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Boxing Opening Day Scottish Premier League Table
Ahead of the start of the 2023/24 season, bettingexpert conducted new research to see who are the best performers in Scottish football on the first matchday of the season. The data was scraped by the OPTA stats gurus and dates back to the 1998/99 to 2022/23 season.
In this Article:
Celtic Top The Opening Day Table
The findings reveal that reigning champions Celtic are the top performers on the first SPL matchday of the season. Based on 25 fixtures dating back to 1998/99, Celtic won 21 of those 25 fixtures with two draws and just one loss. Furthermore, the Hoops have amassed 66 points with an impressive goal difference of +51.
In second place in the opening day table are Celtic’s main rivals, Rangers, who have played in three fewer games on the opening day. In total Rangers have won 15 of the 21 games with five draws and one loss. In total, they have collected 50 points with a goal difference of +21.
Interestingly, Heart of Midlothian, Hibernian and Aberdeen have their own mini-league in the opening day table. A notable nine points separate Hearts in third place and Aberdeen in fifth, boasting a 0.50 points-per-game differential. Other respectable starters are Motherwell and Kilmarnock on 29 and 25 points, respectively.
Ranking on opening day – Scottish Premiership since 1998-99
| Team | Games | Wins | Draws | Losses | GD | Points | Points per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Celtic | 25 | 21 | 3 | 1 | 51 | 66 | 2.64 |
| Rangers | 21 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 27 | 50 | 2.38 |
| Heart of Midlothian | 23 | 12 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 40 | 1.74 |
| Hibernian | 21 | 10 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 35 | 1.67 |
| Aberdeen | 25 | 8 | 7 | 10 | -8 | 31 | 1.24 |
| Motherwell | 25 | 8 | 5 | 12 | -10 | 29 | 1.16 |
| Kilmarnock | 24 | 6 | 7 | 11 | -10 | 25 | 1.04 |
| Dundee United | 21 | 5 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 24 | 1.14 |
| Dundee | 14 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 17 | 1.21 |
Gretna and Hamilton Academical Opening Day Woes
At the other end of the table, Hamilton Academical haven’t given their supporters much to cheer about when it comes to starting the season well. Out of the ten fixtures they’ve taken part in, they have only one win to their name and two draws. However, it’s not all doom and gloom for Hamilton Academical as Gretna finds themselves bottom of the table. It is important to note that Gretna have only played in one opening-day fixture.
Ranking on opening day – Scottish Premiership since 1998-99
| Team | Games | Wins | Draws | Losses | GD | Points | Points per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Johnstone | 18 | 3 | 6 | 9 | -18 | 15 | 0.83 |
| St. Mirren | 15 | 3 | 4 | 8 | -7 | 13 | 0.87 |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 12 | 4 | 1 | 7 | -5 | 13 | 1.08 |
| Ross County | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | -2 | 11 | 1.1 |
| Livingston | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | -5 | 11 | 1.1 |
| Partick Thistle | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 1.43 |
| Dunfermline Athletic | 9 | 1 | 5 | 3 | -4 | 8 | 0.89 |
| Falkirk | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | -1 | 6 | 1.2 |
| Hamilton Academical | 10 | 1 | 2 | 7 | -19 | 5 | 0.5 |
| Gretna | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -4 | 0 | 0 |
Supporters of Celtic and Rangers will naturally be excited by the prospect of the football season returning based on their opening day results. Meanwhile, the likes of Dunfermline Athletic, Falkirk and Hamilton Academical will be wary of their side’s historical performance on the opening day when the season kicks off.
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