The 2020–21 Scottish Championship was the eighth season of the Scottish Championship, the second tier of Scottish football.
| Season | 2020–21 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 16 October 2020 – 30 April 2021 |
| Champions | Heart of Midlothian |
| Promoted | Heart of Midlothian Dundee |
| Relegated | Alloa Athletic |
| Matches played | 135 |
| Goals scored | 380 (2.81 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Liam Boyce (14 goals)[1] |
| Biggest home win | Heart of Midlothian 6–0 Alloa Athletic (9 April 2021) |
| Biggest away win | Raith Rovers 0–4 Heart of Midlothian (26 January 2021) |
| Highest scoring | Heart of Midlothian 6–2 Dundee (16 October 2020) Heart of Midlothian 5–3 Ayr United (26 December 2020) |
← 2019–20 2021–22 → | |
Ten teams contested the league: Alloa Athletic, Arbroath, Ayr United, Dundee, Dunfermline Athletic, Greenock Morton, Heart of Midlothian, Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Queen of the South and Raith Rovers.
In June 2020, eight of the ten clubs voted in favour of shortening the season from the usual 36 games to 27 (playing each other three instead of four times), with the season starting on 16 October 2020.[2] This was done to reduce costs in light of the coronavirus pandemic.[2]
Teams
The following teams changed division after the 2019–20 season.[3]
To Championship
Promoted from League One
Relegated from the Premiership
From Championship
Relegated to League One
Promoted to the Premiership
Stadia and locations
| Alloa Athletic | Arbroath | Ayr United | Dundee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recreation Park | Gayfield Park | Somerset Park | Dens Park |
| Capacity: 3,100[4] | Capacity: 6,600[5] | Capacity: 10,185[6] | Capacity: 11,775[7] |
 |  |  |  |
| Dunfermline Athletic |  Location of teams in 2020–21 Scottish Championship | Greenock Morton | |
| East End Park | Cappielow | ||
| Capacity: 11,480[8] | Capacity: 11,589[9] | ||
 |  | ||
| Heart of Midlothian | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | Queen of the South | Raith Rovers |
| Tynecastle Park | Caledonian Stadium | Palmerston Park | Stark's Park |
| Capacity: 19,852[10] | Capacity: 7,750[11] | Capacity: 8,690[12] | Capacity: 8,867[13] |
 |  |  |  |
Personnel and kits
| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alloa Athletic |  Peter Grant | Andy Graham[14] | Pendle | Northern Gas and Power |
| Arbroath | Dick Campbell | Mark Whatley[15] | Pendle[16] | Megatech[16] |
| Ayr United | David Hopkin | Jack Baird | Hummel[17] | Bitcoin BCH[18] |
| Dundee |  James McPake | Charlie Adam | Macron[19] | Crown Engineering Services[20] |
| Dunfermline Athletic | Stevie Crawford | Euan Murray[21] | Joma[22] | SRJ Windows[22] |
| Greenock Morton | Gus MacPherson |  Sean McGinty | est 1874 | Millions[23] |
| Heart of Midlothian | Robbie Neilson | Steven Naismith | Umbro | Save the Children |
| Inverness CT | Neil McCann (interim) | Sean Welsh | Puma[24] | ILI Group[24] |
| Queen of the South | Allan Johnston | Stephen Dobbie[25] | Macron[26] | BP's Taxis |
| Raith Rovers | John McGlynn | Kyle Benedictus | Joma[27] | valmcdermid.com[27](Home) TAG (Away) |
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heart of Midlothian |  Daniel Stendel | End of contract | 21 June 2020[28] | Pre-season | Robbie Neilson | 21 June 2020[29] |
| Greenock Morton | David Hopkin | Resigned | 10 December 2020[30] | 7th | Anton McElhone (interim) | 10 December 2020[30] |
| Inverness CT | John Robertson | Compassionate leave | 22 February 2021 | 7th | Neil McCann (interim) | 23 February 2021 |
| Ayr United | Mark Kerr | Mutual consent | 28 February 2021[31] | 9th | David Hopkin | 11 March 2021[32] |
| Greenock Morton | Anton McElhone | End of interim | 10 March 2021[33] | 6th | Gus MacPherson | 10 March 2021[33] |
League summary
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heart of Midlothian (C, P) | 27 | 17 | 6 | 4 | 63 | 24 | +39 | 57 | Promotion to the Premiership |
| 2 | Dundee (O, P) | 27 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 49 | 40 | +9 | 45 | Qualification for the Premiership play-off semi-final |
| 3 | Raith Rovers | 27 | 12 | 7 | 8 | 45 | 36 | +9 | 43 | Qualification for the Premiership play-off quarter-final |
| 4 | Dunfermline Athletic | 27 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 38 | 34 | +4 | 39 | |
| 5 | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 27 | 8 | 12 | 7 | 36 | 31 | +5 | 36 | |
| 6 | Queen of the South | 27 | 9 | 5 | 13 | 38 | 51 | −13 | 32 | |
| 7 | Arbroath | 27 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 28 | 34 | −6 | 30 | |
| 8 | Ayr United | 27 | 6 | 11 | 10 | 31 | 37 | −6 | 29 | |
| 9 | Greenock Morton (O) | 27 | 6 | 11 | 10 | 22 | 33 | −11 | 29 | Qualification for the Championship play-offs |
| 10 | Alloa Athletic (R) | 27 | 5 | 7 | 15 | 30 | 60 | −30 | 22 | Relegation to League One |
Results
Teams play each other three times, twice in the first two thirds of the season (home and away) and once in the last third of the season, making a total of 135 games, with each team playing 27.
