# 2015–16 Scottish Premiership

The 2015–16 Scottish Premiership (known as the Ladbrokes Premiership for sponsorship reasons) was the third season of the Scottish Premiership, the highest division of Scottish football. The season began on 1 August 2015. Celtic were the defending champions.
Twelve teams contested the league: Aberdeen, Celtic, Dundee, Dundee United, Hamilton Academical, Heart of Midlothian, Inverness CT, Kilmarnock, Motherwell, Partick Thistle, Ross County and St Johnstone.

## Teams

Promoted from Scottish Championship
* Heart of Midlothian
Relegated from Scottish Premiership
* St Mirren

### Stadia and locations

| Aberdeen | Celtic | Dundee | Dundee United |
| Pittodrie Stadium | Celtic Park | Dens Park | Tannadice Park |
| Capacity: 20,897 | Capacity: 60,355 | Capacity: 11,506 | Capacity: 14,229 |
| Hamilton Academical | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | Heart of Midlothian |
| New Douglas Park | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Capacity: 6,078 | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | Capacity: 17,529 |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | Kilmarnock |
| Caledonian Stadium | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | Rugby Park |
| Capacity: 7,800 | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | AberdeenDundee UtdDundeeHeart of MidlothianInverness Caledonian ThistleKilmarnockRoss CountySt. JohnstoneCelticHamiltonMotherwellPartick Thistleclass=notpageimage| Location of teams in 2015–16 Scottish Premiership | Capacity: 18,128 |
| Motherwell | Partick Thistle | Ross County | St Johnstone |
| Fir Park | Firhill Stadium | Victoria Park | McDiarmid Park |
| Capacity: 13,677 | Capacity: 10,102 | Capacity: 6,541 | Capacity: 10,696 |

### Personnel and kits

| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Aberdeen | Derek McInnes | Ryan Jack | Adidas | Saltire Energy |
| Celtic | Ronny Deila | Scott Brown | New Balance | Magners |
| Dundee | Paul Hartley | James McPake | Puma | Kilmac Energy |
| Dundee United | Gordon Young (interim) | Seán Dillon | Nike | Calor |
| Hamilton Academical | Martin Canning | Michael McGovern | Adidas | Nevis (H), Scotia Aid (A) |
| Heart of Midlothian | Robbie Neilson | Alim Öztürk | Puma | Save the Children |
| Inverness CT | John Hughes | Richie Foran | Carbrini | Subway |
| Kilmarnock | Lee Clark | Mark Connolly | Erreà | QTS |
| Motherwell | Mark McGhee | Keith Lasley | Macron | Cash Converters |
| Partick Thistle | Alan Archibald | Abdul Osman | Joma | Kingsford Capital Management |
| Ross County | Jim McIntyre | Andrew Davies | Carbrini | Stanley CRC Evans Offshore |
| St Johnstone | Tommy Wright | Dave Mackay | Joma | Invest in Perth |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Motherwell | Ian Baraclough | Sacked | 23 September 2015 | 10th | Mark McGhee | 13 October 2015 |
| Dundee United | Jackie McNamara | Sacked | 26 September 2015 | 11th | Mixu Paatelainen | 14 October 2015 |
| Kilmarnock | Gary Locke | Resigned | 30 January 2016 | 11th | Lee McCulloch (interim) | 30 January 2016 |
| Kilmarnock | Lee McCulloch | End of interim | 15 February 2016 | 10th | Lee Clark | 15 February 2016 |
| Dundee United | Mixu Paatelainen | Sacked | 4 May 2016 | 12th | Gordon Young (interim) | 4 May 2016 |

## Tournament format and regulations
### Basic

In the initial phase of the season, the 12 teams will play a round-robin tournament whereby each team plays each one of the other teams three times. After 33 games, the league splits into two sections of six teams, with each team playing each other in that section. The league attempts to balance the fixture list so that teams in the same section play each other twice at home and twice away, but sometimes this is impossible. A total of 228 matches will be played, with 38 matches played by each team.

