The 1997–98 Scottish Premier Division season was the last season of Scottish Premier Division football before the change to the Scottish Premier League

Scottish Premier League

The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...

. It began on 1 August 1997.

Overview

The 1997–98 Scottish Premier Division season ended in success for Celtic

Celtic F.C.

Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...

 who won the title by two points from nearest rivals Rangers

Rangers F.C.

Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...

, beating St. Johnstone on the last day to clinch the title. Heart of Midlothian

Heart of Midlothian F.C.

Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...

 ran Celtic and Rangers very close to winning the title, and led for large spells of the season before falling away towards the end of the season. Hibernian

Hibernian F.C.

Hibernian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Leith, in the north of Edinburgh. They are one of two Scottish Premier League clubs in the city, the other being their Edinburgh derby rivals, Hearts...

 were relegated to the First Division after finishing bottom. As champions, Celtic qualified for the Champions League

UEFA Champions League

The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...

 while Rangers were joined by Kilmarnock

Kilmarnock F.C.

Kilmarnock Football Club is a Scottish football team based in the town of Kilmarnock, Ayrshire. Founded in 1869, "Killie" is the oldest club currently in the Scottish Premier League. Home matches are played at Rugby Park...

 in qualifying for the UEFA Cup

UEFA Cup

The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...

. Third-placed Heart of Midlothian

Heart of Midlothian F.C.

Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...

 qualified for the last-ever Cup Winners' Cup

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a football club competition contested annually by the most recent winners of all European domestic cup competitions. The cup is one of the many inter-European club competitions that have been organised by UEFA. The first competition was held in the 1960–61 season—but...

 as Scottish Cup

Scottish Cup

The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...

 winners.

Rangers were involved in some of the season's big transfers with Lorenzo Amoruso

Lorenzo Amoruso

Lorenzo Pier Luigi Amoruso is a former Italian Assocation footballer who played for seven teams during his footballing career but is perhaps best known for his six-year spell with Glasgow side Rangers...

 and Marco Negri

Marco Negri

Marco Negri is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker for Cosenza, Perugia, Rangers, Bologna and Livorno.- Career :...

 arriving in multi-million pound deals. Paul Gascoigne

Paul Gascoigne

Paul John Gascoigne , commonly referred to as Gazza, is a retired English professional footballer.Playing in the position of midfield, Gascoigne's career included spells at Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Lazio, Rangers, Middlesbrough, Everton and Gansu Tianma, where he scored at least a goal...

 also left the club, heading for Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough F.C.

Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...

 in a £3.5m deal. Negri went on to become only the second player to score five goals in a Scottish Premier Division match, equalling Paul Sturrock

Paul Sturrock

Paul Whitehead Sturrock is a Scottish football manager who, since July 2010, is the manager of Southend United. Until this appointment, Sturrock had most recently been at English League 1 club Plymouth Argyle in a business support role, having been relieved of his managerial duties, until he quit...

's record by netting all five goals in a 5–1 win over Dundee United

Dundee United F.C.

Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...

.

The season began on 2 August with the first goal of the season scored by Dundee United

Dundee United F.C.

Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...

's Kjell Olofsson

Kjell Olofsson

Kjell Olofsson is a Swedish footballer.-Time with Dundee United:Olofsson is perhaps best known for his time with Scottish club Dundee United with whom he joined at the start of the 1996/97 season...

 as they drew 1–1 at newly-promoted St. Johnstone. The season ended on 9 May with Hibernian

Hibernian F.C.

Hibernian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Leith, in the north of Edinburgh. They are one of two Scottish Premier League clubs in the city, the other being their Edinburgh derby rivals, Hearts...

's Stevie Crawford netting a last-minute equaliser away to Kilmarnock

Kilmarnock F.C.

Kilmarnock Football Club is a Scottish football team based in the town of Kilmarnock, Ayrshire. Founded in 1869, "Killie" is the oldest club currently in the Scottish Premier League. Home matches are played at Rugby Park...

 to score the final goal of the season.

Promotion and relegation from 1996–97

Promoted from First Division to Premier League

Scottish Premier League

The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...

• St. Johnstone

Relegated from Premier Division

Scottish Football League Premier Division

The Scottish Football League Premier Division was, from 1975 until 1998, the top division of the Scottish Football League and the entire Scottish football league system...

 to First Division

• Raith Rovers
  Raith Rovers F.C.
  Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in Kirkcaldy, Fife. They are members of the Scottish Football League, currently playing in the First Division, having secured promotion from the Second Division as champions in 2009. Rovers have won one national trophy, the...
  
