The 2023–24 season was Livingston's sixth consecutive season in the Scottish Premiership, the top flight of Scottish football. Livingston also competed in the League Cup and the Scottish Cup.
| 2023–24 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman | John Ward | ||
| Manager | David Martindale | ||
| Stadium | Almondvale Stadium | ||
| Scottish Premiership | Twelfth place | ||
| Scottish League Cup | Quarter-final | ||
| Scottish Cup | Quarter-final | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Bruce Anderson (7) All: Bruce Anderson (10) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 8,396, vs. Celtic, Premiership, 31 March 2024 | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 872, vs. Clyde, League Cup, 29 July 2023 | ||
Season Summary
On 1 June it was announced that chairman Robert Wilson would retire from his position.[1] The following week the club promoted Chief Executive John Ward to the position of Chairman, with Dave Black becoming the new Chief Executive, having previously been Business Development Manager and Head of Commercial & Media Operations - Black had in fact once been a ball boy for the club.[2]
On 24 September 2023, Livingston announced a takeover of the club with new ownership led by businessman John McIlvogue and his company Baycup Ltd. McIlvogue would be taking up the role of chief commercial officer.[3][4] The move was cast into doubt weeks later as former directors launched a legal challenge to the sale of the club.[5] Manager David Martindale reported that the dispute was still ongoing at the end of the season, and his future was likely to be determined by the outcome of an upcoming court case.[6] As of 4 June 2024, the case remains unresolved - no changes have been made in respect of the ownership or directors of the club resultant from the 'takeover'.[7] There have however been changes to the board of the club's majority owner, Opcco6 Ltd, in January 2024 with the removal as director of the club's chairman John Ward. At the same time the company reported the appointments of Neil Hogarth and Carolyn Sumner as directors and, in March, Neil Rankine as company secretary. [8] Rankine's appontment came shortly after the club reported that they had been able to settle a long-running feud with the former director in court.[9]
On the pitch, the club enjoyed a strong showing in the League Cup, winning their group after three wins and a draw (losing the bonus point in a penalty shootout) against Hamilton Academical. In the second round they defeated Ayr United before succumbing to Glasgow giants Rangers in the quarter-finals.
In the Scottish Cup, they suffered a similar fate, succumbing to Celtic at the quarter-final stage after wins over Championship sides Raith Rovers and Partick Thistle (after extra time).
In the Premiership, Livi made a reasonable start but, after beating Motherwell on 7 October, failed to win again in 2023. They entered the winter break after a home defeat by Hearts, completing a run of two points from 13 games. During this run the team suffered seven losses in a row, including six successively without scoring, making them the first team to suffer six successive top-flight defeats with no goals since Aberdeen in 1999.[10]
By February the team had surpassed the club's previous longest-ever winless run in league games, lasting 17 games between 21 October 2023 and 7 February 2024. The club's previous longest winless run in league games was between 14 May 2005 and 5 November 2005, stretching 16 games across the 2004–05 and 2005–06 seasons. This was brought to an end with a 1-0 home victory against St Mirren on 17 February.
Another winless streak followed, with the Lions reaching the Premiership's 33-game 'split' at the foot of the table, 12 points adrift of Ross County with five games to play.
After the split, the Lions managed to pick up a win in the first match, beating Ross County 2-0 at home, but they were relegated following a 4-1 defeat away to Motherwell the following week.[11]
They also picked up a come-from-behind 2-1 win at home to St Johnstone, before finishing bottom of the table, 10 points adrift of County.
