SPL Matchday 10: The derby cometh

By: Ian Rose | October 19th, 2007

Well, it’s here, the first Old Firm derby of the season. No one outside of the great land of Scotland may care much, but there happen to be five other games going on as well. Here’s a breakdown of what’s in store this weekend the Scottish Premier League.

Rangers v. Celtic, Saturday 12:30pm
The first OF derby of the season comes to Ibrox. Rangers sit three points behind Celtic and in the uncomfortably familiar position of trailing both the Hoops and a team from Edinburgh. This international break gave both the Glasgow sides a few bumps and bruises, but Celtic came out the worse of the two, and Wee Gordon Strachan will be waiting until the last possibly minute to choose his positions, especially right back. I have to give a slight advantage to Rangers, but this is always a tough one to call. I’ll say Rangers 2-1 Celtic.

Falkirk v. Kilmarnock, Saturday 3:00 pm
Falkirk are on a three-game losing streak, and face a Kilmarnock team with similar form, who haven’t won in over a month. Neither of these sides are playing at their best, but I’ll tip the home side for a close win, 1-0.

Hearts v. Dundee United, Saturday 3:00 pm
Hearts are the most inconsistent team in Scotland, and they’ll have to show up in at least decent form to take points from United, who are looking quite good this early season and might well compete for third if they can get on a run. I see a draw here, 2-2.

Motherwell v. Hibernian, Saturday 3:00 pm
The ‘Well has been a tough place to travel this season, and no one knows that better than John Collins and Hibs. Their last trip here cost them a chance to defend the league cup, and they will be looking for revenge tomorrow. An additional carrot for Hibs is that if Rangers are able to beat Celtic, Hibs will jump back into first place in the league for at least a week. Hibs will do their part, 2-1.

St. Mirren v. Gretna, Saturday 3:00 pm
If Gretna has any hope of surviving this season in the SPL, they need to start taking points out of the other bottom sides. They currently sit in last place, but only trail 11th-place St. Mirren by three points and one goal, so a good performance here could conceivably get them out of the relegation spot. St. Mirren have been outscored 14-2 in their last five games, and they’ve looked frankly just as bad as Gretna over the last month, but I still see them defending their home pitch, 3-2.

Inverness v. Aberdeen, Sunday 2:00 pm
Caley Thistle fans have had a lot to talk about lately. Some of it has been good, as they ride a four-game unbeaten streak. Some of it, not so good, with the suspension of Richie Hart for cocaine use. Aberdeen is still trying to climb out of their terrible start and get ready for a very tough test in the UEFA Cup. This is a tough one to call, especially because as a Caley fan, I am awfully biased. I’m going for a draw, 2-2, with a goal from 41-year-old superman Craig Brewster, and hopefully (please, GOD), one from “So-far-not-so-Super Marius Niculae, Caley’s Romanian import who is still yet to score in the league.