Rankings of the Scottish Football Teams

Introduction

Some years ago I wrote an article for the London Hibs magazine that attempted to rank the Scottish Football League clubs. This was based on a number of factors including post war league performance and trophies won. It also took account of average attendance, ground capacity and performance in European Competition.

Since then much has changed in particular the creation of the the Scottish Premier League (SPL) and its subsequent expansion to twelve clubs. The Scottish Football League has retained the First, Second and Third Division. Each of the three SFL Divisions has ten clubs. Two Highland League sides, Elgin City and Peterhead, were been admitted to retain the existing structure after the expansion of the SPL.

More changes are possible with the majority of the First Division teams teams seeking to leave the Scottish Football League (SFL) and link up with the Scottish Premier League. This is aimed at the preservation of full-time football outside the top flight. This would pose problems for the rump SFL composed mainly (or exclusively?) of part-time clubs. One possibility is a restructuring into a regionalized setup involving the three Senior leagues: the East of Scotland League, The Highland League and the South of Scotland League. Ideally there might be some sort of 'pyramid' structure including the Junior teams.

The original analysis was based on twenty-two clubs. This update has been expanded to cover all fourty-two SPL and SFL clubs. The method of assessment has been fine-tuned to make it more representative. This is an incomplete preview of the paper intended to be complete at the end of the 2000-01 season. The data for the current season is provisional and will be updated subsequently.

A number of criteria could be used to rank clubs. These include:

  1. League performance
  2. Division
  3. Number of trophies and cups won
  4. Average attendance
  5. Ground capacity and facilities
  6. European performances
  7. Turnover

The first six of these are employed in the provisional analysis to date.

League performance

League performance is probably the best indicator of the overall strength of a football club. it is based on league position over a sustained period. For a variety of reasons it is not possible to use points gained. The number of matches varies over time as does the relative difficulty of gaining points. It is harder to win matches in a ten team Premier Division than a twelve team Premier Division or a sixteen team Division A. There is also the shift from two points to three points for a win to take into account. Finally and most crucially there is the problem of what to do with teams who are not in the top division continuously.

League position gets round all these problems. SPL teams are ranked from 1 to 12 while SFL clubs are ranked from 13 to 42. First Division go from 13 to 22, Second Division from 23 to 32, and Third Division from 33 to 42. A similar approach is used for the former two, three, and four divisional SFL setups. The ranks are then averaged over the time frame to obtain a total ranking. The team with the lowest average rank score is placed first and so on. The average ranking only takes account of the period of time that the club concerned were members of the SFL or the SPL. Membership of Division C of the SFL is taken account of in the rankings.

The time frame used for this exercise is the post war period from 1945-6 to 2000-1. There is a case to take the period since the creation of the Premier Division or for taking the period from the inauguration of the Scottish Football League in 1890-91. The latter would have presented some problems with the coming and going of teams while the latter would have been rather limiting. The scores and ranking for the current 42 SPL and SFL teams are tabulated below.

Ranking

Team

Average Position

Scottish Football League

Scottish Premier League

Other League

Notes

1

Rangers

2.02

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

2

Celtic

3.23

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

3

Hearts

5.82

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

4

Aberdeen

5.88

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

5

Hibs

5.98

1945-1999

1999-2001

 

 

6

Dundee

8.36

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

7

Motherwell

9.21

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

8

Dundee United

11.48

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

9

Partick Thistle

11.57

1945-2001

 

 

 

10

Kilmarnock

11.86

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

11

St Mirren

12.27

1945-2000

2000-2001

 

 

12

Airdrie

14.29

1945-2001

 

 

 

13

Falkirk

14.59

1945-2001

 

 

 

14

Dunfermline

15.82

1945-1998
1999-2000

1998-2001
2000-2001

 

 

15

St Johnstone

16.25

1945-1998

1998-2001

 

 

16

Morton

16.34

1945-2001

 

 

 

17

Clyde

17.46

1945-2001

 

 

 

18

Raith Rovers

17.88

1945-2001

 

 

 

19

Ayr United

19.13

1945-2001

 

 

 

20

Clydebank

19.83

1966-2001

 

1945-1966

Junior football

21

Hamilton Academicals

21.46

1945-2001

 

 

 

22

Queen of the South

22.23

1945-2001

 

 

 