Results & fixtures
Win Draw Loss Postponed
Friendlies
| 1 July 2023 | Livingston | 2–0 | Queen of the South | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Pittman  2'Bradley 64' |
| 4 July 2023 | Livingston | 2–0 | Alloa Athletic | Almondvale Stadium |
| 19:45 | Brandon 29' Anderson 66' |
| 10 July 2023 | Queen's Park | 0–1 | Livingston | Lesser Hampden |
| 19:45 | Report | Anderson 50' |
| 11 January 2024 |  Winterthur | 3–2 | Livingston | Lara, Antalya |
| 12:30 | Di Giusto 20' Burkart 74'Lüthi 85' | Guthrie 37' Welch-Hayes 45' |
Scottish Premiership
| 5 August 2023 1 | Livingston | 0–0 | Aberdeen | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Report | Attendance: 5,630 Referee: John Beaton |
| 12 August 2023 2 | Rangers | 4–0 | Livingston | Ibrox Stadium |
| 15:00 | Lammers 10' Danilo 78'Sima 84'Dowell 90' | Report | Attendance: 49,320 Referee: Don Robertson |
| 26 August 2023 3 | Hibernian | 2–3 | Livingston | Easter Road |
| 15:00 | Boyle 61' Campbell 86' | Report | Obita 8 o.g.' Anderson 63'Sangare 75' | Attendance: 14,932 Referee: Craig Napier |
| 2 September 2023 4 | Livingston | 1–1 | St Mirren | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | de Lucas 89' | Report | Nahmani 90+6' | Attendance: 2,075 Referee: Nick Walsh |
| 16 September 2023 5 | Ross County | 1–1 | Livingston | Victoria Park |
| 15:00 | Murray 59' | Report | Anderson 72' | Attendance: 3,160 Referee: Euan Anderson |
| 23 September 2023 6 | Livingston | 0–3 | Celtic | Almondvale Stadium |
| 12:30 | Report | Hatate 14 pen.' Hart  28'O'Riley 48'Maeda 90+5' | Attendance: 8,118 Referee: John Beaton |
| 30 September 2023 7 | St Johnstone | 1–1 | Livingston | McDiarmid Park |
| 15:00 | Costelloe 36' Gordon 83' | Report | Kelly 57 pen.' | Attendance: 2,691 Referee: Graham Grainger |
| 7 October 2023 8 | Livingston | 2–0 | Motherwell | Almondvale Stadium |
| 12:30 | Anderson 53' Kelly 62 pen.' | Report | Miller 45+1' | Attendance: 2,039 Referee: Don Robertson |
| 21 October 2023 9 | Kilmarnock | 3–1 | Livingston | Rugby Park |
| 15:00 | Armstrong 16' Vassell 42', 60' | Report | Kelly 35 pen.' | Attendance: 4,679 Referee: Craig Napier |
| 28 October 2023 10 | Livingston | 0–2 | Dundee | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Montaño 70' | Report | Shaughnessy 82', 85' | Attendance: 4,210 Referee: William Collum |
| 1 November 2023 11 | Heart of Midlothian | 1–0 | Livingston | Tynecastle Park |
| 19:45 | Vargas 79' | Report | Attendance: 17,970 Referee: Chris Graham |
| 5 November 2023 12 | Dundee | 1–0 | Livingston | Dens Park |
| 15:00 | McCowan 57' | Report | Attendance: 4,769 Referee: Alan Muir |
| 12 November 2023 13 | Livingston | 0–2 | Rangers | Almondvale Stadium |
| 12:00 | Report | Dessers 26' Tavernier 75 pen.' | Attendance: 8,089 Referee: Steven McLean |
| 25 November 2023 14 | St Mirren | 1–0 | Livingston | St Mirren Park |
| 15:00 | Kelly 24 o.g.' | Report | Attendance: 5,632 Referee: David Munro |
| 9 December 2023 16 | Livingston | 0–1 | Hibernian | Almondvale Stadium |
| 12:00 | Report | Boyle 28' | Attendance: 3,463 Referee: Grant Irvine |
| 16 December 2023 17 | Livingston | 0–0 | Kilmarnock | Almondvale Stadium |
| 12:00 | Report | Attendance: 2,820 Referee: William Collum |
| 20 December 2023 18 | Aberdeen | 2–1 | Livingston | Pittodrie Stadium |
| 19:45 | Miovski 42', 65' | Report | Guthrie 28' | Attendance: 13,794 Referee: Nick Walsh |
| 23 December 2023 19 | Celtic | 2–0 | Livingston | Celtic Park |
| 15:00 | Furuhashi 46' Scales 51' | Report | Attendance: 58,703 Referee: Matthew MacDermid |
