinn 8 McGregor 12 Easter Road, Edinburgh 11,133 John McKendrick Semi-final First leg 1 10 May 2016 2–2 19:45 BBC Report Hibernian Falkirk Henderson 57 McGregor 66 Miller 34McHugh 80 Easter Road, Edinburgh 11,830 Alan Muir Second leg 1 13 May 2016 3–2 5–4 19:45 BBC Report Falkirk Hibernian Alston 13Leahy 79McHugh 90 Keatings 31 pen 34 Falkirk Stadium, Falkirk 7,851 Craig Thomson Final First leg 1 19 May 2016 1–0 19:45 BBC Report Falkirk Kilmarnock Vaulks 90+1 Falkirk Stadium, Falkirk 7,636 John Beaton Second leg 1 22 May 2016 4–0 4–1 15:00 BBC Report Kilmarnock Falkirk Kiltie 3 62Addison 8Boyd 65 Rugby Park, Kilmarnock 11,013 Willie Collum Attendances Celtic FC drew the highest average home attendance in the 2015–16 edition of the Scottish Premiership. { class"wikitable sortable" !#!!Football club!!Home games!!Average attendancehttps://www.european-football-statistics.co.uk/attn/archive/sco/avesco16.htm Attendances Scotland average European-football-statistics.co.uk 2 July 2026 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Celtic FC 19 44,850 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Heart of Midlothian 19 16,423 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Aberdeen FC 19 13,094 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Dundee United 19 7,969 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Dundee FC 19 6,122 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Motherwell FC 19 4,912 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Ross County FC 19 4,034 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Kilmarnock FC 19 3,993 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count St. Johnstone FC 19 3,880 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Partick Thistle FC 19 3,800 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Inverness Caledonian Thistle 19 3,754 - style"text-align:center;" _row_count Hamilton Academical FC 19 3,027 - } See also Nine in a row References 30em External links Official website https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143554/https://spfl.co.uk/premiership/ 12 June 2018 Category:Scottish Premiership seasons 1 Scot