Scottish Championship set for incredible final day with title, play-offs and relegation all to be settled

Morton's Robbie Crawford celebrates scoring to make it 2-1 during a cinch Championship match between Greenock Morton and Queen's Park at Cappielow Park, on April 29, 2023, in Greenock, Scotland. (Photo by Roddy Scott / SNS Group)

All five remaining fixtures take place on Friday night, with the undoubted match of the day coming at Ochilview as second-placed Queen’s Park host leaders Dundee. The Spiders spurned the chance to go top on Saturday after losing 2-1 at Morton, meaning that they must beat the Dees – who are two points clear – to win the league. A draw and a victory will land the title for Gary Bowyer’s men, who did not pay the price for a 0-0 home draw with Cove Rangers 24 hours earlier.

"The bottom line is we need to win on Friday now to be champions,” said Queen’s Park manager Owen Coyle, whose team took the lead at Cappielow before being overhauled. "If we beat Dundee, we win the league, and we'd have snatched at that with both hands at the start of the season.”

Morton’s victory kept alive their own hopes of reaching the play-offs. They lie in sixth place on 54 points and will need to beat Cove at the Balmoral Stadium and hope that the match between Inverness and Ayr finishes as a draw or Partick Thistle lose at Raith to have any chance of jumping into the top four. While ICT were booking their place in the Scottish Cup final, Ayr won 1-0 at home to the Rovers and now sit in fourth place on 55 points, level with fifth-placed Caley but with a better goal difference. It means Billy Dodds’ side will need to defeat the Honest Men to reach the play-offs. It is simpler for the Jags, who beat Arbroath 2-0 at Firhill and sit third on 56 points with a strong goal difference. Unless Morton were to defeat Cove by 12 goals, a point will be enough to reach the play-offs.

At the bottom, Hamilton Accies are at the foot on 30 points and travel to eighth-placed Arbroath on Friday, who are three points clear with a superior goal difference of 12. John Rankin’s men look booked for at least the play-off and will hope ninth-placed Cove, on 31 points and four goals worse off than Accies, do not beat Morton to give themselves a chance of finishing ninth and landing a relegation play-off with a League One club.