| 27 December 2023 20 | Livingston | 0–0 | St Johnstone | Almondvale Stadium |
| 19:45 | Report | Attendance: 1,602 Referee: Kevin Clancy |
| 30 December 2023 21 | Motherwell | 3–1 | Livingston | Fir Park |
| 15:00 | Spittal 14' Bair 19', 35' | Report | Pittman 23' | Attendance: 4,076 Referee: Chris Graham |
| 2 January 2024 22 | Livingston | 1–2 | Heart of Midlothian | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Shinnie 79 pen.' | Report | Vargas 53' Shankland 64' | Attendance: 6,161 Referee: David Dickinson |
| 27 January 2024 23 | Livingston | 1–4 | Dundee | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Yengi 78 pen.' | Report | Bakayoko 19' McCowan 62' 74'Robinson 79'Mellon 87' | Attendance: 1,906 Referee: Ross Hardie |
| 30 January 2024 15 | Livingston | 2–2 | Ross County | Almondvale Stadium |
| 19:45 | Pittman 45' MacKay 88' | Report | Murray 28', 85' | Attendance: 1,142 Referee: Alan Muir |
| Note: Fixture postponed due to a frozen pitch. | ||||
| 3 February 2024 24 | Rangers | 3–0 | Livingston | Ibrox Stadium |
| 15:00 | Silva 40' Matondo 45+2'Cantwell 56' | Report | Attendance: 49,688 Referee: John Beaton |
| 7 February 2024 25 | Kilmarnock | 1–0 | Livingston | Rugby Park |
| 19:45 | Watkins 88' | Report | Attendance: 4,328 Referee: David Dickinson |
| 17 February 2024 26 | Livingston | 1–0 | St Mirren | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Yengi 45+3' | Report | Attendance: 2,120 Referee: Euan Anderson |
| 24 February 2024 27 | Ross County | 3–2 | Livingston | Victoria Park |
| 15:00 | Brophy 21', 27' Sims 90+2' | Report | Anderson 47', 86' | Attendance: 3,346 Referee: David Dickinson |
| 28 February 2024 28 | Livingston | 1–3 | Motherwell | Almondvale Stadium |
| 19:45 | Yengi 3' | Report | Nicholson 49' Spittal 71'Vale 87' | Attendance: 1,659 Referee: John Beaton |
| 2 March 2024 29 | St Johnstone | 1–1 | Livingston | McDiarmid Park |
| 15:00 | Clark 87' | Report | Shinnie 37' | Attendance: 3,287 Referee: Chris Graham |
| 16 March 2024 30 | Hibernian | 3–0 | Livingston | Easter Road |
| 15:00 | Obita 5' Maolida 7'Le Fondre 22' | Report | Attendance: 15,912 Referee: Nick Walsh |
| 31 March 2024 31 | Livingston | 0–3 | Celtic | Almondvale Stadium |
| 12:00 | Report | Brandon 49 o.g.' Bernardo 72'O'Riley 82' | Attendance: 8,396 Referee: Don Robertson |
| 6 April 2024 32 | Livingston | 0–0 | Aberdeen | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Report | Attendance: 2,797 Referee: Graham Grainger |
| 13 April 2024 33 | Heart of Midlothian | 4–2 | Livingston | Tynecastle Park |
| 15:00 | Grant 29' Oda 32'Devlin 40'Shankland 45+6 pen.' | Report | Kelly 10', 22' Yengi 58' | Attendance: 18,491 Referee: Colin Steven |
| 27 April 2024 34 | Livingston | 2–0 | Ross County | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Anderson 12' Kelly 53 pen.' | Report | Attendance: 1,531 Referee: William Collum |
| 4 May 2024 35 | Motherwell | 4–1 | Livingston | Fir Park |
| 15:00 | Bair 21 pen.', 68' Nicholson 45+2'Casey 74' | Report | Nouble 77' | Attendance: 4,161 Referee: David Munro |
| 11 May 2024 36 | Livingston | 2–1 | St Johnstone | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Montaño 72' Shinnie 90+5' | Report | Sidibeh 8' | Referee: John Beaton |
| 15 May 2024 37 | Aberdeen | 5–1 | Livingston | Pittodrie Stadium |
| 19:45 | Hoilett 58', 81' Shinnie 74'Polvara 77'Boyd 90+3' | Report | Yengi 52 pen.' | Attendance: 15,043 Referee: Alan Muir |
| 19 May 2024 38 | Livingston | 1–1 | Hibernian | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Anderson 67' | Report | Maolida 49' | Referee: David Munro |
