The 2016 Scottish Women's Premier League was the 15th season of the SWPL, the highest division of women's football in Scotland since 2002. For the first time, the league was split into two divisions of eight teams each, SWPL 1 and SWPL 2.
The split into two divisions reduced the number of top-division teams from 12 to 8. The change was made to increase competitiveness in the league.[1] SWPL 2 became the new level 2 Scottish women's league, displacing the First Division (SWFL 1) to level 3.
The restructuring had begun in 2015 by requiring four SWPL clubs to be effectively relegated. Lewis Melee quoted a manager critical of the SWF's consultation and lack of notice for the league's new clubs: "Rather than saying we need to finish 11th for our first year in the league they were having to finish 8th and they didn’t have a 6 to 12-month plan to prepare… they were probably the ones that suffered more than anyone".[2]
At the end of the season in October 2016, Glasgow City were champions, ahead of Hibernian.[3][4] City became the first senior football club to win ten Scottish league titles in succession. The champions of SWPL 2 were Hamilton Academical,[5] replacing Forfar Farmington in the top tier for the 2017 season.
Teams
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SWPL 1
edit| Team | Location | Home ground | Capacity | 2015 position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | Aberdeen | Heathryfold Park | 2,200 | 4th |
| Celtic | Glasgow | K Park Training Academy, East Kilbride | 1,000 | 3rd |
| Forfar Farmington | Forfar | Station Park | 6,777 | 8th |
| Glasgow City | Glasgow | Excelsior Stadium, Airdrie | 10,100 | 1st |
| Hibernian | Edinburgh | Albyn Park, Broxburn | 1,000 | 2nd |
| Rangers | Glasgow | Tinto Park | 2,000 | 6th |
| Spartans | Edinburgh | Spartans Academy | 2,000 | 5th |
| Stirling University | Stirling | University of Stirling | 1,000 | 7th |
SWPL 2
edit| Team | Location | Home ground | Capacity | 2015 position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buchan | Maud | Pleasure Park | 2nd in SWFL1 | |
| Glasgow Girls | Glasgow | Budhill Park, Shettleston | 1st in SWFL1 | |
| Hamilton Academical | Hamilton | New Douglas Park | 6,018 | 10th in SWPL |
| Heart of Midlothian | Edinburgh | Kings Park, Dalkeith | 9th in SWPL | |
| Hutchison Vale | Edinburgh | Saughton Enclosure | 11th in SWPL | |
| Inverness City | Inverness | Millburn Academy | 12th in SWPL | |
| Jeanfield Swifts | Perth | McDiarmid Park 3G | 3rd in SWFL1 | |
| Queen's Park | Glasgow | Toryglen Regional Football Centre | 4th in SWFL1 |
SWPL 1
edit| Season | 2016 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Glasgow City |
| Relegated | Forfar Farmington |
| Champions League | Glasgow City Hibernian |
| Matches played | 80 |
| Goals scored | 302 (3.78 per match) |
| Biggest home win | Hibernian 9–0 Rangers (28 August 2016) |
| Biggest away win | Spartans 0–8 Glasgow City (20 April 2016) |
| Highest scoring | Nine goals: Hibernian 9–0 Rangers (28 August 2016) Glasgow City 8–1 Stirling University (23 May 2016) |
| Longest winning run | 10 matches: Glasgow City |
| Longest unbeaten run | 10 matches: Glasgow City |
| Longest winless run | 13 matches: Forfar Farmington |
| Longest losing run | 13 matches: Forfar Farmington |
← 2015 2017 →
All statistics correct as of 23 October 2016. | |
Format
editIn the first season after the reduction to eight teams a new format is played. Teams will play each other three times, with the bottom placed team being relegated after the season. The split into a championship and relegation group is discontinued.[6]
Standings
