@splstats looks at some of the numbers behind the weekend SPFL games:
17 Celtic moved to the top of the Ladbrokes Premiership following a comfortable 2-0 victory over Partick Thistle at Firhill on Sunday. There was a contrast of experience in the goalscorers - Australian youngster Tom Rogic scored his first goal for Celtic then Kris Commons took his tally for the club to 82 (60 in the league). The Bhoys have now recorded 17 consecutive league victories against the Jags, a run which stretches back over 20 years. Ronny Deila’s side have now kept seven clean sheets in a row in the Premiership, and have managed 24 in 40 league matches since the Norwegian took over.
8 Aberdeen shrugged off their midweek European disappointment by beating Kilmarnock 2-0 at Pittodrie on Sunday. Graeme Shinnie opened the scoring with his first Dons goal, having also netted his first Inverness goal against Killie back in August 2011. Aberdeen have now recorded eight consecutive victories against Kilmarnock - their best ever run against the Ayrshire side. Killie are the only Premiership club who have failed to pick up any points from their opening two fixtures, and they have suffered nine defeats in the last 10 matches.
31 The shock of the weekend in the Ladbrokes Championship came at the Cheaper Insurance Direct Stadium, where Dumbarton defeated Hibernian 2-1 in Stephen Aitken’s first league game in charge. It was the first time Dumbarton had tasted success on the opening day of the season since 2007/08, when they beat Elgin City 1-0 in Division 3. The Sons had not previously beaten the Hibees in 31 years – their last triumph was a 3-2 victory at Easter Road in the Premier Division in September 1984. On that day, Joe Coyle scored a double and brother Tommy netted the third to secure a result which prompted Hibs boss Pat Stanton to resign.
6 Dunfermline Athletic started their Ladbrokes League 1 campaign in style by thumping Brechin City 6-1 at Glebe Park. The last time the Fife club scored six goals away from home came in October 1993, when Meat Loaf was at UK No 1 with “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That). It is not known whether the American rocker celebrated his chart success by taking in the Pars’ 6-0 win over Queen of the South at Palmerston in the Challenge Cup. You have to go back 36 years to find the last time Dunfermline scored six away from home in a league match – amazingly that was also a 6-1 win over Brechin at Glebe Park - if you’re looking for omens then it should be noted that the Pars went on to gain promotion from the third tier that season…
250 Elgin City earned the most impressive result of the opening weekend in Ladbrokes League 2, beating Arbroath 3-0 at Gayfield to continue their great form under Jim Weir. Prolific striker Craig Gunn marked his 250th appearance for the club in typical style by netting a first-half double before the win was rounded off by Mark Nicolson - the only player to have played more for Elgin than Gunn since their elevation to league status. Gunn has now found the net 109 times for the Black and Whites, and 89 of those goals have come in the league. No other player has managed more than 40 league goals for the club since they joined the SFL in 2000.