Scottish League Cup
Group stage
| 15 July 2023 Group Stage | Brechin City | 0–3 | Livingston | Glebe Park |
| 15:00 | Report | Nouble 41' Kelly 41'Montaño 87' | Attendance: 585 Referee: Colin Steven |
| 22 July 2023 Group Stage | Livingston | 1–1 (1–4 p) | Hamilton Academical | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Anderson 90' | Report | Winter 31' | Attendance: 923 Referee: Craig Napier |
| 25 July 2023 Group Stage | Cove Rangers | 0–5 | Livingston | Balmoral Stadium |
| 19:45 | Report | Parkes 44' Obileye 55'Anderson 59'Kelly 81', 90+2' | Attendance: 683 Referee: David Dickinson |
| 29 July 2023 Group Stage | Livingston | 1–0 | Clyde | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Anderson 75' | Report | Attendance: 872 Referee: William Collum |
Knockout phase
| 19 August 2023 Second round | Livingston | 2–0 | Ayr United | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Nouble 12' Montaño 64' | Report | Attendance: 1,304 Referee: Kevin Clancy |
| 27 September 2023 Quarter-final | Rangers | 4–0 | Livingston | Ibrox Stadium |
| 20:00 | Sima 10', 84' Yılmaz 66'Jack 90+2' | Attendance: 35,420 Referee: William Collum |
Scottish Cup
| 20 January 2024 Fourth round | Livingston | 2–1 | Raith Rovers | Almondvale Stadium |
| 15:00 | Brandon 32' MacKay 82' | Report | Hamilton 5' | Attendance: 2,580 Referee: Grant Irvine |
| 10 February 2024 Fifth round | Partick Thistle | 2–3 (a.e.t.) | Livingston | Firhill Stadium |
| 15:00 | McInroy 27' Fitzpatrick 61' | Report | Nouble 66', 82' Yengi 120' | Attendance: 3,843 Referee: Nick Walsh |
Squad statistics
Appearances
As of 19 May 2024
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Premiership | League Cup | Scottish Cup | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||
| 1 | GK |  ENG | Shamal George | 38 | 0 | 32 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2 | MF |  IRL | Shaun Donnellan | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 3 | MF |  COL | Cristian Montaño | 23 | 3 | 10+6 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 4 | MF | ENG | David Carson | 10 | 0 | 7+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | DF |  SCO | Mikey Devlin (c) | 35 | 0 | 26+3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | ENG | Ayo Obileye | 37 | 1 | 28+1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | SCO | Scott Pittman | 37 | 2 | 27+2 | 2 | 3+3 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | SCO | Bruce Anderson | 43 | 10 | 17+17 | 7 | 4+2 | 3 | 0+3 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | SCO | Stephen Kelly | 37 | 4 | 17+11 | 2 | 3+3 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | SCO | Daniel MacKay | 28 | 3 | 10+13 | 1 | 1+1 | 0 | 2+1 | 2 |
| 12 | DF | SCO | Jamie Brandon | 41 | 1 | 26+6 | 0 | 1+5 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 16 | MF | SCO | Steven Bradley | 18 | 0 | 9+8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 18 | MF | SCO | Jason Holt | 41 | 0 | 31+2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | ENG | Joel Nouble | 40 | 5 | 28+4 | 1 | 5+1 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 20 | MF |  LBR | Mohammed Sangare | 33 | 1 | 10+15 | 1 | 2+3 | 0 | 1+2 | 0 |
| 21 | DF |  SKN | Michael Nottingham | 30 | 0 | 21+5 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 22 | MF | SCO | Andrew Shinnie | 41 | 3 | 24+9 | 3 | 3+2 | 0 | 1+2 | 0 |
