2005–06 Scottish Premier League
# 2005–06 Scottish Premier League

The 2005–06 Scottish Premier League was won by Celtic, with a 17-point margin over their nearest challengers Hearts in the first season under the management of Gordon Strachan. Rangers, who finished third, failed to finish a Scottish top flight campaign as champions or runners-up for the first time since 1988.

As league champions, Celtic qualified for the UEFA Champions League, with runners-up Hearts also qualifying. This marked the first time since 1995 that a club outside the Old Firm of Celtic and Rangers finished in the top two. Third-placed Rangers qualified for the UEFA Cup, as did Scottish Second Division champions Gretna, who took the Scottish Cup place despite losing the final to Hearts.

Livingston were relegated, and Scottish First Division winners St Mirren were promoted.

Kris Boyd was the top scorer with 32 goals (17 for Rangers after 15 for Kilmarnock).

## Teams

### Promotion and relegation from 2004–05

Promoted from First Division to Premier League

* Falkirk

Relegated from Premier League to First Division

* Dundee

### Stadia and locations

| Aberdeen | Celtic | Dundee United | Falkirk |
| - | - | - | - |
| Pittodrie Stadium | Celtic Park | Tannadice Park | Falkirk Stadium |
| Capacity: 20,866 | Capacity: 60,411 | Capacity: 14,223 | Capacity: 7,937 |
| Dunfermline Athletic | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | Heart of Midlothian |
| East End Park | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | Tynecastle Park |
| Capacity: 12,509 | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | Capacity: 17,420 |
| Hibernian | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | Inverness Caledonian Thistle |
| Easter Road | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | Caledonian Stadium |
| Capacity: 16,531 | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | AberdeenDundee UnitedDunfermline AthleticFalkirkHeartsHibernianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockLivingstonRangersCeltic Motherwellclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2005–06 Scottish Premier League | Capacity: 7,500 |
| Kilmarnock | Livingston | Motherwell | Rangers |
| Rugby Park | Almondvale Stadium | Fir Park | Ibrox Stadium |
| Capacity: 17,889 | Capacity: 10,016 | Capacity: 13,677 | Capacity: 50,817 |

### Personnel

| Team | Manager |
| - | - |
| Aberdeen | Jimmy Calderwood |
| Celtic | Gordon Strachan |
| Dundee United | Craig Brewster |
| Dunfermline Athletic | Jim Leishman |
| Falkirk | John Hughes |
| Heart of Midlothian | Valdas Ivanauskas |
| Hibernian | Tony Mowbray |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | Charlie Christie |
| Kilmarnock | Jim Jefferies |
| Livingston | John Robertson |
| Motherwell | Terry Butcher |
| Rangers | Alex McLeish |

**Managerial changes**

| Team | Outgoing manager | Date of vacancy | Manner of departure | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Livingston | Richard Gough | 22 May 2005 | Resigned | Pre-season | Paul Lambert | 1 June 2005 |
| Celtic | Martin O'Neill | 25 May 2005 | Resigned | Pre-season | Gordon Strachan | 1 June 2005 |
| Heart of Midlothian | Steven Pressley John McGlynn | 29 June 2005 | End of caretaker spell | Pre-season | George Burley | 30 June 2005 |
| Heart of Midlothian | George Burley | 21 October 2005 | Mutual consent | 1st | Graham Rix | 8 November 2005 |
| Dundee United | Gordon Chisholm | 10 January 2006 | Sacked | 9th | Craig Brewster | 13 January 2006 |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | Craig Brewster | 13 January 2006 | Signed by Dundee United | 7th | Charlie Christie | 28 January 2006 |
| Livingston | Paul Lambert | 11 February 2006 | Resigned | 12th | John Robertson | 15 February 2005 |
| Heart of Midlothian | Graham Rix | 22 March 2006 | Sacked | 2nd | Valdas Ivanauskas | 22 March 2006 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Celtic | 38 | 28 | 7 | 3 | 93 | 37 | +56 | 91 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage |
| 2 | Heart of Midlothian | 38 | 22 | 8 | 8 | 71 | 31 | +40 | 74 | Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round |
| 3 | Rangers | 38 | 21 | 10 | 7 | 67 | 37 | +30 | 73 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 4 | Hibernian | 38 | 17 | 5 | 16 | 61 | 56 | +5 | 56 | Qualification for the UEFA Intertoto Cup second round |
| 5 | Kilmarnock | 38 | 15 | 10 | 13 | 63 | 64 | −1 | 55 | |
| 6 | Aberdeen | 38 | 13 | 15 | 10 | 46 | 40 | +6 | 54 | |
| 7 | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 38 | 15 | 13 | 10 | 51 | 38 | +13 | 58 | |
| 8 | Motherwell | 38 | 13 | 10 | 15 | 55 | 61 | −6 | 49 | |
| 9 | Dundee United | 38 | 7 | 12 | 19 | 41 | 66 | −25 | 33 | |
| 10 | Falkirk | 38 | 8 | 9 | 21 | 35 | 64 | −29 | 33 | |
| 11 | Dunfermline Athletic | 38 | 8 | 9 | 21 | 33 | 68 | −35 | 33 | |
| 12 | Livingston | 38 | 4 | 6 | 28 | 25 | 79 | −54 | 18 | Relegation to the Scottish First Division |

* ↑ Teams played each other three times (33 matches), before the league split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six) for the last five matches.
* ↑ Hibernian qualified for the 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup by being the highest place applicant for the competition.