First two thirds of season (Matches 1–18)
Last third of season (Matches 19–27)
Season statistics
Scoring
Top scorers
- As of 30 April 2021
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liam Boyce | Hearts | 14 |
| 2 | Declan McManus | Dunfermline Athletic | 9 |
| Craig Wighton | Hearts & Dunfermline Athletic | ||
 Nikolay Todorov | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | ||
 Ayo Obileye | Queen of the South | ||
| 6 | Jack Hamilton | Arbroath | 8 |
| Jason Cummings | Dundee | ||
 Osman Sow | Dundee | ||
| Kevin O'Hara | Dunfermline Athletic | ||
| Connor Shields | Queen of the South |
Source:[1]
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Score | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin O'Hara | Dunfermline Athletic | Alloa Athletic | 4–1 (A) | 24 October 2020 |
| Osman Sow | Dundee | Queen of the South | 3–1 (A) | 26 December 2020 |
| Steven Naismith | Hearts | Arbroath | 3–1 (H) | 29 December 2020 |
| Liam Boyce | Hearts | Alloa Athletic | 6–0 (H) | 9 April 2021 |
Attendances
Games are mostly being played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Limited attendance is allowed at some grounds with strict conditions under the Scottish Government Tier system, dependent on the club's geographical location.
Awards
Monthly awards
End-of-season awards
| Manager of the Year | Player of the Year | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Manager | Club | Player | Club |
| James McPake | Dundee | Charlie Adam | Dundee |
Championship play-offs
The second bottom team (Greenock Morton) entered into a 4-team playoff with the 2nd-4th placed teams in 2020–21 Scottish League One. Cove Rangers and Airdrieonians have also secured playoff spots.
Semi-final
First leg
| 8 May 2021 | Montrose | 2–1 | Greenock Morton | Montrose |
| 15:00 |
| Report |
| Stadium: Links Park Referee: Grant Irvine |
| 8 May 2021 | Cove Rangers | 1–1 | Airdrieonians | Aberdeen |
| 15:00 |
| Report |
| Stadium: Balmoral Stadium Referee: David Dickinson |
Second leg
| 11 May 2021 | Greenock Morton | 3–1 (a.e.t.) (4–3 agg.) | Montrose | Greenock |
| 19:45 | Report | McLean  35' | Stadium: Cappielow Referee: Euan Anderson |
| 11 May 2021 | Airdrieonians | 3–2 (a.e.t.) (4–3 agg.) | Cove Rangers | Airdrie |
| 19:45 | Report |
| Stadium: Excelsior Stadium Referee: Colin Steven |
Final
First leg
| 18 May 2021 | Airdrieonians | 0–1 | Greenock Morton | Airdrie |
| 19:35 | Report | Muirhead 90+4' | Stadium: Excelsior Stadium Attendance: 500 Referee: David Munro |
Second leg
| 21 May 2021 | Greenock Morton | 3–0 (4–0 agg.) | Airdrieonians | Greenock |
| 19:35 | Report | Stadium: Cappielow Attendance: 600 Referee: Alan Muir |