# 2016–17 Scottish League Two

The 2016–17 Scottish League Two (known as Ladbrokes League Two for sponsorship reasons) was the 23rd season in the current format of 10 teams in the fourth-tier of Scottish football. The last placed team (Cowdenbeath) entered a play-off with a team nominated by the Scottish Football Association from outside the SPFL (East Kilbride), to determine which team entered League Two in the 2017–18 season. The fixtures were published on 17 June 2016.
Ten teams contested the league: Annan Athletic, Arbroath, Berwick Rangers, Clyde, Cowdenbeath, Edinburgh City, Elgin City, Forfar Athletic, Montrose and Stirling Albion. Arbroath won the league and were promoted, while Forfar were also promoted via the League One play-offs.

## Teams

The following teams changed division since the 2015–16 season.

### Stadia and locations

| Annan Athletic | Arbroath | Berwick Rangers | Clyde |
| Galabank | Gayfield Park | Shielfield Park | Broadwood Stadium |
| Capacity: 2,504 | Capacity: 6,600 | Capacity: 4,099 | Capacity: 8,086 |
| Cowdenbeath | Annan AthleticArbroathBerwick RangersClydeCowdenbeathEdinburgh CityElgin CityForfar AthleticMontroseStirling Albion2016–17 Scottish League Two (Scotland) | Annan AthleticArbroathBerwick RangersClydeCowdenbeathEdinburgh CityElgin CityForfar AthleticMontroseStirling Albion2016–17 Scottish League Two (Scotland) | Edinburgh City |
| Central Park | Annan AthleticArbroathBerwick RangersClydeCowdenbeathEdinburgh CityElgin CityForfar AthleticMontroseStirling Albion2016–17 Scottish League Two (Scotland) | Annan AthleticArbroathBerwick RangersClydeCowdenbeathEdinburgh CityElgin CityForfar AthleticMontroseStirling Albion2016–17 Scottish League Two (Scotland) | Meadowbank Stadium |
| Capacity: 4,309 | Annan AthleticArbroathBerwick RangersClydeCowdenbeathEdinburgh CityElgin CityForfar AthleticMontroseStirling Albion2016–17 Scottish League Two (Scotland) | Annan AthleticArbroathBerwick RangersClydeCowdenbeathEdinburgh CityElgin CityForfar AthleticMontroseStirling Albion2016–17 Scottish League Two (Scotland) | Capacity: 5,000 |
| Elgin City | Forfar Athletic | Montrose | Stirling Albion |
| Borough Briggs | Station Park | Links Park | Forthbank Stadium |
| Capacity: 4,520 | Capacity: 6,777 | Capacity: 4,936 | Capacity: 3,808 |

### Personnel and kits

| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Annan Athletic | Jim Chapman | Steven Black | Stanno | M&S Engineering Ltd |
| Arbroath | Dick Campbell | Mark Whatley | Pendle | Megatech |
| Berwick Rangers | John Coughlin | Jordyn Sheerin | Zoo Sport | Simple Energy Scotland Ltd |
| Clyde | Jon-Paul McGovern & Peter MacDonald (joint interim) | Scott Ferguson | Hummel | Advance Construction Group (H), Heartfelt Limited (A) |
| Cowdenbeath | Gary Locke | David McGurn | Uhlsport | Subsea Pressure Controls |
| Edinburgh City | Gary Jardine | Dougie Gair | Joma | Hutchinson Networks |
| Elgin City | Jim Weir | Archie MacPhee | EC 1893 | McDonald & Munro |
| Forfar Athletic | Gary Bollan | David Cox | Pendle | Orchard Timber Products |
| Montrose | Stewart Petrie | Paul Watson | Nike | Intervention Rentals |
| Stirling Albion | Dave Mackay | Ross McMillan | Macron | Prudential |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Cowdenbeath | Colin Nish | Sacked | 12 May 2016 | Pre-season | Liam Fox | 23 May 2016 |
| Stirling Albion | Stuart McLaren | Sacked | 24 September 2016 | 9th | Martyn Corrigan (caretaker) | 24 September 2016 |
| Stirling Albion | Martyn Corrigan (caretaker) | Stepped down | 5 November 2016 | 7th | Dave Mackay | 9 November 2016 |
| Montrose | Paul Hegarty | Sacked | 16 November 2016 | 9th | John Holt (caretaker) | 16 November 2016 |
| Montrose | John Holt (caretaker) | Interim ended | 4 December 2016 | 10th | Stewart Petrie | 4 December 2016 |
| Clyde | Barry Ferguson | Resigned | 26 February 2017 | 8th | Bob Malcolm (interim) | 26 February 2017 |
| Clyde | Bob Malcolm (interim) | Interim ended | 2 March 2017 | 9th | Jon-Paul McGovern & Peter MacDonald (joint interim) | 2 March 2017 |
| Cowdenbeath | Liam Fox | Resigned | 6 March 2017 | 10th | Gary Locke | 10 March 2017 |

