Falkirk Secures Top-Six Spot in Scottish Premiership
Falkirk have emerged as unexpected contenders in the Scottish Premiership this season, securing a top-six finish after their recent victory over Motherwell on Saturday. Following successive promotions, John McGlynn's team has exceeded expectations by not only reaching the top half of the table but also remaining in contention for European qualification on two fronts. This achievement has presented a scheduling challenge for the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL).
Fixture Discrepancies Among Top Six
The Premiership format involves a split after 33 rounds, where the top six teams play each other once more, and the bottom six do the same. With one regular season round remaining, the top six for the final five rounds are Celtic, Heart of Midlothian (Hearts), Hibernian (Hibs), Falkirk, Motherwell, and Rangers.
After 33 games, Hearts, Rangers, Motherwell, and Falkirk will have played 17 home and 16 away games, typically entitling them to two home and three away matches post-split. Conversely, Celtic and Hibs will have 16 home and 17 away games, expecting three home and two away fixtures after the split.
To balance home and away matches and accommodate key derbies and title race stakes, it is anticipated that Hearts will play away at Hibs' Easter Road and Celtic Park, while Rangers will be away to Celtic and Hearts. However, Hearts have already hosted Falkirk and Motherwell twice, meaning one of those teams may face a third league visit to Tynecastle.
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Celtic will host one of Hibs, Falkirk, or Motherwell, all of whom have visited Celtic Park twice this season. Rangers have hosted Hibs, Falkirk, and Motherwell only once each but will have just two home games post-split, potentially requiring a third away match to one of those clubs.
A diplomatic solution may involve granting Falkirk an additional home game, increasing their total to 20. This would have them host Hibs, Motherwell, and Rangers a third time while visiting Celtic Park and Hearts again. This arrangement would allow the top four teams to play each other home and away twice, while Falkirk would be compensated for losing home gates against Celtic and Hearts by hosting clubs with large traveling support and an extra home game against Motherwell.
European Qualification Implications
If Falkirk remain in contention for European qualification, awarding them an extra home game could be viewed as an unfair advantage. Both Celtic and Falkirk are also competing in the Scottish Cup, which offers a Europa League qualifying spot to the winner, potentially affecting league outcomes.
If Celtic finish in the Premiership's top two and win the Scottish Cup, the Europa League place would likely go to the third-placed team, with Conference League qualifying spots allocated to the teams finishing third and fourth. Should Celtic or Falkirk win the Scottish Cup and finish third or fourth, the cup winner would enter Europa League qualifiers, and a Conference League spot would pass to the fifth-placed team.
This scenario could result in Falkirk qualifying for Europe from fifth place, having benefited from an extra home game, while the sixth-placed team would have an even number of home and away matches.
Bottom Six Fixture Challenges
The bottom six teams are Aberdeen, Dundee, Dundee United, Kilmarnock, Livingston, and St Mirren. Aberdeen, Dundee, Livingston, and St Mirren will have played 16 home and 17 away games by the split, while Dundee United and Kilmarnock will have the opposite.
Two of the three Dundee derbies have been at Dens Park, so the final meeting is likely at Tannadice. Assuming this and an away game at Livingston for Dundee, their home games against Aberdeen, Kilmarnock, and St Mirren would balance home and away fixtures.
Aberdeen's home games against Kilmarnock, St Mirren, and Dundee United, plus away matches at Dundee and Livingston, would also achieve parity. St Mirren would host Kilmarnock, Livingston, and Dundee United and travel to Aberdeen and Dundee.
However, discrepancies remain. Dundee United will have one home game after the split, but Aberdeen, Kilmarnock, Livingston, and St Mirren have all visited Tannadice twice already, requiring one to make a third trip, though it is unlikely to be Aberdeen.
Kilmarnock is expected to have two home games, probably including one against United. Aberdeen, Dundee, and St Mirren have each visited Rugby Park twice, so one will need to make a third trip to East Ayrshire.
Livingston should travel to St Mirren but have already visited Aberdeen, Dundee, United, and Kilmarnock twice, necessitating a third trip to one of those clubs.
Livingston are 11 points behind safety and could be 14 points adrift with five games remaining if they lose their last pre-split match. While favorites for automatic relegation, confirmation will not occur until after post-split fixtures are announced and at least one round is played.
The SPFL faces a complex task in scheduling the Premiership's final five rounds. After this weekend's games, the league will pause for two weeks to accommodate the Scottish Cup semi-finals. From the weekend of 25 and 26 April, top-six and bottom-six fixtures will continue until mid-May, followed by the cup final and relegation play-off.
