Weekend in numbers

Resident statto @splstats looks at some of the numbers from the weekend with the focus on Celtic, Rangers, Dundee United, Stenhousemuir and Elgin.

22 Celtic remain eight points clear at the top of the Ladbrokes Premiership after defeating Partick Thistle 4-1 at Firhill on Friday night. The Bhoys have now recorded 22 consecutive league victories against the Jags. The last time Thistle beat Celtic was over 20 years ago, in May 1995, when a double from Wayne Foster and a goal from Roddy Grant handed them a 3-1 win at Hampden. Brendan Rodgers has still not lost a domestic match as Celtic manager – his run of 18 games undefeated equals the start made by Martin O’Neill.

32 Rangers are now four points clear in second place in the Ladbrokes Premiership after defeating Heart of Midlothian 2-0. Mark Warburton’s side are unbeaten in 32 matches at Ibrox, a run which stretches all the way back to September last year, when St Johnstone defeated them 3-1 in the League Cup. The Gers are now halfway to equalling the club record of 64 home matches unbeaten, which was set between 1931 and 1934. Their home success this season has been built around a strong defensive record – the Gers have kept nine clean sheets in 13 matches and conceded just a single goal in each of the others.

5 Dundee United defeated Ayr United 1-0 at Somerset Park to remain level on points with Hibernian at the top of the Ladbrokes Championship. It was the first time the Terrors had travelled to Ayr on league duty since 1978, although they had visited Somerset Park on four occasions in cup competitions since then. Ray McKinnon’s side have taken 26 points from the last 30 available, and much of that success has been built on a strong defensive unit. United have not conceded a goal for 495 minutes – the last player to net against them was Grant Anderson for Queen of the South on November 5. The Tangerines’ current run of five clean sheets is their best since January 1990, and they are now just one short of equalling their club record.

5 The most surprising result of the SPFL weekend came in Ladbrokes League 1, where bottom club Stenhousemuir crushed second-placed Airdrieonians 5-0 at the Excelsior Stadium. It was the Warriors’ biggest away league win in over a decade, since they defeated East Stirlingshire 7-0 at Firs Park in March 2006. Their last five-goal win away from home in any competition came in November 2008, when they saw off Clachnacuddin 5-0 in the Scottish Cup. Brown Ferguson’s side recorded just their third league win of the season on Saturday, all of which have come on their travels.

6 Elgin City closed the gap at the top of the Ladbrokes League 2 table to two points after thumping Berwick Rangers 6-0 at Borough Briggs. The Black and Whites equalled their biggest league win since joining the SFL back in 2000 – they also defeated East Stirlingshire 6-0 in September 2007. Jim Weir’s men have been in astonishing goalscoring form this season; they have already scored four or more goals on eight separate occasions, including each of their last three matches. This is the first time since they joined the league that City have scored four or more goals in three consecutive games. They defeated Hawick Royal Albert 8-1 in the Scottish Cup, beat Montrose 4-1 and thumped Berwick on Saturday.