23

East Fife

22.25

1945-2001

 

 

 

24

Stirling Albion

22.73

1946-2001

 

 

 

25

Dumbarton

24.46

1945-2001

 

 

 

26

Inverness

25.57

1994-2001

 

1945-1994

Highland League

27

Livingston

26.44

1974-2001

 

1945-1974

East of Scotland

28

Arbroath

26.73

1945-2001

 

 

 

29

Queens Park

28.20

1945-2001

 

 

 

30

Alloa

28.64

1945-2001

 

 

 

31

Ross County

29.43

1994-2001

 

1945-1994

Highland League

32

Forfar

29.80

1946-2001

 

1945-1946

Eastern League

33

Cowdenbeath

29.86

1945-2001

 

 

 

34

Stenhousemuir

30.20

1945-2001

 

 

 

35

Montrose

30.66

1946-2001

 

1945-1946

Eastern League

36

Stranraer

30.86

1949-2001

 

1945-1949

 

37

Albion Rovers

30.88

1945-2001

 

 

 

38

Brechin City

30.95

1946-2001

 

1945-1946

Eastern League

39

Berwick Rangers

31.39

1951-2001

 

1945-1951

East of Scotland

40

East Stirling

32.79

1946-2001

 

1945-1946

Eastern League

41

Peterhead

37.00

2000-2001

 

1945-2000

Highland League

42

Elgin City

41.00

2000-2001

 

1945-2000

Highland League

Table Number 1: League performance

Details of league performance

Division or League

The league position only tells part of the story. The Division or League that each team has generally resided also is equally important. A team such as Falkirk who finished second in the First Division of the SPL is a world away from the team finishing second bottom in the SPL. Similarly the league position ranking tends to over-rate teams such as Ross County and Inverness who have come into the SFL recently and moved quickly through the divisions.

In this analysis, a team is given a number depending on the Division or League it is in for each year from 1946 to 2001. Teams in the top division score 1 point. Those in the next division down score 2 points and so on. Those outside the SPL and the SFL score 5 points for the Senior leagues and 6 points for the Juniors. The ranking is based on the total number of points.

Aberdeen, Rangers and Celtic top these rankings as they have been in the top division for each of the postwar years.

Rank

Team

Points

Years in top division

Years in SPL/SFL

1

Aberdeen

56

56

56

1

Celtic

56

56

56

1

Rangers

56

56

56

4

Hibs

58

54

56

5

Hearts

60

52

56

6

Motherwell

62

50

56

7

Dundee

69

43

56

8

St. Mirren

71

41

56

9

Dundee United

72

40

56

10

Partick Thistle

76

39

56

11

Kilmarnock

79

34

56

12

Falkirk

83

32

56

13

Airdrie

85

27

56

14

Morton

90

23

56

15

St. Johnstone

91

24

56

16

Dunfermline

92

26

56

17

Raith Rovers

96

20

56

18

Clyde

98

26

56

19

Ayr United

103

13

56

20

Hamilton Academicals

110

6

56

21

Queen of the South

118

13

56

22

East Fife

118

15

56

23

Stirling

123

10

56

24

Dumbarton

123

4

56

25

Arbroath

131

6

56

26

Alloa

136

0

56

27

Queens Park

137

5

56

28

Forfar

139

0

55

29

Stenhousmuir

139

0

56

31

Albion Rovers

143

1

56

30

Cowdenbeath

143

1

56

32

Brechin City

147

0

55

33

Montrose

149

0

55

34

East Stirlingshire

153

1

55

35

Stranraer

154

0

52

36

Berwick Rangers

161

0

51

37

Clydebank

200

3

34

38

Livingston

217

0

26

39

Inverness

267

0

7

40

Ross County

269

0

7

41

Elgin City

279

0

1

41

Peterhead

279

0

1

Table Number 2: League or Division

Details of League or Division

Number of trophies and cups won

The approach used is to count the number of League Championships, wins in the Scottish Cup and in the League Cup. The ranking uses the numbers of League Championships first, Scottish Cup wins second and League Cup victories third. This is again based on the post war period from 1946-7 onwards.

The League Championships included are restricted to the top Division. That is the Scottish Division A from 1946-47 through till 1955-56, Division 1 from 1956-57 until 1974-75, and the Premier Division from 1975-76 until 1997-98. From 1998-99 onwards the Scottish Premier League is taken. There is a case for using lower leagues but that would tend to advantage the teams who a relegated frequently.