### Promotion and relegation

Heart of Midlothian were promoted as 2014–15 Scottish Championship winners. On 2 May, bottom club Dundee United were defeated 2–1 away to their city rivals Dundee, a defeat which confined them to relegation of the Championship. Craig Wighton, a local Dundee fan, scored the winning goal in the 92nd minute of the game. The champion of that league will be promoted to the Premiership for the 2016–17 season. The team that finishes 11th in the Premiership will play the winner of the Championship playoffs (teams that finish 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the Championship) in two playoff games, with the winner securing a Premiership spot for the 2016–17 season.

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Celtic (C) | 38 | 26 | 8 | 4 | 93 | 31 | +62 | 86 | Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round |
| 2 | Aberdeen | 38 | 22 | 5 | 11 | 62 | 48 | +14 | 71 | Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round |
| 3 | Heart of Midlothian | 38 | 18 | 11 | 9 | 59 | 40 | +19 | 65 | Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round |
| 4 | St Johnstone | 38 | 16 | 8 | 14 | 58 | 55 | +3 | 56 | |
| 5 | Motherwell | 38 | 15 | 5 | 18 | 47 | 63 | −16 | 50 | |
| 6 | Ross County | 38 | 14 | 6 | 18 | 55 | 61 | −6 | 48 | |
| 7 | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 38 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 54 | 48 | +6 | 52 | |
| 8 | Dundee | 38 | 11 | 15 | 12 | 53 | 57 | −4 | 48 | |
| 9 | Partick Thistle | 38 | 12 | 10 | 16 | 41 | 50 | −9 | 46 | |
| 10 | Hamilton Academical | 38 | 11 | 10 | 17 | 42 | 63 | −21 | 43 | |
| 11 | Kilmarnock (O) | 38 | 9 | 9 | 20 | 41 | 64 | −23 | 36 | Qualification for the Premiership play-off final |
| 12 | Dundee United (R) | 38 | 8 | 7 | 23 | 45 | 70 | −25 | 28 | Relegation to the Championship |
* ↑ Teams play each other three times (33 matches), before the league is split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six).
* ↑ Dundee United were deducted three points for fielding an ineligible player in their win over Inverness Caledonian Thistle on 6 May 2016.

## Results
### Matches 1–22

Teams play each other twice, once at home and once away.
| Home \ Away | ABE | CEL | DND | DUN | HAM | HOM | INV | KIL | MOT | PAR | ROS | STJ |
| Aberdeen | | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 1–5 |
| Celtic | 3–1 | | 6–0 | 5–0 | 8–1 | 0–0 | 4–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 |
| Dundee | 0–2 | 0–0 | | 2–1 | 4–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–1 |
| Dundee United | 0–1 | 1–3 | 2–2 | | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 |
| Hamilton Academical | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 4–0 | | 3–2 | 3–4 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–3 | 2–4 |
| Heart of Midlothian | 1–3 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–0 | | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 4–3 |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 2–0 | | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 |
| Kilmarnock | 0–4 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 2–0 | | 0–1 | 2–5 | 0–4 | 2–1 |
| Motherwell | 1–2 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 1–3 | 1–0 | | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 |
| Partick Thistle | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 0–4 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | | 1–0 | 2–0 |
| Ross County | 2–0 | 1–4 | 5–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 3–0 | 1–0 | | 2–3 |
| St Johnstone | 3–4 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | |

### Matches 23–33

Teams play every other team once (either at home or away).
| Home \ Away | ABE | CEL | DND | DUN | HAM | HOM | INV | KIL | MOT | PAR | ROS | STJ |
| Aberdeen | | 2–1 | 1–0 | | 3–0 | | | 2–1 | | | | 1–1 |
| Celtic | | | 0–0 | | | 3–1 | 3–0 | | | | 2–0 | 3–1 |
| Dundee | | | | | | 0–1 | 1–1 | | 2–2 | | 5–2 | 2–0 |
| Dundee United | 0–1 | 1–4 | 2–2 | | | 2–1 | 0–2 | 5–1 | | | | |
| Hamilton Academical | | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | | 0–0 | | | 0–1 | 1–2 | | |
| Heart of Midlothian | 2–1 | | | | | | | 1–0 | 6–0 | 1–0 | | 0–3 |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 3–1 | | | | 0–1 | 0–0 | | | 1–2 | 0–0 | | |
| Kilmarnock | | 0–1 | 0–0 | | 0–1 | | 2–1 | | | | 0–2 | 3–0 |
| Motherwell | 2–1 | 1–2 | | 2–1 | | | | 0–2 | | 3–1 | 1–2 | |
| Partick Thistle | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2–4 | 1–0 | | | | 0–0 | | | | |
| Ross County | 2–3 | | | 0–3 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 0–3 | | | 1–0 | | |
| St Johnstone | | | | 0–1 | 0–0 | | 1–0 | | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | |

### 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 scorers

    As of matches played on 15 May 2016
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Leigh Griffiths | Celtic | 31 |
| 2 | Kane Hemmings | Dundee | 21 |
| 3 | Adam Rooney | Aberdeen | 20 |
| 4 | Louis Moult | Motherwell | 15 |
| 4 | Liam Boyce | Ross County | 15 |
| 6 | Kris Doolan | Partick Thistle | 14 |
| 6 | Steven MacLean | St Johnstone | 14 |
| 8 | Billy Mckay | Dundee United | 12 |
| 8 | Juanma | Hearts | 12 |
| 10 | Miles Storey | Inverness CT | 11 |

## Awards

| Month | Manager of the Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Player of the Month | Ref. |
| Month | Manager | Club | Player | Club | Ref. |
| August | Derek McInnes | Aberdeen | Leigh Griffiths | Celtic | |
| September | Derek McInnes | Aberdeen | Niall McGinn | Aberdeen | |
| October | Ronny Deila | Celtic | Leigh Griffiths | Celtic | |
| November | Alan Archibald | Partick Thistle | Michael O'Halloran | St Johnstone | |
| December | Mark McGhee | Motherwell | Liam Boyce | Ross County | |
| January | Ronny Deila | Celtic | Kane Hemmings | Dundee | |
| February | Mixu Paatelainen | Dundee United | Paul Paton | Dundee United | |
| March | Mark McGhee | Motherwell | Jackson Irvine | Ross County | |
| April | John Hughes | Inverness CT | Patrick Roberts | Celtic | |

## Premiership play-offs

The quarter-finals were contested between the 3rd and 4th placed teams in the Scottish Championship; Hibernian and Raith Rovers. Hibernian, the winners, advanced to the semi-finals to face the 2nd placed team in the Championship; Falkirk. Falkirk, the winners, advanced to the final to play-off against the 11th placed team in the Premiership, Kilmarnock, with the winners securing a place in the 2016–17 Scottish Premiership.

### Final
#### First leg
#### Second leg
## Attendances

Celtic FC drew the highest average home attendance in the 2015–16 edition of the Scottish Premiership.
| # | Football club | Home games | Average attendance |
| 1 | Celtic FC | 19 | 44,850 |
| 2 | Heart of Midlothian | 19 | 16,423 |
| 3 | Aberdeen FC | 19 | 13,094 |
| 4 | Dundee United | 19 | 7,969 |
| 5 | Dundee FC | 19 | 6,122 |
| 6 | Motherwell FC | 19 | 4,912 |
| 7 | Ross County FC | 19 | 4,034 |
| 8 | Kilmarnock FC | 19 | 3,993 |
| 9 | St. Johnstone FC | 19 | 3,880 |
| 10 | Partick Thistle FC | 19 | 3,800 |
| 11 | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 19 | 3,754 |
| 12 | Hamilton Academical FC | 19 | 3,027 |