## Results

### Matches 1–22

During matches 1–22 each team played every other team twice (home and away).

| Home \ Away | ABE | CEL | DUN | DNF | FAL | HOM | HIB | INV | KIL | LIV | MOT | RAN |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Aberdeen | | 1–3 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 3–2 |
| Celtic | 2–0 | | 2–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 4–2 | 2–1 | 5–0 | 3–0 |
| Dundee United | 1–1 | 2–4 | | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 |
| Dunfermline Athletic | 0–2 | 0–4 | 2–1 | | 0–1 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 3–3 |
| Falkirk | 1–2 | 0–3 | 1–3 | 1–2 | | 2–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 |
| Heart of Midlothian | 2–0 | 2–3 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 5–0 | | 4–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 |
| Hibernian | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2–0 | | 1–2 | 4–2 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 2–0 | | 2–2 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 |
| Kilmarnock | 4–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–2 | 2–2 | | 3–0 | 4–1 | 2–3 |
| Livingston | 0–0 | 0–5 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–3 | | 1–2 | 2–2 |
| Motherwell | 3–1 | 4–4 | 4–5 | 1–0 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 1–0 | | 0–1 |
| Rangers | 0–0 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 5–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | |

### Matches 23–33

During matches 23–33 each team played every other team once (either at home or away).

| Home \ Away | ABE | CEL | DUN | DNF | FAL | HOM | HIB | INV | KIL | LIV | MOT | RAN |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Aberdeen | | | | | 1–0 | | 1–0 | | 2–2 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 |
| Celtic | 3–0 | | 3–3 | | 2–1 | 1–0 | | 2–1 | | | | |
| Dundee United | 1–1 | | | | | 1–1 | | 2–4 | 2–2 | 3–1 | | 1–4 |
| Dunfermline Athletic | 1–0 | 1–8 | 1–1 | | 1–1 | | | 2–2 | | | 1–1 | |
| Falkirk | | | 1–0 | | | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–4 | | | | 1–2 |
| Heart of Midlothian | 1–2 | | | 4–0 | | | 4–1 | | | | 3–0 | 1–1 |
| Hibernian | | 1–2 | 3–1 | 3–1 | | | | 0–2 | 2–1 | 7–0 | | |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 0–1 | | | | | 0–0 | | | 3–3 | | 0–1 | 2–3 |
| Kilmarnock | | 1–4 | | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | | | | 3–1 | 2–0 | |
| Livingston | | 0–2 | | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–3 | | 2–1 | | | | |
| Motherwell | | 1–3 | 2–0 | | 3–1 | | 2–2 | | | 2–1 | | |
| Rangers | | 0–1 | | 1–0 | | | 2–0 | | 4–0 | 4–1 | 1–0 | |

### Matches 34–38

During matches 34–38 each team played every other team in their half of the table once.

## Top scorers

| Player | Club | Goals |
| - | - | - |
| Kris Boyd | Kilmarnock / Rangers | 32 |
| John Hartson | Celtic | 18 |
| Craig Dargo | Inverness CT | 16 |
| Derek Riordan | Hibernian | 16 |
| Rudi Skácel | Hearts | 16 |
| Maciej Żurawski | Celtic | 16 |
| Paul Hartley | Hearts | 14 |
| Peter Løvenkrands | Rangers | 14 |
| Shaun Maloney | Celtic | 13 |
| Steven Naismith | Kilmarnock | 13 |
| Mark Burchill | Dunfermline Athletic | 12 |
| Richie Foran | Motherwell | 11 |

Source: SPL official website

## Attendances

The average attendances for SPL clubs during the 2005/06 season are shown below:

| Team | Average |
| - | - |
| Celtic | 58,149 |
| Rangers | 49,245 |
| Hearts | 16,767 |
| Hibernian | 13,816 |
| Aberdeen | 12,727 |
| Dundee United | 8,197 |
| Kilmarnock | 7,070 |
| Dunfermline Athletic | 6,260 |
| Motherwell | 6,250 |
| Falkirk | 5,515 |
| Inverness CT | 5,061 |
| Livingston | 4,938 |

Source: SPL official website

## Monthly awards

| Month | Manager | Player | Young Player |
| - | - | - | - |
| August | George Burley (Hearts) | Rudolf Skácel (Hearts) | Steven Naismith (Kilmarnock) |
| September | George Burley (Hearts) | Andy Webster (Hearts) | Kevin Thomson (Hibernian) |
| October | Gordon Strachan (Celtic) | Stilian Petrov (Celtic) | Darryl Duffy (Falkirk) |
| November | Tony Mowbray (Hibernian) | Kris Boyd (Kilmarnock) | Aiden McGeady (Celtic) |
| December | Craig Brewster (Inverness CT) | Peter Løvenkrands (Rangers) | Calum Elliot (Hearts) |
| January | Alex McLeish (Rangers) | Kris Boyd (Rangers) | Steven Naismith (Kilmarnock) |
| February | Jimmy Calderwood (Aberdeen) | Maciej Żurawski (Celtic) | Charlie Mulgrew (Dundee United) |
| March | Terry Butcher (Motherwell) | Steven Naismith (Kilmarnock) | Brian McLean (Motherwell) |
| April | Jimmy Calderwood (Aberdeen) | Paul Hartley (Hearts) | Steven Smith (Rangers) |
