2016–17 Lowland Football League
| Season | 2016–17 |
|---|---|
| Champions | East Kilbride |
| Relegated | Preston Athletic |
| Matches played | 240 |
| Goals scored | 875 (3.65 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | David Grant (East Stirlingshire) (35 goals) |
| Biggest home win | The Spartans 9–1 Hawick Royal Albert (29 October 2016)[1] |
| Biggest away win | Gala Fairydean Rovers 1–10 East Stirlingshire (3 December 2016)[1] |
| Highest scoring | Civil Service Strollers 3–8 East Stirlingshire (27 August 2016)[1] Selkirk 7–4 East Stirlingshire (17 September 2016)[1] BSC Glasgow 8–3 Preston Athletic (26 November 2016)[1] Gala Fairydean Rovers 1–10 East Stirlingshire (3 December 2016)[1] |
| Longest winning run | 14 matches: East Kilbride |
| Longest unbeaten run | 14 matches: East Kilbride |
| Longest winless run | 7 matches: Preston Athletic |
| Longest losing run | 6 matches: Preston Athletic & Selkirk |
← 2015–16 2017–18 → All statistics correct as of 1 April 2017. | |
The 2016–17 Scottish Lowland Football League (known as the Ferrari Packaging Lowland League for sponsorship reasons) was the fourth season of the Lowland Football League, the fifth tier of the Scottish football pyramid system. Edinburgh City were the defending champions but could not defend their title after being promoted to Scottish League Two.
East Stirlingshire became the first club to join the league via relegation from the SPFL, having lost the League Two play-off against Edinburgh City. Threave Rovers declined the opportunity to re-apply for membership following their bottom place finish the previous season and instead rejoined the South of Scotland Football League.[2] Hawick Royal Albert and Civil Service Strollers joined the league from the East of Scotland Football League to bring the number of clubs to 16 for the first time.
The league was won with two matches still to play by East Kilbride on 1 April 2017 after they defeated Gala Fairydean Rovers 6–1. East Kilbride defeated the winners of the 2016–17 Highland Football League (Buckie Thistle) in the League Two play-offs semi-finals, but lost to Cowdenbeath on penalties in the final.
Teams
The following teams have changed division since the 2015–16 season.
To Lowland League
Transferred from East of Scotland League
Relegated from League Two
From Lowland League
Promoted to League Two
Relegated to South of Scotland League
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity | Seats | Floodlit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BSC Glasgow | Glasgow | Lochburn Park | 1,800 | 205 | Yes |
| Civil Service Strollers | Edinburgh | Christie Gillies Park | 1,569 | TBC | No |
| Cumbernauld Colts | Cumbernauld | Broadwood Stadium | 7,936 | 7,936 | Yes |
| Dalbeattie Star | Dalbeattie | Islecroft Stadium | 4,000 | 250 | Yes |
| East Kilbride | East Kilbride | K Park | 660 | 400 | Yes |
| East Stirlingshire | Stenhousemuir | Ochilview Park | 3,746 | 626 | Yes |
| Edinburgh University | Edinburgh | New Peffermill Stadium | 1,100 | 100 | Yes |
| Gala Fairydean Rovers | Galashiels | 3G Arena, Netherdale | 5,500 | 495 | Yes |
| Gretna 2008 | Gretna | Raydale Park | 3,000 | 1,318 | Yes |
| Hawick Royal Albert | Hawick | Albert Park | 1,000 | 500 | Yes |
| Preston Athletic | Prestonpans | Pennypit Park | 4,000 | 313 | Yes |
| Selkirk | Selkirk | Yarrow Park | 1,000 | 100 | to be |
| The Spartans | Edinburgh | Ainslie Park | 3,000 | 504 | Yes |
| Stirling University | Stirling | Forthbank Stadium | 3,808 | 2,508 | Yes |
| Vale of Leithen | Innerleithen | Victoria Park | 1,500 | 0 | No |
| Whitehill Welfare | Rosewell | Ferguson Park | 4,000 | 150 | No |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | East Kilbride (C) | 30 | 24 | 3 | 3 | 89 | 21 | +68 | 75 | Qualification for the League Two play-off semi-finals |
| 2 | East Stirlingshire | 30 | 21 | 5 | 4 | 107 | 43 | +64 | 68 | |
| 3 | The Spartans | 30 | 17 | 5 | 8 | 69 | 30 | +39 | 56 | |
| 4 | Stirling University | 30 | 16 | 5 | 9 | 60 | 53 | +7 | 53 | |
| 5 | Dalbeattie Star | 30 | 14 | 5 | 11 | 60 | 50 | +10 | 47 | |
| 6 | Cumbernauld Colts | 30 | 13 | 8 | 9 | 51 | 43 | +8 | 47 | |
| 7 | BSC Glasgow | 30 | 12 | 6 | 12 | 63 | 56 | +7 | 42 | |
| 8 | Whitehill Welfare | 30 | 13 | 1 | 16 | 53 | 64 | −11 | 40 | |
| 9 | Gretna 2008 | 30 | 12 | 4 | 14 | 44 | 65 | −21 | 40 | |
| 10 | Gala Fairydean Rovers | 30 | 11 | 7 | 12 | 55 | 77 | −22 | 40 | |
| 11 | Edinburgh University | 30 | 10 | 7 | 13 | 40 | 42 | −2 | 37 | |
| 12 | Civil Service Strollers | 30 | 10 | 7 | 13 | 59 | 68 | −9 | 37 | |
| 13 | Vale of Leithen | 30 | 11 | 4 | 15 | 52 | 66 | −14 | 37 | |
| 14 | Hawick Royal Albert | 30 | 8 | 1 | 21 | 58 | 93 | −35 | 25 | |
| 15 | Selkirk | 30 | 6 | 5 | 19 | 58 | 86 | −28 | 23 | |
| 16 | Preston Athletic (R) | 30 | 5 | 1 | 24 | 41 | 102 | −61 | 16 | Relegation to the East of Scotland League |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Results
Lowland League play-off
A play-off was due to take place between the winners of the 2016–17 East of Scotland Football League (Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale) and the 2016–17 South of Scotland Football League (Edusport Academy). However Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale did not meet the required licensing criteria therefore Edusport Academy were promoted automatically to replace Preston Athletic.
References
- ^ a b c d e f Ltd, Statto Organisation. "Scottish Lowland League 2016-2017 Season Summary - Statto.com". Statto.com. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- ^ Gillespie, Stuart (5 June 2016). "Threave Rovers' South of Scotland League return confirmed after three years in the Lowland League". Daily Record. Retrieved 10 August 2016.