editTeams will play 21 matches each.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glasgow City (C) | 21 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 78 | 12 | +66 | 60 | 2017–18 Champions League |
| 2 | Hibernian (Q) | 21 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 76 | 17 | +59 | 52 | |
| 3 | Celtic | 21 | 13 | 0 | 8 | 50 | 30 | +20 | 39 | |
| 4 | Stirling University | 21 | 9 | 1 | 11 | 28 | 45 | −17 | 28 | |
| 5 | Rangers | 21 | 9 | 0 | 12 | 35 | 57 | −22 | 27 | |
| 6 | Spartans | 21 | 7 | 1 | 13 | 24 | 54 | −30 | 22 | |
| 7 | Aberdeen | 21 | 5 | 1 | 15 | 17 | 46 | −29 | 16 | |
| 8 | Forfar Farmington (R) | 21 | 2 | 0 | 19 | 12 | 59 | −47 | 6 | 2017 SWPL 2 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (Q) Qualified for the phase indicated; (R) Relegated
Results
edit
|
|
SWPL 2
edit| Season | 2016 |
|---|---|
| Relegated | Inverness City Queen's Park |
| Matches played | 79 |
| Goals scored | 408 (5.16 per match) |
| Biggest home win | Hamilton Academical 11–0 Inverness City (22 May 2016) Glasgow Girls 11–0 Inverness City (9 October 2016) |
| Biggest away win | Queen's Park 0–13 Jeanfield Swifts (22 May 2016) |
| Highest scoring | Queen's Park 0–13 Jeanfield Swifts (22 May 2016) |
| Longest winning run | 8 matches: Glasgow Girls |
| Longest unbeaten run | 8 matches: Glasgow Girls |
| Longest winless run | 10 matches: Inverness City |
| Longest losing run | 7 matches: Inverness City |
← 2015 2017 →
All statistics correct as of 23 October 2016. | |
Format
editIn the first season after the reduction to eight teams a new format is played. Teams will play each other three times, with the bottom placed team being relegated after the season. The split into a championship and relegation group is discontinued.[7]
Standings
editTeams will play 21 matches each.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hamilton Academical (C, P) | 21 | 17 | 0 | 4 | 87 | 25 | +62 | 51 | 2017 SWPL 1 |
| 2 | Heart of Midlothian | 21 | 15 | 4 | 2 | 71 | 16 | +55 | 49 | |
| 3 | Glasgow Girls | 21 | 16 | 1 | 4 | 59 | 21 | +38 | 49 | |
| 4 | Hutchison Vale[a] | 21 | 9 | 4 | 8 | 52 | 42 | +10 | 31 | |
| 5 | Jeanfield Swifts | 21 | 9 | 1 | 11 | 70 | 45 | +25 | 28 | |
| 6 | Buchan | 21 | 6 | 3 | 12 | 46 | 58 | −12 | 21 | |
| 7 | Queen's Park (R) | 21 | 3 | 0 | 18 | 22 | 115 | −93 | 9 | 2017 SWFL 1 |
| 8 | Inverness City (R) | 21 | 2 | 1 | 18 | 24 | 109 | −85 | 7 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Results
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References
edit- ^ "SWPL Reconstruction: Will It Work? | Scottish Women's Football". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-10-06.
- ^ Melee, Lewis. "An exploration of the Scottish Women's Premier League 2016 league restructure" (PDF). Abertay University. p. 49 ('41'). Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 March 2022.
- ^ "City close in on 10 in a row". Glasgow City FC. 9 Oct 2016.
- ^ "Glasgow City clinch 10 league titles in a row by beating Hibs". BBC Sport. 23 Oct 2016.
- ^ "Where Are They Now? – 2016 The First SWPL 2 Title Winners". Accies WFC. Archived from the original on 4 August 2020.
- ^ "New SWPL 1 & SWPL 2 season 2016". scottishfa.co.uk. 27 November 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ "New SWPL 1 & SWPL 2 season 2016". scottishfa.co.uk. 27 November 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ "SWF Statement – SWPL 2 league standings (11/10/2016)". Scottish Women's Football. 11 October 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
External links
edit- Season at soccerway.com
- Women's League Competitions at Scottish Football Historical Archive