2013–14 Scottish Premiership

The 2013–14 Scottish Premiership was the first season of the Scottish Premiership, the highest division of Scottish football.^[2] The season began on 2 August 2013 and concluded on 11 May 2014.^[3] This was the first season of the competition being part of the newly formed Scottish Professional Football League after the merger of the Scottish Premier League and the Scottish Football League.^[4] This season also featured the introduction of an end of season play-off between the 11th-placed team in the top flight and the teams placed 2nd–4th in the Scottish Championship, to determine whether a second team will be relegated from the league.^[5]

Scottish Premiership

Season	2013–14
Dates	2 August 2013 – 11 May 2014
Champions	Celtic 1st Premiership title 45th Scottish title
Relegated	Hibernian Heart of Midlothian
Champions League	Celtic
Europa League	Motherwell Aberdeen St Johnstone
Matches played	228
Goals scored	626 (2.75 per match)
Top goalscorer	Kris Commons (27 goals)
Biggest home win	Celtic 6–0 Inverness CT (27 April 2014)
Biggest away win	Motherwell 0–5 Celtic (6 December 2013)
Highest scoring	Kilmarnock 2–5 Celtic (28 September 2013) St Mirren 4–3 St Johnstone (19 October 2013) Inverness CT 3–4 Aberdeen (21 December 2013) Motherwell 4–3 Partick Thistle (15 February 2014) Celtic 5-2 Aberdeen (3 May 2014)
Longest winning run	15 games[1] Celtic
Longest unbeaten run	26 games[1] Celtic
Longest winless run	13 games[1] Hibernian
Longest losing run	6 games[1] Hibernian
Highest attendance	52,670[1] Celtic 1–0 Partick Thistle (1 January 2014)
Lowest attendance	1,892[1] St Johnstone 1–0 Motherwell (25 February 2014)
Total attendance	2,331,965[1]
Average attendance	10,183 (312)[1]
← 2012–13 2014–15 →

Twelve teams contested the league. Partick Thistle (champions) were promoted from the 2012–13 First Division, replacing Dundee (relegated). Heart of Midlothian were deducted 15 points (one-third of the previous season's total) for entering administration during the close season.^[6]

On 26 March, Celtic clinched their third title in a row and 45th in total after a 5–1 away win against Partick Thistle.^[7][8] It is the earliest that the title has been won since the 1928–29 season, when Rangers won it on 16 March,^[9][10] until the 2020-2021 Season when Rangers won the title on 7 March.

Teams

Aberdeen

Dundee United

Hibernian

Inverness Caledonian Thistle

Kilmarnock

Ross County

St Johnstone

St Mirren

Celtic

Heart of Midlothian

Motherwell

Partick Thistle

Location of teams in Scottish Premier League 2013–14

Dundee were relegated from the 2012–13 Scottish Premier League. Partick Thistle, who won the 2012–13 Scottish First Division, were promoted.

Stadia and locations

Team	Stadium	Capacity
Aberdeen	Pittodrie Stadium, Aberdeen	21,421[11]
Celtic	Celtic Park, Glasgow	60,355[12]
Dundee United	Tannadice Park, Dundee	14,229[13]
Heart of Midlothian	Tynecastle Stadium, Edinburgh	17,529[14]
Hibernian	Easter Road, Edinburgh	20,421[15]
Inverness Caledonian Thistle	Caledonian Stadium, Inverness	7,800[16]
Kilmarnock	Rugby Park, Kilmarnock	18,128[17]
Motherwell	Fir Park, Motherwell	13,677[18]
Partick Thistle	Firhill Stadium, Glasgow	10,102[19]
Ross County	Victoria Park, Dingwall	6,541[20]
St Johnstone	McDiarmid Park, Perth	10,696[21]
St Mirren	St Mirren Park, Paisley	8,023[22]

Personnel and kits

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Team	Manager	Captain	Kit manufacturer	Shirt sponsor
Aberdeen	Derek McInnes	Russell Anderson	Adidas	Team Recruitment
Celtic	Neil Lennon	Scott Brown	Nike	Magners
Dundee United	Jackie McNamara	Seán Dillon	Nike	Calor
Heart of Midlothian	Gary Locke	Danny Wilson	Adidas	Wonga.com
Hibernian	Terry Butcher	Liam Craig	Nike[23]	Crabbie's
Inverness CT	John Hughes	Richie Foran	Erreà	Orion Group
Kilmarnock	Allan Johnston	Manuel Pascali	Killie 1869	QTS
Motherwell	Stuart McCall	Keith Lasley	Puma	Cash Converters
Partick Thistle	Alan Archibald	Sean Welsh	Joma	macb
Ross County	Derek Adams	Richard Brittain	Diadora	Stanley CRC Evans Offshore
St Johnstone	Tommy Wright	Dave Mackay	Joma	GS Brown Construction
St Mirren	Danny Lennon	Jim Goodwin	Diadora	Blacks Outdoor Retail

