Scottish Premiership: What did we learn from the weekend's games?
- Published
Natural order? Whether or not you side with Craig Levein about who is traditionally the dominant force in Edinburgh, Hearts are the ones who have the bragging rights this time round as they eased pressure on their manager and thrust it the way of Hibernian head coach Paul Heckingbottom with a 2-1 win at Easter Road.
Meanwhile, Celtic and Rangers continued to streak ahead at the top of the table, while Aberdeen are into third after Motherwell slipped up at home to Ross County.
No surprise then that four Rangers players and two each from Celtic, County and Hearts feature in BBC Scotland Sportscene's Scottish Premiership team of the week.
But what else can we conclude from week six of the nation's top flight?
On-fire Forrest wings it
Celtic aren't exactly short of left wingers - Mikey Johnston, Mohamed Elyounoussi and Scott Sinclair all jostle for that position - but James Forrest may just have shown he is the best of the lot.
The Scotland international switched flanks for the visit of Kilmarnock and produced a devastating performance that had everything but a goal. Forrest hit the post and crossbar - and had a hand in Celtic's equaliser as well as their clinching third - and was a constant nuisance.
His ploy of cutting inside on to his right foot opened up the goal and allowed him to rain shots in on goalkeeper Laurentiu Branescu. Can manager Neil Lennon afford to switch Forrest back to the right wing after such an eye-catching impact?
On-fire James Forrest denied in lead-up to Celtic goal
Rangers show winning mentality
Yes, it was against a team who are without a win in the Scottish Premiership this season and, yes, they will face far tougher tests, but Rangers demonstrated something in their 4-0 win at McDiarmid Park that all title contenders require - the ability to win when the circumstances are against you. After a hard-fought victory over Feyenoord at Ibrox on Thursday night, manager Steven Gerrard complained that the league were not helping them out by giving them an early kick-off. Gerrard was well within his rights to worry about recovery time, but when he arrived in Perth, he was not offering up any excuses.
"If we have any ambitions of having a good season, we have to come to places like this at times when everything is against us and still perform and take maximum points," he said pre-match.
Although his side were frustrated in the first half, they turned in a superb second-half performance with goals from Alfredo Morelos, Connor Goldson and a late brace from Jermain Defoe. That's now five league wins out of six, with Gerrard's side unbeaten in their past eight away games in all competitions.
Considine for Scotland?
Associated with some of Aberdeen's worst results, Andrew Considine is often lampooned. Yet, in a season where many Aberdeen players have struggled to get anywhere near their best, it is the local lad who has put in the most consistent performances in red.
His early goal at Livingston - his second of the season - was the one bright spot in a turgid first half for the Dons. And, as Livi continued to dominate, it was his defensive work that was needed to keep Aberdeen's slim lead intact and eventually help secure a vital three points. Not for the first time this season, he has been Aberdeen's hero; the 32-year-old's first goal of the campaign was a dramatic 91st-minute equaliser against Dundee to keep Derek McInnes' side in the League Cup.
Amid injuries to Scott McKenna, Ash Taylor and Shay Logan, Considine has marshalled a defence that in the past four games have conceded just once - a goalkeeping error from Joe Lewis against St Johnstone.
Team-mates McKenna and Michael Devlin have both received Scotland call-ups, yet Considine is constantly overlooked. With McKenna likely to still be injured come the Euro 2020 qualifiers with San Marino and Russia next month, is it time to give Considine his chance?
Inexperience a blessing and a curse for Steelmen
At times this season, Motherwell have looked exquisite going forward and, for large swaths of Saturday's clash against Ross County, it was clear for all to see that Stephen Robinson was overseeing a young and vibrant squad that could cause any team all sorts of problems on their day.
Indeed, not only was the average age of Motherwell's team on Saturday just 25 years of age but their midfield and forward line had an even lower age of just 22, with prospects like James Scott, Sherwin Seedorf and Allan Campbell causing havoc in the County half.
However, youth is a double-edged sword and, while Motherwell scored through Campbell's exceptional technique, they also conceded two late goals through naive defending and sheer impatience where a more experienced side would have perhaps simply consolidated their slender lead and picked up all three points.
Highlights: Motherwell 1-2 Ross County
Stewart vital to County's strong start
Ross Stewart was undoubtedly one of Ross County's most instrumental players as the Highland club marched to the Scottish Championship title last season. Yet few would have expected the forward to have hit the ground running in the Scottish top flight with the speed and tenacity that he has shown thus far.
Despite the perceived wisdom that promoted sides ought to be facing tougher opposition in the Premiership, Stewart has already bagged eight goals in 11 games across all competitions this season for Steven Ferguson and Stuart Kettlewell's side.
What's perhaps even more encouraging for County fans is the manner in which Stewart is scoring his goals. Rather than tallying up consolation goals at Celtic Park or Ibrox, the 23-year old has scored against Hamilton, Livingston, St Mirren and now Motherwell. Important goals in games County will be delighted to be picking up points in.
Dominant Livi 'only have themselves to blame'
Livingston hosted Aberdeen on Saturday with the two sides level on points and, had things been different, it could have been the home side sitting third in the Premiership.
