The 2022–23 Scottish League Two (known as cinch League Two for sponsorship reasons) was the tenth season of Scottish League Two, the fourth tier of Scottish football.
| Season | 2022–23 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 30 July 2022 – 6 May 2023 |
| Champions | Stirling Albion |
| Promoted | Stirling Albion Annan Athletic (via play-offs) |
| Relegated | Albion Rovers |
| Matches played | 180 |
| Goals scored | 489 (2.72 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Tommy Goss 23 goals |
| Biggest home win | East Fife 8–0 Stranraer (15 April 2023) |
| Biggest away win | Elgin City 0–4 Dumbarton (12 November 2022) Bonnyrigg Rose 0–4 Albion Rovers (7 January 2023) Stranraer 0–4 Albion Rovers (14 January 2023) Dumbarton 1–5 Albion Rovers (18 March 2023) |
| Highest scoring | East Fife 8–0 Stranraer (15 April 2023) |
| Longest winning run | Dumbarton 7 games |
| Longest unbeaten run | Stirling Albion 19 games |
| Longest winless run | Stenhousemuir 9 games |
| Longest losing run | Elgin City 6 games |
| Highest attendance | 2,057 Bonnyrigg Rose 3–0 Elgin City (6 May 2023) |
| Lowest attendance | 219 Albion Rovers 0–2 Forfar Athletic (17 September 2022) |
| Total attendance | 101,794 |
| Average attendance | 565 |
← 2021–22 2023–24 →
All statistics correct as of 6 May 2023. | |
Ten teams contested the league: Albion Rovers, Annan Athletic, Bonnyrigg Rose, Dumbarton, East Fife, Elgin City, Forfar Athletic, Stenhousemuir, Stirling Albion and Stranraer.
Teams
editThe following teams changed division after the 2021–22 season.
To League TwoeditPromoted from Lowland Football League Relegated from League One |
From League TwoeditRelegated to Lowland Football League Promoted to League One
|
Stadia and locations
edit| Albion Rovers | Annan Athletic | Bonnyrigg Rose | Dumbarton |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cliftonhill | Galabank | New Dundas Park | Dumbarton Football Stadium |
| Capacity: 1,238[1] | Capacity: 2,504[2] | Capacity: 3,000[3] | Capacity: 2,020[4] |
|
|
|
|
| East Fife |
 Location of teams in 2022–23 Scottish League Two |
Elgin City | |
| Bayview Stadium | Borough Briggs | ||
| Capacity: 1,980[5] | Capacity: 4,520[6] | ||
 |
| ||
| Forfar Athletic | Stenhousemuir | Stirling Albion | Stranraer |
| Station Park | Ochilview Park | Forthbank Stadium | Stair Park |
| Capacity: 6,777[7] | Capacity: 3,746[8] | Capacity: 3,808[9] | Capacity: 4,178[10] |
 |
|
|
|
Personnel and kits
edit| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albion Rovers |  Sandy Clark
|
Sean Fagan
|
Joma | CompliancePath |
| Annan Athletic |  Peter Murphy
|
 Steven Swinglehurst
|
EV2 Sportswear | M & S Engineering |
| Bonnyrigg Rose | Robbie Horn
|
Jonathan Stewart
|
Puma | G. Fitzsimmons and Son (Home) Shepherd Chartered Surveyors (Away) |
| Dumbarton | Stephen Farrell
|
Gregor Buchanan
|
Macron | No Sponsor |
| East Fife | Greig McDonald
|
Stewart Murdoch
|
Joma | TBC (Home) The Taxi Centre Fife (Away) |
| Elgin City | Charlie Charlesworth, Ross Draper and Stevie Dunn (interim) | Matthew Cooper
|
Joma | McDonald & Munro |
| Forfar Athletic | Ray McKinnon
|
Craig Slater
|
Pendle | Orchard Timber Products |
| Stenhousemuir | Gary Naysmith
|
Sean Crighton
|
Puma | LOC Hire |
| Stirling Albion | Darren Young
|
Ross McGeachie
|
Joma | Prudential |
| Stranraer | Scott Agnew
|
Grant Gallagher
|
Joma | Stena Line |
Managerial changes
edit| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Fife | Stevie Crawford
|
Signed by Dundee United | 25 September 2022 | 4th | Greig McDonald
|
25 October 2022 |
| Forfar Athletic | Gary Irvine
|
Sacked | 9 November 2022 | 10th | Ray McKinnon
|
10 November 2022 |
| Stenhousemuir | Stephen Swift
|
Sacked | 7 December 2022 | 6th | Gary Naysmith
|
3 January 2023 |
| Albion Rovers | Brian Reid
|
Sacked | 25 March 2023 | 10th | Sandy Clark
|
28 March 2023 |
| Elgin City | Gavin Price
|
Sacked | 8 April 2023 | 10th |
Charlie Charlesworth, Ross Draper and Stevie Dunn (interim) |
10 April 2023 |
| Stranraer | Jamie Hamill
|
Sacked | 16 April 2023 | 7th | Scott Agnew
|
17 April 2023 |
League table
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stirling Albion (C, P) | 36 | 21 | 10 | 5 | 67 | 37 | +30 | 73 | Promotion to League One |
| 2 | Dumbarton | 36 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 49 | 39 | +10 | 62 | Qualification for the League One play-offs |
| 3 | Annan Athletic (O, P) | 36 | 14 | 9 | 13 | 61 | 51 | +10 | 51 | |
| 4 | East Fife | 36 | 14 | 8 | 14 | 54 | 50 | +4 | 50 | |
| 5 | Forfar Athletic | 36 | 13 | 9 | 14 | 37 | 43 | −6 | 48 | |
| 6 | Stenhousemuir | 36 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 51 | 55 | −4 | 47 | |
| 7 | Stranraer | 36 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 43 | 57 | −14 | 45 | |
| 8 | Bonnyrigg Rose | 36 | 11 | 9 | 16 | 36 | 47 | −11 | 42 | |
