1985–86 Scottish Premier Division

Scottish Premier Division
Season1985–86
ChampionsCeltic
5th Premier Division title
34th Scottish title
European CupCeltic
UEFA CupHeart of Midlothian
Dundee United
Rangers
Cup Winners' CupAberdeen
Matches played180
Goals scored498 (2.77 per match)
Top goalscorerAlly McCoist (24)

Celtic won the 1985–86 Scottish Premier Division and became champions in one of the closest finishes in League history. On the final day of the season Hearts were leading Celtic by two points - a draw against Dundee would have been sufficient to see them win their first League title since the 1959–60 season. Hearts lost 2–0 to Dundee at Dens Park thanks to two late goals by substitute Albert Kidd, while Celtic beat St Mirren 5–0 at Love Street. As a result, Celtic won the league on goal difference.[1]

Relegation was suspended due to league reconstruction, therefore Motherwell and Clydebank retained their Premier Division status.

Much of the season was only viewed by fans in stadiums as a dispute between television companies and the Scottish Football League resulted in no televised Scottish league football between September 1985 and March 1986.[2]

Table

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Celtic (C) 36 20 10 6 67 38 +29 50 Qualification for the European Cup first round
2 Heart of Midlothian 36 20 10 6 59 33 +26 50 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
3 Dundee United 36 18 11 7 59 31 +28 47
4 Aberdeen 36 16 12 8 62 31 +31 44 Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round
5 Rangers 36 13 9 14 53 45 +8 35 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
6 Dundee 36 14 7 15 45 51 −6 35
7 St Mirren 36 13 5 18 42 63 −21 31
8 Hibernian 36 11 6 19 49 63 −14 28
9 Motherwell 36 7 6 23 33 66 −33 20
10 Clydebank 36 6 8 22 29 77 −48 20
Source: Rsssf
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions

Results

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Matches 1–18

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During matches 1–18 each team plays every other team twice (home and away).

Home \ Away ABE CEL CLY DND DNU HOM HIB MOT RAN STM
Aberdeen 4–1 3–1 4–1 3–2 3–0 3–0 1–1 1–0 1–1
Celtic 2–1 2–0 2–1 0–3 0–1 1–1 2–1 1–1 2–0
Clydebank 2–1 0–2 4–0 1–2 1–0 2–4 1–1 0–1 1–1
Dundee 1–3 0–2 2–0 0–3 1–1 1–0 3–1 3–2 2–1
Dundee United 1–1 1–0 2–1 2–0 1–1 2–2 3–0 1–1 5–0
Heart of Midlothian 1–0 1–1 4–1 1–1 2–0 2–1 3–0 3–0 3–0
Hibernian 1–1 0–5 5–0 2–1 0–1 0–0 1–0 1–3 2–3
Motherwell 1–1 1–2 0–0 1–3 0–1 2–1 2–0 0–3 3–1
Rangers 0–3 3–0 0–0 0–1 1–0 3–1 1–2 1–0 3–0
St Mirren 1–0 1–2 0–2 1–0 1–0 6–2 1–3 4–1 2–1
Source: Rsssf
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Matches 19–36

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During matches 19–36 each team plays every other team twice (home and away).

Home \ Away ABE CEL CLY DND DNU HOM HIB MOT RAN STM
Aberdeen 0–1 4–1 0–0 0–1 0–1 4–0 3–2 1–1 3–1
Celtic 1–1 2–0 2–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 3–2 2–0 1–1
Clydebank 0–6 0–5 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–3 1–1 2–1 0–2
Dundee 0–0 1–3 4–0 0–1 2–0 3–1 4–0 2–1 3–1
Dundee United 2–1 4–2 4–0 0–0 0–3 4–0 4–0 1–1 1–2
Heart of Midlothian 1–1 1–1 1–0 3–1 1–1 3–1 2–0 3–1 3–0
Hibernian 0–1 2–2 2–3 1–0 1–2 1–2 4–0 1–1 3–0
Motherwell 0–1 0–2 3–0 2–2 2–0 1–3 3–1 1–0 1–2
Rangers 1–1 4–4 4–2 5–0 1–1 0–2 3–1 2–0 2–0
St Mirren 1–1 0–5 3–0 1–2 1–1 0–1 0–2 1–0 2–1
Source: Rsssf
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

References

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  1. ^ Paul, Ian (5 May 1986). "Celtic keep bargain - with a little help from Dundee". Glasgow Herald. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  2. ^ "Dens memories reduce former Hearts manager to tears - Scotsman.com Sport". Archived from the original on 2012-10-08. Retrieved 2009-04-05.