Only 17 of the 41 Scottish clubs have won a major trophy so it necessary to include other trophies. The Scottish League Challenge Cup and its predessor the B & Q Cup proves useful here. Also included are the Dryborough Cup and the Anglo-Scottish Cup although neither has any impact on the rankings

The rank list is tabulated below. It should be noted that still only 22 out of the 42 clubs have won a national trophy in the post war period. The 20 teams who have not won one of the above trophies are given a rank of 23rd equal.

Rank

Team

League Championship wins

Scottish Cup wins

League Cup wins

Other trophies

1

Rangers

25

19

21

–

2

Celtic

17

15

11

–

3

Aberdeen

4

7

5

–

4

Hibernian

3

–

2

2

5

Heart of Midlothian

2

2

4

–

6

Dundee United

1

1

2

–

7

Kilmarnock

1

1

–

–

8

Dundee

1

–

3

1

9

Motherwell

–

2

1

–

10

St Mirren

–

2

–

1

11

Dunfermline Athletic

–

2

–

–

12

Clyde

–

2

–

–

13

Falkirk

–

1

–

2

14

East Fife

–

–

3

–

15

Raith Rovers

–

–

1

–

16

Partick Thistle

–

–

1

–

17

Airdrie

–

–

–

2

18

Hamilton

–

–

–

2

19

Alloa

–

–

–

1

20

Stranraer

–

–

–

1

21

Stenhousemuir

–

–

–

1

 50

Totals

55

55

55

13

Table Number 3: Trophies and cups

Other Trophies includes the Scottish League Challenge Cup, the B & Q Cup, the Anglo Scottish Cup, and the Dryborough Cup.

Average home attendances

Average home attendances are a fair measure of the importance of a club. The figures below are for the seasons from 1987-88 through to 2000-01. Ideally, the average attendance over the whole post war period should have been used. This would involve a lot of work collecting data.

It is likely that Premier Division attendances are skewed by attendance in matches against the ‘old firm’. For this reason, the median attendance might be a better guide to underlying support for the team. This is the attendance for the match which there are the same number with higher attendance as there are with lower attendance. This eliminates the unrepresentative matches with high and low attendances. In this case, while there is little difference between the average and median figures, the median gates are used in this exercise.

Rank

Team

Average

Median

1

Rangers

43,314

43,454

2

Celtic

37,799

36,359

3

Aberdeen

13,254

12,389

4

Hearts

13,294

11,952

5

Hibernian

10,673

9,109

6

Dundee United

9,398

8,296

7

Motherwell

7,369

6,126

8

Dunfermline

7,038

6,063

9

Kilmarnock

6,937

5,658

10

Dundee

5,892

5,163

11

St Johnstone

5,220

4,682

12

Falkirk

4,565

3,917

13

St Mirren

4,802

3,836

14

Partick Thistle

3,965

3,283

15

Raith Rovers

3,115

2,752

16

Ayr United

2,396

2,177

17

Airdrie

2,474

2,088

18

Morton

2,326

1,913

19

Ross County

1,940

1,723

20

Inverness

1,972

1,718

21

Hamilton Academicals

1,678

1,388

22

Livingston

1,441

1,327

23

Queen of the South

1,024

967

24

Clyde

1,059

926

25

Clydebank

1,003

869

26

Stirling

977

857

27

Elgin City

894

825

28

East Fife

764

698

29

Dumbarton

738

659

30

Peterhead

677

656

31

Stranraer

658

591

32

Forfar

682

581

33

Alloa

635

551

34

Arbroath

613

555

35

Queens Park

619

545

36

Montrose

515

455

37

Brechin City

484

435

38

Stenhousemuir

485

434

39

Berwick Rangers

454

422

40

Albion Rovers

432

405

41

East Stirlinghire

328

300

42

Cowdenbeath

364

286

Table Number 4: Average attendances

Details of attendances

Stadium capacity and facilities

This is a measure of the ambition of a club and the extent of investment. Total capacity is not a good measure in this context. Here only covered seating with individual seats in compliance with the requirements of the Taylor Report is used as the ranking measure. Standing terracing, as evident at Brockville, Somerset Park, etc. is not included. Neither is ‘open air’ seating that was once commonplace at grounds including Tynecastle, Easter Road, and Love Street but is currently only found at Cappielow. Fully complying grounds indicated with a tick. Scottish Premier League compliant grounds are those that satisfy the Taylor Report and have over 10,000 seats are also indicated.