Managerial changes

Team	Outgoing manager	Manner of departure	Date of vacancy	Position in table	Incoming manager	Date of appointment
St Johnstone	Steve Lomas	Signed by Millwall	6 June 2013[24]	Pre-season	Tommy Wright	10 June 2013[25]
Kilmarnock	Kenny Shiels	Sacked	11 June 2013[26]		Allan Johnston	25 June 2013[27]
Hibernian	Pat Fenlon	Resigned	1 November 2013[28]	7th	Terry Butcher	12 November 2013[29]
Inverness CT	Terry Butcher	Signed by Hibernian	12 November 2013[29]	2nd	John Hughes	4 December 2013[30]

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Celtic (C)	38	31	6	1	102	25	+77	99	Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round
2	Motherwell	38	22	4	12	64	60	+4	70	Qualification for the Europa League second qualifying round
3	Aberdeen	38	20	8	10	53	38	+15	68	Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round
4	Dundee United	38	16	10	12	65	50	+15	58
5	Inverness Caledonian Thistle	38	16	9	13	44	44	0	57
6	St Johnstone	38	15	8	15	48	42	+6	53	Qualification for the Europa League second qualifying round[a]
7	Ross County	38	11	7	20	44	62	−18	40
8	St Mirren	38	10	9	19	39	58	−19	39
9	Kilmarnock	38	11	6	21	45	66	−21	39
10	Partick Thistle	38	8	14	16	46	65	−19	38
11	Hibernian (R)	38	8	11	19	31	51	−20	35	Qualification for the Premiership play-off final
12	Heart of Midlothian (R)	38	10	8	20	45	65	−20	23[b]	Relegation to the Championship

Source: SPFL Archive
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:

1. St Johnstone, as winners of the 2013–14 Scottish Cup, qualified for the Europa League second qualifying round.
2. Heart of Midlothian were deducted 15 points for entering administration

Results

Matches 1–22

Teams play each other twice, once at home, once away.

Home \ Away	ABE	CEL	DUN	HOM	HIB	INV	KIL	MOT	PAR	ROS	STJ	STM
Aberdeen		0–2	1–0	1–3	1–0	1–0	2–1	0–1	4–0	1–0	0–0	2–0
Celtic	3–1		1–1	2–0	1–0	2–2	4–0	2–0	1–0	2–1	2–1	1–0
Dundee United	1–2	0–1		4–1	2–2	0–1	1–0	2–2	4–1	1–0	4–0	4–0
Heart of Midlothian	2–1	1–3	0–0		1–0	0–2	0–4	0–1	0–2	2–2	0–2	0–2
Hibernian	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–1		0–2	3–0	0–1	1–1	0–0	0–0	2–0
Inverness Caledonian Thistle	3–4	0–1	1–1	2–0	3–0		2–1	2–0	1–2	1–2	1–0	3–0
Kilmarnock	0–1	2–5	1–4	2–0	1–2	1–2		0–2	2–1	2–0	0–0	2–1
Motherwell	1–3	0–5	0–4	2–1	1–0	2–0	2–1		1–0	3–1	4–0	3–0
Partick Thistle	0–3	1–2	0–0	1–1	0–1	0–0	1–1	1–5		3–3	0–1	0–3
Ross County	1–0	1–4	2–4	2–1	0–2	0–3	1–2	1–2	1–3		1–0	3–0
St Johnstone	0–2	0–1	3–0	1–0	1–2	4–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	4–0		2–0
St Mirren	1–1	0–4	4–1	1–1	0–0	0–0	1–1	0–1	1–2	2–1	4–3

Source: BBC Sport
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Matches 23–33

Teams play every other team once (either at home or away).

Home \ Away	ABE	CEL	DUN	HOM	HIB	INV	KIL	MOT	PAR	ROS	STJ	STM
Aberdeen		2–1	1–1			0–1	2–1				1–0
Celtic						5–0		3–0		1–1	3–0	3–0
Dundee United		0–2				2–1	3–2	3–1			0–1	3–2
Heart of Midlothian	1–1	0–2	1–2		2–0							2–1
Hibernian	0–2	0–4	1–3					3–3		2–1		2–3
Inverness Caledonian Thistle				0–0	0–0			1–2	1–0			2–2
Kilmarnock		0–3		4–2	1–1	2–0				2–2	1–2
Motherwell	2–2			4–1			1–2		4–3	2–1
Partick Thistle	3–1	1–5	1–1	2–4	3–1		1–1
Ross County	1–1		3–0	1–2		1–2			1–1			2–1
St Johnstone				3–3	2–0	0–1		3–0	1–1	0–1
St Mirren	0–1						2–0	3–2	0–0		0–1

