Scottish Championship set for 'people carrier Friday'

BBC News

02-05-2025

Scottish Championship season finale: Friday, 2 May (19:45 BST)Falkirk v Hamilton AcademicalVenue: Falkirk Stadium, Falkirk Coverage: BBC Scotland, BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website & appLivingston v Partick ThistleVenue: The Home of the Set Fare Arena, LivingstonCoverage: BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website & app
Not so much Helicopter Sunday, which famously decided the destination of the 2004-05 Scottish Premier League trophy, as People Carrier Friday.Lurking on a quiet side street somewhere in a Central Belt sweet spot between Falkirk and Livingston, the occupants of a comfortably sized motor car will be tuning in with the rest of the nation in anticipation of a crashing crescendo in Scotland's second tier. In the boot, the Championship trophy, but where will it be opening live on BBC Scotland?
Weren't leaders Falkirk title certainties?
Should Falkirk start banging the goals in against relegated Hamilton Academical, the ignition will fire and the silverware will start the journey north. A win of any kind for Falkirk at home to the beleaguered Accies will almost certainly be enough to ensure the Bairns are crowned champions given their superior goal difference.Not long ago, David Martindale, manager of chasing Livingston, had publicly conceded the title to John McGlynn's side.However, another stumble from Falkirk – they have lost their latest two matches – and the route for the trophy will potentially change to West Lothian.
What will swing it Livingston's way?
Should Falkirk lose or draw to Hamilton then suddenly the door is open for a Livingston title win if Martindale's side secure a fifth consecutive victory by beating visitors Partick Thistle.Defeating the fourth-placed Jags will be easier said than done, of course. It was only last week – in front of the Sportscene cameras – that Thistle inflicted a 2-1 defeat on Falkirk, with the winning goal coming in the 98th minute. Just another electrifying twist in a division where drama is the regular currency.
What if it comes down to goal difference?
If Falkirk and Livingston both win, they will each finish the season on 73 points. In terms of goal difference, Falkirk have the big advantage of +37 compared to +29 for Livingston. Livingston would need to pound Thistle into the stone age for goal difference to be a factor.This scenario is even less likely given the fact Thistle are not only supporting actors in this end of season blockbuster, they have their own significant plot at play.
Will Thistle or Rovers secure play-off place?
The Glasgow side currently sit in the final play-off place – on 52 points – and a victory over Livingston would seal the deal.A Thistle defeat, though, would leave the door ajar for Raith Rovers – currently on 50 points – to leapfrog them into a Premiership play-off quarter-final against third-top Ayr United. Barry Robson's side are away to Queen's Park, who are third bottom but safe from relegation.A draw for Thistle should also be enough for the Glasgow side given they have a goal difference of +4 compared to Rovers' zero. Clearly, though, this margin is not altogether insurmountable. If the Kirkcaldy side can whip themselves into a goal frenzy at the national stadium against a Queen's Park side who are without a win in 11 matches, then it could become interesting.If Thistle were to draw and Rovers were to win 4-0 then the Fifers would finish fourth. The goal difference between the sides would be the same, so it would go down to which side had scored the most goals over the course of the season - and that would be Rovers.In such a scenario, the only way Thistle could draw and still remain fourth is if they somehow managed to score more than Rovers on the night. For example, a wildly improbable 5-5 draw.In the admittedly highly unlikely event that Thistle and Rovers do finish level on points, goal difference and goals scored then it would come down to the points tally in the four matches between the sides over the course of this season. That would result in Rovers finishing fourth in the table as they have amassed eight compared to two for Partick Thistle.We are getting into the minutiae of extreme improbabilities now, but in the notoriously unpredictable Championship, on a night of potential carnage, all bases need to be covered.
And what about relegation?
The points deduction for Hamilton, confirmed after their appeal was dismissed on Thursday, has drawn the sting from the relegation battle.Accies are in a malaise and League 1 is their destiny after a 15-point deduction left them eight points adrift at the bottom when they would have otherwise been safe in seventh place. Second-bottom Airdrieonians – who had looked doomed for the majority of this season until a run of only four defeats in 16 since the turn of the year – will have a second chance at Championship life next season if they manage to see off their play-off adversaries from League 1.That too is in the melting pot, with Cove Rangers, Queen of the South, Alloa Athletic and Stenhousemuir all with the potential to finish fourth in the third tier and face the Diamonds in the semi-finals going into their final games on Saturday.