  

Events

• 23 August: Marco Negri
  Marco Negri
  Marco Negri is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker for Cosenza, Perugia, Rangers, Bologna and Livorno.- Career :...
  
   equals Paul Sturrock
  Paul Sturrock
  Paul Whitehead Sturrock is a Scottish football manager who, since July 2010, is the manager of Southend United. Until this appointment, Sturrock had most recently been at English League 1 club Plymouth Argyle in a business support role, having been relieved of his managerial duties, until he quit...
  
  's record with five goals in one match in the 5–1 win over Dundee United
  Dundee United F.C.
  Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...
  
  
• September: Darren Jackson
  Darren Jackson
  Darren Jackson is a Scottish former international footballer who played predominantly as a striker.- Career :...
  
   undergoes surgery for hydrocephalus
  Hydrocephalus
  Hydrocephalus , also known as "water in the brain," is a medical condition in which there is an abnormal accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid in the ventricles, or cavities, of the brain. This may cause increased intracranial pressure inside the skull and progressive enlargement of the head,...
  
  , returning to action within three months
• 9 May: Celtic
  Celtic F.C.
  Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
  
   win the title after a 2–0 home win over St Johnstone F.C
  St Johnstone F.C.
  St. Johnstone F.C. is a professional football club based in Perth, Scotland. Although it is officially recorded as being formed in 1884, the club did not play its first game until February 1885. The club's home since 1989 has been McDiarmid Park....
  
  

Table

Matches 1–18

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

Matches 19–36

During matches 19–36 each team plays every other team a further two times (home and away).

Top scorers

Player	Goals	Team
Marco Negri Marco Negri Marco Negri is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker for Cosenza, Perugia, Rangers, Bologna and Livorno.- Career :...	32	Rangers Rangers F.C. Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
Kjell Olofsson Kjell Olofsson Kjell Olofsson is a Swedish footballer.-Time with Dundee United:Olofsson is perhaps best known for his time with Scottish club Dundee United with whom he joined at the start of the 1996/97 season...	18	Dundee United Dundee United F.C. Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...
Henrik Larsson Henrik Larsson Henrik Edward Larsson MBE is a retired Swedish footballer and current manager of Landskrona BoIS.Larsson began his career with Högaborgs BK. He moved to Helsingborg, where he was one of the key players when they qualified to Allsvenskan 1993. Larsson then moved to Feyenoord for four years before...	16	Celtic Celtic F.C. Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
Andy Smith Andy Smith (footballer born 1968) Andrew Mark "Andy" Smith , is a retired Scottish football player, who most recently was a temporary manager of Gretna F.C. with Mick Wadsworth.-Career:Smith's first professional club was Airdrieonians...		Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic F.C. Dunfermline Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Dunfermline, Fife, commonly known as just Dunfermline. They currently compete in the Scottish Premier League....
Tommy Coyne Tommy Coyne Thomas "Tommy" Coyne is a former international footballer who played for the Republic of Ireland team due to his Irish ancestry.- Club career :...	14	Motherwell Motherwell F.C. Motherwell Football & Athletic Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. The club compete in the Scottish Premier League and are one of only seven teams to have remained in this league since it was founded in 1998...
Jim Hamilton		Heart of Midlothian Heart of Midlothian F.C. Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
Owen Coyle Owen Coyle Owen Columba Coyle is a Scottish-born Irish international former professional player and professional association football manager . He is currently the manager of Bolton Wanderers....	11	Motherwell
Jorg Albertz Jörg Albertz Jörg Albertz is a retired German professional footballer. Between 1996 and 1998 he played three international games for the German national football team.-Career:...	10	Rangers
Craig Burley Craig Burley Craig William Burley is a Scottish former international association football player who played for clubs including Chelsea, Celtic and Derby County...		Celtic
Billy Dodds Billy Dodds William "Billy" Dodds is a Scottish former professional footballer, he was assistant manager at Dundee, but was made redundant when the club went into administration in October 2010, one of his former clubs...		Aberdeen Aberdeen F.C. Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...
Simon Donnelly Simon Donnelly Simon Thomas Donnelly is a Scottish professional footballer currently with Partick Thistle.-Club career:Donnelly, a wide-sided forward, started his career at Queen's Park but left in 1993 to join Celtic. Donnelly made his league debut towards the end of the 1993–94 season, appearing as a...		Celtic
Neil McCann Neil McCann Neil Docherty McCann is a Scottish professional footballer who is currently playing for Partick Thistle-Club career:...		Heart of Midlothian
George O'Boyle George O'Boyle George O'Boyle is a Northern Irish former professional footballer.O'Boyle, a striker, began his career with Linfield. He left Northern Ireland in 1988 to join French club Bordeaux. The following year, he joined Dunfermline Athletic for £250,000. In 1994, he was signed by St. Johnstone manager Paul...		St. Johnstone
Paul Wright Paul Wright (footballer) Paul Hamilton Wright is a retired Scottish football player. He played for seven clubs in a fourteen-year career, beginning with Aberdeen in 1988. It was in the mid-to-late '90s, however, that he was at the peak of his career, firstly with St. Johnstone and then Kilmarnock. He was transferred from...		Kilmarnock Kilmarnock F.C. Kilmarnock Football Club is a Scottish football team based in the town of Kilmarnock, Ayrshire. Founded in 1869, "Killie" is the oldest club currently in the Scottish Premier League. Home matches are played at Rugby Park...