Hamilton do not have a ground at this stage and are currently ground sharing with Partick at Firhill. Clydebank are sharing with Morton at Cappielow. The two homeless clubs are place bottom equal in the rankings.

Rank

Team

Covered seats

Open seats

Standing areas

Total capacity

Taylor Report

SPL

1

Celtic

60,506

–

–

60,506

Ö

Ö

2

Queens Park

52,046

–

–

52,046

Ö

Ö

3

Rangers

50,444

–

–

50,444

Ö

Ö

4

Aberdeen

21,622

–

–

21,622

Ö

Ö

5

Kilmarnock

18,128

–

–

18,128

Ö

Ö

6

Hearts

18,000

–

–

18,000

Ö

Ö

7

Hibernian

17,250

–

–

17,250

Ö

Ö

8

Dundee United

14,255

–

–

14,255

Ö

Ö

9

Motherwell

13,450

–

–

13,450

Ö

Ö

10

Dunfermline

12,565

–

–

12,565

Ö

Ö

11

Dundee

11,850

–

–

11,850

Ö

Ö

12

St Mirren

10,778

–

–

10,778

Ö

Ö

13

St Johnstone

10,723

–

–

10,723

Ö

Ö

14

Airdrie

10,170

–

–

10,170

Ö

Ö

15

Raith Rovers

10,101

–

–

10,101

Ö

Ö

16

Livingston

10,004

–

–

10,004

Ö

Ö

17

Partick Thistle

8,397

–

6,141

14,538

Ö

×

18

Clyde

8,029

–

–

8,039

Ö

×

19

Stirling Albion

3,808

–

1,300

5,108

×

×

20

Queen of the South

3,509

–

2,903

6,412

×

×

21

Greenock Morton

2,900

2,990

2,000

7,890

×

×

22

Ross County

2,508

–

1,300

3,808

×

×

23

Inverness

2,280

–

3,300

5,508

×

×

24

East Fife

2,000

–

–

2,000

Ö

×

25

Dumbarton

2,000

–

–

2,000

Ö

×

26

Stranraer

1,830

–

3,770

5,600

×

×

27

Falkirk

1,700

–

10,740

13,401

×

×

28

Ayr United

1,549

–

8,694

10,243

×

×

29

Brechin City

1,519

–

2,441

3,960

×

×

30

Cowdenbeath

1,431

–

2,939

4,370

×

×

32

Montrose

1,338

–

3,000

4,338

×

×

33

Peterhead

1,000

–

2,250

3,250

×

×

34

Arbroath

715

–

5,773

6,488

×

×

35

Forfar

711

–

3,893

4,606

×

×

36

Stenhousemuir

626

–

1,750

2,376

×

×

37

Albion Rovers

538

–

1,958

2,496

×

×

38

Elgin

475

–

5,525

6,000

×

×

39

Alloa Athletic

400

–

2,700

3,100

×

×

40

East Stirlingshire

280

–

536

816

×

×

41

Hamilton Academicals

Groundshare with Partick Thistle

×

×

41

Clydebank

Groundshare with Morton

×

×

Table Number 5: Ground capacity and conditions

European results

Performance in European competitions is another measure of the stature of a club. EUFA has a complex ‘coefficient’ system to rank clubs and countries. This is used to allocate places in the Champions’ League and the EUFA cup and seedings in all competitions. The system is based on results and appears to take no account of the stage of competition or the difficulty of the opposition. No weighting is given to the number times a club has qualified for a European competition since this would effectively be assessing league performance and numbers of cup won. These have already been taken in account.

The ranking here is based on a coefficient calculated from two component factors. First is a index based the best performance acheived in European Competitions by each of the sixteen Scottish Teams that have appeared in EUFA competitions. Second is an index based on the number of matches played in EUFA competitions.

The following points are allocated for the best run in each tournament commencing with 16 points for a win, 8 points for runners up, 4 points for beaten semi-finalists, etc. etc. All data applies prior to the creation of the Champions’ League and the recent expansion of the EUFA cup.