## League summary
### League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Arbroath (C, P) | 36 | 18 | 12 | 6 | 63 | 36 | +27 | 66 | Promotion to League One |
| 2 | Forfar Athletic (O, P) | 36 | 18 | 10 | 8 | 69 | 49 | +20 | 64 | Qualification to League One play-offs |
| 3 | Annan Athletic | 36 | 18 | 4 | 14 | 61 | 58 | +3 | 58 | Qualification to League One play-offs |
| 4 | Montrose | 36 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 44 | 53 | −9 | 52 | Qualification to League One play-offs |
| 5 | Elgin City | 36 | 14 | 9 | 13 | 67 | 47 | +20 | 51 | |
| 6 | Stirling Albion | 36 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 50 | 59 | −9 | 47 | |
| 7 | Edinburgh City | 36 | 11 | 10 | 15 | 38 | 45 | −7 | 43 | |
| 8 | Berwick Rangers | 36 | 10 | 10 | 16 | 50 | 65 | −15 | 40 | |
| 9 | Clyde | 36 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 49 | 64 | −15 | 38 | |
| 10 | Cowdenbeath (O) | 36 | 9 | 8 | 19 | 40 | 55 | −15 | 35 | Qualification to League Two play-off finals |

### Positions by round

* Leader - Promotion to 2017–18 Scottish League One
* Qualification to League One play-offs
* Qualification to League Two play-offs
The table lists the positions of teams after each week of matches. In order to preserve chronological progress, any postponed matches are not included in the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards. For example, if a match is scheduled for matchday 13, but then postponed and played between days 16 and 17, it will be added to the standings for day 16.
| Team ╲ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 |
| Arbroath | 5 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Forfar Athletic | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Annan Athletic | 1 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Montrose | 9 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Elgin City | 4 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Stirling Albion | 7 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Edinburgh City | 7 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Berwick Rangers | 6 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 |
| Clyde | 3 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 |
| Cowdenbeath | 10 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |

## Results

Teams play each other four times, twice in the first half of the season (home and away) and twice in the second half of the season (home and away), making a total of 36 games.

## Season statistics
### Scoring
#### Top scorers

    As of matches played on 6 May 2017
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Shane Sutherland | Elgin City | 18 |
| 2 | Peter MacDonald | Clyde | 17 |
| 3 | Ryan McCord | Arbroath | 13 |
| 3 | Steven Thomson | Berwick Rangers | 13 |
| 3 | Brian Cameron | Elgin City | 13 |
| 6 | Steven Doris | Arbroath | 12 |
| 6 | Danny Denholm | Forfar Athletic | 12 |
| 8 | David McKenna | Annan Athletic | 11 |
| 8 | Gary Fraser | Montrose | 11 |
| 8 | David Cox | Forfar Athletic | 11 |
| 8 | Josh Peters | Forfar Athletic | 11 |
| 8 | Darren Smith | Stirling Albion | 11 |
Source:

#### Hat-tricks

| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
| Bobby Linn | Arbroath | Stirling Albion | 5–3 | 27 August 2016 |
| Shane Sutherland | Elgin City | Berwick Rangers | 6–0 | 10 December 2016 |
| Shane Sutherland | Elgin City | Edinburgh City | 3–1 | 28 January 2017 |
| Steven Thomson | Berwick Rangers | Annan Athletic | 4–1 | 4 February 2017 |
| David Goodwillie | Clyde | Elgin City | 3–2 | 15 April 2017 |
| Ryan McCord | Arbroath | Elgin City | 3–2 | 29 April 2017 |

### Attendances

| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
| 1 | Annan Athletic | 6,955 | 461 | 241 | 386 | −13.6%$^†$ |
| 2 | Arbroath | 13,078 | 1,731 | 482 | 726 | +11.5%$^†$ |
| 3 | Berwick Rangers | 7,679 | 695 | 302 | 426 | −7.6%$^†$ |
| 4 | Clyde | 9,472 | 738 | 365 | 526 | −14.1%$^†$ |
| 5 | Cowdenbeath | 6,216 | 571 | 258 | 345 | −42.0%$^†$ |
| 6 | Edinburgh City | 7,212 | 590 | 256 | 400 | n/a$^†$ |
| 7 | Elgin City | 12,366 | 1,091 | 519 | 687 | −6.7%$^†$ |
| 8 | Forfar Athletic | 10,861 | 1,564 | 337 | 638 | −8.6%$^†$ |
| 9 | Montrose | 10,901 | 1,324 | 283 | 605 | +7.1%$^†$ |
| 10 | Stirling Albion | 11,508 | 1,748 | 412 | 639 | +3.7%$^†$ |
| | League total | 96,248 | 1,748 | 241 | 537 | −3.2%$^†$ |
Updated to games played on 6 May 2017 Source:

## Awards
### Monthly 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 | Gary Bollan | Forfar Athletic | Josh Peters | Forfar Athletic | |
| September | Gary Bollan | Forfar Athletic | Thomas O'Brien | Forfar Athletic | |
| October | Jim Weir | Elgin City | Shane Sutherland | Elgin City | |
| November | Gary Jardine | Edinburgh City | Marc Laird | Edinburgh City | |
| December | Gary Jardine | Edinburgh City | Andrew Stobie | Edinburgh City | |
| January | Gary Bollan | Forfar Athletic | Shane Sutherland | Elgin City | |
| February | Jim Chapman | Annan Athletic | Gavin Skelton | Annan Athletic | |
| March | Dave Mackay | Stirling Albion | Greg Rutherford | Berwick Rangers | |
| April | Dick Campbell | Arbroath | Ryan McCord | Arbroath | |

### Annual awards
#### League Two Manager of the Season

* The League Two Manager of the Season was awarded to Dick Campbell.

#### League Two Player of the Season

* The League Two Player of the Season was awarded to Shane Sutherland.

#### PFA Scotland Scottish League Two Team of the Year

The PFA Scotland Scottish Championship Team of the Year was:
* Goalkeeper: Chris Smith (Stirling Albion)
* Defence: Ricky Little (Arbroath), Thomas O'Brien (Forfar Athletic), Colin Hamilton (Arbroath), Archie MacPhee (Elgin City)
* Midfield: Brian Cameron (Elgin City), Thomas Reilly (Elgin City), Bobby Linn (Arbroath)
* Attack: Steven Doris (Arbroath), Shane Sutherland (Elgin City), Peter MacDonald (footballer) (Clyde)

## League Two play-offs

The semi-final was contested between the winners of the 2016–17 Highland Football League (Buckie Thistle) and the 2016–17 Lowland Football League (East Kilbride). The winners then played off against the bottom club in League Two (Cowdenbeath).