| 23 | GK | SCO | Kieran Wright | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | DF | SCO | Sean Kelly | 27 | 5 | 21+2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 28 | FW | ENG | Kurtis Guthrie | 33 | 1 | 11+15 | 1 | 3+2 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 29 | MF | SCO | James Penrice | 31 | 0 | 22+2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 32 | GK | SCO | Jack Hamilton | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | FW |  AUS | Tete Yengi | 18 | 6 | 12+4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 35 | DF | SCO | Calan Ledingham | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | MF | SCO | Tommy Sharp | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Players who left the club during the season | |||||||||||
| 4 | DF | ENG | Tom Parkes | 12 | 1 | 3+6 | 0 | 2+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | MF |  CGO | Dylan Bahamboula | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | DF | ENG | Miles Welch-Hayes | 3 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | DF |  WAL | Morgan Boyes | 3 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | DF |  DOM | Luiyi de Lucas | 15 | 1 | 11+1 | 1 | 2+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | GK |  NIR | Michael McGovern | 5 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 25 | MF | ENG | Danny Lloyd | 5 | 0 | 1+3 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 38 | MF | CGO | Scott Bitsindou | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | MF |  NGA | Samson Lawal | 3 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Team statistics
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Hibernian | 38 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 52 | 59 | −7 | 46 | |
| 9 | Motherwell | 38 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 56 | 59 | −3 | 43 | |
| 10 | St Johnstone | 38 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 29 | 54 | −25 | 35 | |
| 11 | Ross County (O) | 38 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 38 | 67 | −29 | 35 | Qualification for the Premiership play-off final |
| 12 | Livingston (R) | 38 | 5 | 10 | 23 | 29 | 70 | −41 | 25 | Relegation to the Championship |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Head-to-Head points; 5) Head-to-Head goal difference; 6) Play-off (only if deciding champion, UEFA competitions qualification, second stage group allocation or relegation).[14]
(O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
League Cup table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | PW | PL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | LIV | HAM | COV | BRE | CLY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Livingston | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 1 | +9 | 10 | Qualification for the second round | — | 1–1p | — | — | 1–0 | |
| 2 | Hamilton Academical | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 9 | — | — | 2–2p | 1–0 | — | ||
| 3 | Cove Rangers | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 11 | −1 | 8 | 0–5 | — | — | — | 5–2 | ||
| 4 | Brechin City | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 3 | 0–3 | — | 2–3 | — | — | ||
| 5 | Clyde | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 11 | −7 | 0 | — | 1–3 | — | 1–2 | — |
Transfers
Players out
Loans out
| Player | To | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Lucas Stenhouse | Bo'ness United | Loan[44] |
| John Binnie | Inverkeithing Hillfield Swifts | Loan[45] |
| Morgan Boyes | Inverness CT | Loan[46] |
| Miles Welch-Hayes | Dunfermline Athletic | Loan[47] |
| Samson Lawal | Inverness CT | Loan[48] |