The tournaments are weighted according to status. The Champions (European) Cup is weighted at 50%, the EUFA Cup and its predecessor the Inter City Fairs Cup at 25%, the European Cup Winners Cup at 20% and the Inter-Toto Cup at 5%.

The number of ties played by each club is enumerated irrespective of tournament.

Each of these is indices is added up and then each entry is divided through by the column total to create a coefficient. The two coefficients are added up to produce the total coefficient.

Rank

Team

Best run

Matches

Coefficient 1

Coefficient 2

Total

1

Celtic

8.900

169

0.2019

0.2685

0.4704

2

Rangers

5.000

207

0.2473

0.1508

0.3981

3

Dundee United

4.550

102

0.1219

0.1373

0.2591

4

Aberdeen

3.700

93

0.1111

0.1116

0.2227

5

Hibs

3.500

71

0.0848

0.1056

0.1904

6

Dundee

3.350

28

0.0335

0.1011

0.1345

7

Dunfermline

1.200

42

0.0502

0.0362

0.0864

8

Hearts

0.875

47

0.0562

0.0264

0.0825

9

Kilmarnock

0.850

28

0.0335

0.0256

0.0591

10

St Mirren

0.300

14

0.0167

0.0090

0.0258

11

St Johnstone

0.300

10

0.0119

0.0090

0.0210

12

Partick Thistle

0.175

8

0.0096

0.0053

0.0148

13

Motherwell

0.150

8

0.0096

0.0045

0.0141

14

Raith Rovers

0.150

6

0.0072

0.0045

0.0117

15

Airdrie

0.075

2

0.0024

0.0023

0.0047

16

Morton

0.075

2

0.0024

0.0023

0.0047

 

 

33.15

837

1

1

2

Table Number 6: European coefficients

European performance

The higher weighting given to Celtic’s European Cup win in 1967, as opposed to Rangers’ Cup Winners Cup success in 1972, ensures that they finish ahead in this factor. Similarly Dundee United’s runs in the European Cup and the EUFA Cup outscores Aberdeen Cup Winners’ Cup victory. Hibernian and Dundee score on the basis of performances in the 1950s and 1960s.

Turnover and other factors

Another factor which might be considered is turnover. Turnover is a variable liked by accountants and bankers. It comprises income from all sources including season ticket sales, gate receipts, commercial income, transfer fees, etc. Such information for Premier League clubs has been collated and published by Price Waterhouse. The problem with such approaches concerns the creativity of accountants. For example Hibs for many years had their affairs split into three companies, the club responsible for the team, the property company responsible for the stadium, and a separate hospitality company to cover catering. Would the turnover of both companies be included? What if the property company carried out some non-football related transactions? This has recently being resolved with the ground transfered back to the football club and the catering also handed over.

The figures are currently awaited and will be included in the analysis when available.

Other potential measures excluded are number of season tickets holders, times on live television, number of column centimetres in the Daily Record etc.

Overall ranking

If the ranks for the vaious categories are aggregated, the following results are obtained. Where the sum of ranks produces a tie, this is resolved by use of the current league performance as a tie breaker.

Rank

Team

League

Division

Trophies

Gates

Ground

Europe

Turnover

Overall

1

Rangers

1

1

1

1

3

2

 

9

2

Celtic

2

1

2

2

1

1

 

9

3

Aberdeen

4

1

3

3

4

4

 

19

4

Hibs

5

4

4

5

7

5

 

30

5

Hearts

3

5

5

4

6

8

 

31

6

Dundee United

8

9

6

7

8

3

 

41

7

Dundee

6

7

8

10

11

6

 

48

8

Kilmarnock

10

11

7

9

5

9

 

51

9

Motherwell

7

6

9

7

9

13

 

51

10

St. Mirren

11

8

10

13

12

10

 

64

11

Dunfermline

14

16

11

8

10

7

 

66

12

Partick Thistle

9

10

16

14

17

13

 

79

13

St. Johnstone

15

15

22

11

13

11

 

87

14

Airdrie

12

13

17

17

14

15

 

88

15

Raith Rovers

18

17

15

15

15

13

 

93

16

Falkirk

13

12

13

12

27

17

 

94

17

Clyde

17

18

12

24

18

17

 

106

18

Morton

16

14

22

18

21

16

 

107

19

Ayr United

19

19

22

16

28

17

 