Instead, despite being the better team, they could not convert their chances and somehow contrived to lose 2-0. But Sportscene pundit Michael Stewart isn't buying any hard luck stories from Gary Holt's men. Chris Erskine had a tap-in and fell over after swiping fresh air. Jon Guthrie volleyed off the bar from the edge of the six-yard box. Only once did Dons goalkeeper Joe Lewis have to make a significant save.
"Livingston have only got themselves to blame that they didn't take anything from this game," Stewart said on Saturday's Sportsound. "It's not a case of, 'they were really unlucky', they opened up and had some great opportunities to put the ball in the back of the net. If you don't take those chances then you're going to pass up the opportunity to pick up points. They were the dominant side, there's no question of that."
Highlights: Livingston 0-2 Aberdeen
Cup tie so crucial for Alessio
Angelo Alessio's Rugby Park rebuild remains on track despite a defeat at Celtic Park that ended a four-game unbeaten run. Had they held on to the lead given to them by Eamonn Brophy until half-time, Kilmarnock could have made life even more difficult for the champions.
And, even at 3-1 down, a missed penalty and superb Brophy drive well saved by Fraser Forster showed Killie remained a danger. Now they face Hibernian in a Scottish League Cup quarter-final that is loaded with significance for the Italian manager.
Win it and Alessio will have gone some way to atoning for the disastrous European exit to Connah's Quay Nomads. Defeat, though, will be another momentum-crushing setback.
Eamonn Brophy beauty gives Kilmarnock lead at Celtic Park
Hickey the latest off the Scottish full-back production line
Yes, there was a touch of fortune about Aaron Hickey's Edinburgh derby winner, but his performance in all areas against Hibs was outstanding. The 17-year-old was a constant presence in Hearts' attack and was generally excellent in his defensive duties too.
Whether it is being thrown in to start a Scottish Cup final against Celtic at just 16, or starting a high-stakes Edinburgh derby in a less familiar right-back role, nothing seems to faze Hickey, whose temperament and positional sense defy his young age.
Technically gifted too, he has the potential for a hugely successful career.
'Derby goal was best feeling in my life' - Hickey
Rice 'doesn't know the rules'
Hamilton dogged out a goalless draw with St Mirren, despite being down to 10 men for 40 minutes after George Oakley's sending off. What is interesting about that is not that Accies' determination once again led them to pick up a result - we all know that's their strength - but more head coach Brian Rice's suggestion that inconsistent decisions have had him questioning his own judgement of the rules.
After admitting Oakley deserved to be sent off, Rice added: "My players are getting punished and I don't see other teams getting punished. I've seen tackles that I think are straight red cards going unpunished, while I've had three players sent off for very little. So I'm at a loss as to what the rules are."
'I don't know the rules' - Hamilton boss Rice on Oakley red
Goodwin needs to add goals to solid foundations
Since arriving belatedly in the summer, manager Jim Goodwin has done a pretty good job at making St Mirren belligerent at the back, helped by the experience of Kirk Broadfoot, Gary MacKenzie and Paul McGinn. Only the top three - Celtic, Rangers and Aberdeen - have conceded fewer goals than the Paisley side. Midfielders Kyle Magennis, Kyle McAllister and Ryan Flynn are tidy footballers too.
But the next step for Goodwin is to shape his team's attack, because they have only managed three goals in six league games thus far, fewer than anyone else in the top flight. Junior Morias led the line against Hamilton and at times linked play well, but he was not enough of a goal threat even against 10-men - and Jonathan Obika had little impact from the bench.
With the transfer window long shut, Goodwin must find a way of increasing the goals without comprising the solid foundations, or relegation will be a real concern.
Win or bust for Heckingbottom?
Sunday's Edinburgh derby had been billed as the meeting of the league's two 'crisis clubs' of the moment and, unfortunately for Paul Heckingbottom, it was his side who came out the worse after their 2-1 defeat.
Booed off at full-time, many fans have already made up their minds about the former Leeds United boss as their winless run stretched to five matches. Lacking penetration in the final third and being a soft touch at the back is a recipe for disaster and Heckingbottom took the dangerous step of calling out his players, saying, "they've got to stand up or we change the players," while also acknowledging his own responsibility.
Next up is Kilmarnock in the League Cup, followed by Celtic and Aberdeen in the league. It already seems as though it's make or break just 25 games into his time in charge.
Saints offer no defence
After last week's draw at Pittodrie, Tommy Wright will have been hoping that St Johnstone could use that result as a springboard to kick-start their season.
Despite holding Steven Gerrard's side until the break, the warning signs were there from early on at McDiarmid Park, where Rangers had six shots inside the opening 20 minutes. All of them were from within 25 yards out, three of them falling to the dangerous Alfredo Morelos, who took just over a minute after half-time to break the deadlock.
The hosts went to pieces after that goal. They may claim they were unlucky with Murray Davidson's effort judged to have been stopped on the goal-line by Steven Davis, but as Wright pointed out, they cared more about remonstrating with referee Andrew Dallas than stopping Jermain Defoe scoring the first of his two goals in two minutes.
Saints, still without a league win this season, sit bottom of the Premiership table and they're conceding just under three goals a game on average. Things have to change.
Rangers' Steven Davis clears St Johnstone effort off line