| 9 | Elgin City | 36 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 44 | 62 | −18 | 40 | |
| 10 | Albion Rovers (R) | 36 | 11 | 6 | 19 | 47 | 48 | −1 | 39 | Qualification for the League Two play-off final |
Source: [11]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Head-to-to head points; 5) Head-to-head goal difference; 6) Play-off (only for deciding promotion, play-off participation and relegation).[12]
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Head-to-to head points; 5) Head-to-head goal difference; 6) Play-off (only for deciding promotion, play-off participation and relegation).[12]
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Results
editSeason statistics
editScoring
editTop scorers
edit| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tommy Goss
|
Annan Athletic | 23 |
| 2 | Charlie Reilly
|
Albion Rovers | 22 |
| 3 | Dale Carrick
|
Stirling Albion | 19 |
| 4 | Kane Hester
|
Elgin City | 18 |
| 5 | Matty Yates
|
Stenhousemuir | 14 |
Awards
edit| Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manager | Club | Player | Club | |
| August | Stephen Farrell
|
Dumbarton | Declan Byrne
|
Dumbarton |
| September/October | Darren Young
|
Stirling Albion | Kane Hester
|
Elgin City |
| November | Stephen Farrell
|
Dumbarton | Charlie Reilly
|
Albion Rovers |
| December | Stephen Farrell
|
Dumbarton | Chris Johnston
|
Annan Athletic |
| January | Ray McKinnon
|
Forfar Athletic | Charlie Reilly
|
Albion Rovers |
| February | Gary Naysmith
|
Stenhousemuir | Matty Yates
|
Stenhousemuir |
| March | Greig McDonald
|
East Fife | Tommy Goss
|
Annan Athletic |
| April | Darren Young
|
Stirling Albion | Dale Carrick
|
Stirling Albion |
The SPFL League Two manager of the year was Darren Young of Stirling Albion.
The SPFL League Two player of the year was Dale Carrick of Stirling Albion.
League Two play-offs
editThe Pyramid play-off was contested between the champions of the 2022–23 Highland Football League and the 2022–23 Lowland Football League. The Spartans secured their place in the play-offs as the Lowland Football League representative on 8 April 2023. Brechin City secured their place in the play-offs as the Highland Football League representative on 22 April 2023. The winners, The Spartans, then faced the bottom club Albion Rovers in the League Two play-off final. The Spartans won 2–1 over two legs, being promoted to League Two for the 2023–24 season as a result, with Albion Rovers relegated to the Lowland League.
Pyramid play-off
editFirst leg
edit| 29 April 2023 | The Spartans | 1–0 | Brechin City | Edinburgh |
| 15:00 | Henderson  90' |
[14] | Stadium: Ainslie Park Attendance: 2,020[15] Referee: Graham Grainger |
Second leg
edit| 6 May 2023 | Brechin City | 3–2 (3–3 agg.) (3–4 p) | The Spartans | Brechin |
| 15:00 |
|
[16] |
|
Stadium: Glebe Park Attendance: 1,900 Referee: Grant Irvine |
| Penalties | ||||
|
||||
Final
editFirst leg
edit| 13 May 2023 | The Spartans | 1–1 | Albion Rovers | Edinburgh |
| 15:00 | Leslie 66' (o.g.) |
[17] | Graham 39' |
Stadium: Ainslie Park Attendance: 2,120 Referee: Peter Stuart |
Second leg
edit| 20 May 2023 | Albion Rovers | 0–1 (1–2 agg.) | The Spartans | Coatbridge |
| 15:00 | [18] | Henderson 16' (pen.) |
Stadium: Cliftonhill Attendance: 1,250 Referee: Matthew McDermid |
References
edit- ^ "Albion Rovers Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "Annan Athletic Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "Bonnyrigg Rose Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 20 June 2022.
- ^ "Dumbarton Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "East Fife Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "Elgin City Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "Forfar Athletic Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "Stenhousemuir Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "Stirling Albion Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "Stranraer Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ^ "cinch League Two Table". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ "The Rules of the Scottish Professional Football League" (PDF). SPFL. pp. 38–39. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ a b "cinch League Two Results". SPFL. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ "The Spartans 1–0 Brechin City". BBC Sport. BBC. 29 April 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
- ^ "Spartans 1 Brechin City 0". brechincity.com. Brechin City F.C. 29 April 2023. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
- ^ "Brechin City 3–2 The Spartans". BBC Sport. BBC. 6 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ "The Spartans 1–1 Albion Rovers". BBC Sport. BBC. 13 May 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
- ^ "Albion Rovers 0–1 The Spartans". BBC Sport. BBC. 20 May 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2023.