Source: BBC Sport
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

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 Home \ Away ABE CEL DUN INV MOT STJ Aberdeen 0–1 1–1 Celtic 5–2 3–1 6–0 Dundee United 1–3 5–1 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 0–0 1–1 2–0 Motherwell 3–3 2–1 2–1 St Johnstone 3–3 2–0 Source: BBC Sport Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Bottom six Home \ Away HOM HIB KIL PAR ROS STM Heart of Midlothian 5–0 2–4 2–0 Hibernian 1–2 0–1 1–1 Kilmarnock 1–2 1–0 Partick Thistle 2–3 1–1 Ross County 1–0 2–1 St Mirren 1–1 2–0 1–0 Source: BBC Sport Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Season statistics

Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster set a new Scottish league record for length of time played without conceding a goal, which had been previously set by Bobby Clark in 1970–71.^[31] Forster's streak ended at 1,256 minutes.^[32]

Top scorers

Rank	Scorer	Club	Goals[33]
1	Kris Commons	Celtic	27
2	Kris Boyd	Kilmarnock	22
	John Sutton	Motherwell	22
4	Anthony Stokes	Celtic	20
	Stevie May	St Johnstone	20
6	Billy Mckay	Inverness CT	18
7	Niall McGinn	Aberdeen	13
	Steven Thompson	St Mirren	13
9	Lionel Ainsworth	Motherwell	11
	Nadir Çiftçi	Dundee United	11
	Kris Doolan	Partick Thistle	11
	Callum Paterson	Heart of Midlothian	11

Assists

Rank	Player	Club	Assists[34]
1	Kallum Higginbotham	Partick Thistle	10
2	Emilio Izaguirre	Celtic	9
	Lionel Ainsworth	Motherwell	9
4	Anthony Stokes	Celtic	8
	Iain Vigurs	Motherwell	8
6	Kris Commons	Celtic	7
7	Ryan Gauld	Dundee United	6
	Paul Cairney	Hibernian	6
	Georgios Samaras	Celtic	6

Premiership play-offs

For the first time since the 1996–97 season, promotion and relegation involving a place in the top division of the Scottish football league system was determined in part by a play-off system.^[35] The previous system used was a straight head-to-head between the team that had finished 9th (second bottom) in the Premier Division and the runner-up in the First Division.^[35] The new system involved the teams from second to fourth place in the Championship, with the first contest between the third and fourth place teams.^[36] The winner progressed to a tie with the second place Championship team.^[36] The winner of that second tie then progressed to the promotion and relegation deciding playoff against the 11th place team in the Premiership.^[36]

	Quarter-final							Semi-final							Final
															1	Hibernian	2	0	2 (3)
								2	Hamilton Academical	1	1	2			2	Hamilton Academical	0	2	2 (4)
	3	Falkirk	1	3	4			3	Falkirk	1	0	1
	4	Queen of the South	2	1	3

Quarter-final

First leg

Queen of the South	2–1	Falkirk
McHugh 56', 90'	Report	Alston 8'

6 May 2014

19:45

Palmerston Park, Dumfries

Attendance: 1,996

Referee: John McKendrick

Second leg

Falkirk	3–1 (a.e.t.)	Queen of the South
Loy 53' Sibbald 70' Alston 118'	Report	McHugh 36'

10 May 2014

15:00

Falkirk Stadium, Falkirk

Attendance: 4,427

Referee: Calum Murray

Falkirk won 4–3 on aggregate, advanced to Semi-final.

Semi-final

First leg

Falkirk	1–1	Hamilton Academical
Beck 80'	Report	MacKinnon 61'

13 May 2014

19:45

Falkirk Stadium, Falkirk

Attendance: 4,194

Referee: John Beaton

Second leg

Hamilton Academical	1–0	Falkirk
Andreu 16'	Report

18 May 2014

15:00

New Douglas Park, Hamilton

Attendance: 4,678

Referee: Kevin Clancy

Hamilton Academical won 2–1 on aggregate, advanced to Final.

Final

First leg

Hamilton Academical	0–2	Hibernian
	Report	Cummings 39', 55'

21 May 2014

19:45

New Douglas Park, Hamilton

Attendance: 5,322

Referee: Bobby Madden

Second leg

Hibernian	0–2 (a.e.t.)	Hamilton Academical
	Report	Scotland 13' Andreu 90+3'
Penalties
Thomson McGivern Craig Tudur Jones Cummings	3–4	Gillespie Andreu Antoine-Curier Scotland

25 May 2014

15:30

Easter Road, Edinburgh

Attendance: 18,031

Referee: Willie Collum

2–2 on aggregate. Hamilton Academical won 4–3 on penalties, earning promotion to the Premiership. Hibernian were relegated to the Championship.^[37]

See also

• Nine in a row