Source: Soccerbot

Managerial changes

Team	Outgoing manager	Manner of departure	Date of vacancy	Replaced by	Date of appointment
Dundee United Dundee United F.C. Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...	Tommy McLean Tommy McLean Thomas "Tommy" McLean is a Scottish former professional footballer who played for Kilmarnock and Rangers....	Mutual consent	4 September 1997	Paul Sturrock Paul Sturrock Paul Whitehead Sturrock is a Scottish football manager who, since July 2010, is the manager of Southend United. Until this appointment, Sturrock had most recently been at English League 1 club Plymouth Argyle in a business support role, having been relieved of his managerial duties, until he quit...	5 September 1997
St. Johnstone	Paul Sturrock Paul Sturrock Paul Whitehead Sturrock is a Scottish football manager who, since July 2010, is the manager of Southend United. Until this appointment, Sturrock had most recently been at English League 1 club Plymouth Argyle in a business support role, having been relieved of his managerial duties, until he quit...	Resigned	5 September 1997	Sandy Clark Sandy Clark Alexander "Sandy" Clark is a former professional football player and currently a pundit for BBC Scotland. He was a centre forward....	7 September 1997
Motherwell Motherwell F.C. Motherwell Football & Athletic Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. The club compete in the Scottish Premier League and are one of only seven teams to have remained in this league since it was founded in 1998...	Harri Kampman Harri Kampman Harri Kampman is a Finnish football manager and former player who has managed Motherwell, MyPa and AC Oulu.-References:...	Resigned	15 October 1997	Billy Davies Billy Davies William McIntosh "Billy" Davies is a Glasgow-born Scottish football manager, noted for his achievement in the Football League Championship with East Midlands Rivals Derby County and Nottingham Forest and Preston North End which has led him to be described, in 2011, as "probably the best manager at...	15 October 1997
Aberdeen Aberdeen F.C. Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...	Alex Miller Alex Miller Alex Miller is a Scottish association football coach and former player. As a player, he had a 15 year career with Rangers. As a manager, he won the 1991 Scottish League Cup with Hibernian...	Sacked	8 December 1997	Paul Hegarty Paul Hegarty Paul Anthony "Heggie" Hegarty is a Scottish former football player, who was captain of Dundee United during their most successful era in the 1970s and 1980s and won eight international caps for Scotland...  (Caretaker)	8 December 1997
Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic F.C. Dunfermline Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Dunfermline, Fife, commonly known as just Dunfermline. They currently compete in the Scottish Premier League....	Bert Paton Bert Paton Bert Paton is a former Scottish footballer and football manager. He is best remembered for a long association with Dunfermline Athletic....	Resigned	5 January 1998	Dick Campbell Dick Campbell the folk singer-songwriter and film producer|Dick Campbell |Richard "Dick" Campbell is a Scottish association football manager and former player...  (Caretaker)	5 January 1998
Rangers Rangers F.C. Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...	Walter Smith Walter Smith Walter Smith, OBE is a Scottish football manager. His most recent job was at Scottish Premier League club Rangers.Smith had a relatively modest playing career, consisting of two spells with Dundee United which was split by a short time at Dumbarton.A pelvic injury meant he moved in to coaching at...	Resigned	May 1998	Dick Advocaat Dick Advocaat Dirk Nicolaas "Dick" Advocaat is a Dutch football manager and former player currently the manager of the Russia national football team.He has been moderately successful as a football player and as a coach, which included two stints with the Dutch national football team...	June 1998
Celtic Celtic F.C. Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...	Wim Jansen Wim Jansen Wilhelmus Marinus Anthonius Jansen is a Dutch former association football player and manager.- Playing career :He spent most of his playing career with his hometown team, Feyenoord, between 1965 and 1980...	Resigned	May 1998	Jozef Vengloš Jozef Vengloš Dr. Jozef Vengloš is a former Czechoslovak football player and coach. He has a Doctorate in Physical Education, as well as specialising in Psychology...	June 1998