SPL Weekend Preview

By: Ian Rose | February 8th, 2008

A quick look at this weekend’s SPL action:

Dundee United v. Hibernian, Saturday 12:30
After the greatest of starts this season, the Hibees have had a long rough patch, losing four straight in the league and needing to look all the way back to November 10th for their last league win. United, on the other hand, have won three of four in addition to making their first league cup final in a decade. Many SPL fans, myself included, wondered if they could survive the loss of Barry Robson, but their 4-1 win over Aberdeen suggests their run for Europe might be intact after all. With United’s fantastic home record this season, and Hibs’ toothless 2008 form, I see the Tangerines taking this one 2-0.

Hearts v. Gretna, Saturday 15:00
Gretna are apparently already planning for relegation, at least to a point. Davie Irons has admitted as much. With 13 points from 22 matches, they sit 9 points behind Kilmarnock in the lone drop spot. But two of those thirteen points have come against Hearts, two draws that have the resurgent Tynecastle side drooling for revenge. With Hearts coming back into some sort of form, two points should be all Gretna manages from them this campaign. 2-0 to Hearts.

Motherwell v. Kilmarnock, Saturday 15:00
Thanks to the nightmare pitch conditions at Fir Park, Motherwell has fallen two or three matches behind every other side in Scotland, and now has a fixture congestion problem. When they do manage to play, they are a clearly different side without Phil O’Donnell, and have struggled to get back anywhere near their old form. Killie was the first side to beat Motherwell this season, and they will present more of a threat than their 11th place standing suggests. Looks to me like a 1-1 draw.

Rangers v. Falkirk, Saturday 15:00
February is going to be a very telling month for Rangers’ run at the SPL title. Though they sit 4 points above Celtic with 16 matches remaining, they accomplished very little during the January transfer window, while Celtic built heavily. Walter Smith claims the squad is where he wants it, but the fans are nervous and would have liked to see some new faces at Ibrox. Falkirk has only one win over Rangers in league history, and have gone down twice this season for a total score of 10-3. I see no reason to think we’ll see anything else this time around. 3-1 to Rangers.

St. Mirren v. Inverness CT, Saturday 15:00
Caley Thistle followed a dream December with a quite mediocre January, and look to get back to winning ways against St. Mirren. Recent Saints wins over Hibs, Hearts and Motherwell, though, make a trip to Love Street a more nervous affair than usual. Inverness has won three of the last four meetings, but neither of these two sides look hugely superior. 1-1 draw.

Aberdeen v. Celtic, Sunday 14:00
This fixture is a preview of what looks to be a fantastic Scottish Cup quarterfinal next month. Dons are starting to struggle after a fantastic December and first half of January, with injuries and fixture congestion starting to take their toll. Celtic, on the other hand, seem revitalized after a productive transfer window. Confidence is on the rise at Parkhead, and they’ll look to show off their new faces and start a renewed run at their Glasgow rivals. 1-3 to Celtic.

We’ll see if I can continue to doom every side I predict to win. I’ve lost track of my prediction record this season, but it’s been dire. In my defense, the season has been a tough one to call, with several big upsets and the closest race at the top in a few years. Still, at this point, if any more than half of these results come out as I’ve picked, I’ll be quite satisfied.