121

20

Queen of the South

22

21

22

23

20

17

 

125

21

East Fife

23

22

14

25

24

17

 

125

22

Stirling

24

23

22

26

19

17

 

131

23

Queens Park

29

27

22

35

2

17

 

132

24

Hamilton Academicals

21

20

18

21

41

17

 

138

25

Dumbarton

25

24

22

29

24

17

 

141

26

Livingston

27

38

22

22

16

17

 

142

27

Inverness

26

39

22

20

23

17

 

147

28

Ross County

31

40

22

19

22

17

 

151

29

Arbroath

28

25

22

34

34

17

 

160

30

Stranraer

35

33

20

31

26

17

 

162

31

Clydebank

20

37

22

25

41

17

 

162

32

Alloa

30

26

19

33

39

17

 

164

33

Forfar

32

28

22

32

35

17

 

166

34

Stenhousemuir

34

29

21

38

36

17

 

175

35

Cowdenbeath

33

31

22

42

30

17

 

175

36

Brechin City

39

32

22

37

29

17

 

176

37

Montrose

36

34

22

36

32

17

 

177

38

Berwick Rangers

37

36

22

39

31

17

182

39

Albion Rovers

38

30

22

40

37

17

 

184

40

Peterhead

41

41

22

30

33

17

 

184

41

Elgin City

42

41

22

27

38

17

 

187

42

East Stirlingshire

40

35

22

41

40

17

 

195

Table Number 8: Overall rankings

Analysis

What is surprising is the degree of similarity in the ranking for the different categories. However, in retrospect, it is not that much of a surprise since the factors will be associated. Teams who perform consistently well in the league might be expected to win trophies and to build up a large support. Similarly, a large stadium is required for large attendances.

There are few problems in identifying the top five. Rangers, Celtic, Aberdeen, Hearts and Hibernian all achieve a top five ranking on most of the factors. Hibernian’s best spell came in the immediate post war period which produced three championships, three second places and one third place in seven years. This success culminated in a semi-final place in the inaugural European Cup. Hearts had a good run in the late 1950s with two championships. Aberdeen’s had success in the early 1980s with three Championships and a European Cup Winners Cup victory. Finally Celtic have a record nine Championships in a row in the late 1960s to early 1970s which Rangers equalled a few years back. Celtic won the European Cup in 1967 while Rangers have gained the Cup Winners Cup in 1973.

Of the teams outside the top five, Dundee United remain an enigma. They were initially a part-time team overshadowed by Dundee but gained promotion in 1960. From 1977 to 1993 they enjoyed 17 successive top five finishes in the league, including the championship in 1983. They also reached the European Cup semi-final and the EUFA Cup Final. They are held back in the rankings by a poor record in the 1940s and 1950s and by limited support and small stadium. Kilmarnock have come a long way recently largely due to good support and a modernized stadium. Rugby Park is well placed in the rankings partially because it was rebuilt in one season, whereas teams like Hibernian and Hearts have work to do to create 20,000 plus capacity stadiums. Other stadiums which are nearer completion such as Motherwell and Dundee United have limited space available for expansion.

The twelve members of the Scottish Premier League are all in the top thirteen places in the analysis. Partick Thistle edged out St. Johnstone for twelth place. The fact that Thistle are presently in the Second Division and have had serious financial troubles recently suggests that the current SPL is a strong as it is likely to be. Livingston look likely to make it to the SPL for next season but will face a struggle to survive given their level of support

Conclusions

Of the Rangers-Celtic debates, Rangers have the edge in terms of trophies and league position while Celtic now have a larger stadium. Because of this extra capacity, it is likely that Celtic can be expected to edge ahead of Rangers in attendances within the next few years. Aberdeen are secure in third place but have been in decline in recent years. Their attendances are higher than either Hearts or Hibs at this stage and their stadium remains the fourth biggest in the SPL.

Hibernian and Hearts are locked togeher in a battle for fourth place. Hearts are let down by the limited capacity of Tynecastle and also recently by some rather inconsistent league performances as well as European form. They spent most of the early 1980s as a yo-yo team alternating promotion and relegation. They have also spent much of the early 1990s in a perennial struggle against relegation. Hearts have some way to go to establish themselves as Scotland’s fourth biggest club leaving aside their claim to be the third biggest team (potentially)!

John Lowe

 

 

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