2020–21 Falkirk F.C. season

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Falkirk
2020–21 season
ChairmanGary Deans
ManagerDavid McCracken & Lee Miller
(Until 21 April)
Gary Holt
(Interim)
StadiumFalkirk Stadium
League OneFifth Place
League CupSecond Round
Scottish CupThird Round
Top goalscorerLeague: Callumn Morrison (7)
All: Callumn Morrison (10)

The 2020–21 season was Falkirk's second season in League One following their relegation from the Championship at the end of the 2018–19 season. Falkirk also competed in the League Cup and the Scottish Cup. On 2 October 2020, the SPFL confirmed that the Scottish Challenge Cup had been cancelled for the upcoming season.[1]

Summary[]

Falkirk began their season on 6 October in the League Cup group stage with the League One season beginning on 17 October.

On 11 January 2021, all football below the Scottish Championship was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] On 29 January 2021, the suspension was extended until at least 14 February.[3]

In March 2021, the Scottish Government gave permission for the league to resume. On 16 March, clubs from League 1 and 2 voted to implement for a reduced 22-game season with a league split after 18 games.[4]

On 21 April 2021, both of Falkirk's co-managers David McCracken & Lee Miller were sacked following their defeat to Peterhead with sporting director and former manager Gary Holt being appointed in interim charge until the end of the season.[5]

Results and fixtures[]

  Win   Draw   Loss   Postponed

Pre Season[]

19 September 2020 Raith Rovers 2 – 6 Falkirk Stark's Park
15:00 Coulson Goal 10'
Hendry Goal 53 pen.'		 Report Dowds Goal 15' (57)
Morrison Goal 28 pen.'
Connolly Goal 66'
Keena Goal 85'
Leitch Goal 90'
22 September 2020 Heart of Midlothian 3 – 0 Falkirk Orlam
Boyce Goal 44'
Walker Goal 75'
Wighton Goal 82 pen.'		 Report
26 September 2020 Falkirk 3 – 2 Ayr United Falkirk Stadium
Keena GoalGoalGoal Report McCowan Goal 10'
Hewitt Goal 80'

Scottish League One[]

Main article: 2020–21 Scottish League One
17 October 2020 1 Montrose 1 – 3 Falkirk Links Park
15:00 Quinn Goal 50'
Steeves Red card 85'		 Report Francis Goal 43'
Morrison Goal 85 pen.'
Leitch Goal 90+2'		 Attendance: 0
Referee: Craig Napier
24 October 2020 2 Falkirk 1 – 1 Forfar Athletic Falkirk Stadium
15:00 Dowds Goal 15'
Mutch Red card 64'		 Report Allan Goal 66 pen.' Attendance: 0
Referee: Steve Kirkland
31 October 2020 3 Falkirk 2 – 0 East Fife Falkirk Stadium
15:00 Leitch Goal 39'
Francis Goal 47'		 Report Attendance: 0
Referee: Graham Beaton
7 November 2020 4 Partick Thistle 2 – 2 Falkirk Firhill Stadium
15:00 Cardle Goal 66'
Graham Goal 68'		 Report Morrison Goal 13'
Telfer Goal 88'		 Attendance: 0
Referee: Grant Irvine
21 November 2020 5 Falkirk 1 – 0 Cove Rangers Falkirk Stadium
15:00 Morrison Goal 49' Report Attendance: 0
Referee: David Dickinson
24 November 2020 6 Dumbarton 0 – 3 Falkirk Dumbarton Football Stadium
19:00 Report Morrison Goal 16'
Alston Goal 33'
Connolly Goal 77'		 Attendance: 0
Referee: Steven Kirkland
5 December 2020 7 Falkirk 2 – 1 Peterhead Falkirk Stadium
15:00 Alston Goal 25'
Sammon Goal 45+1'		 Report Cameron Goal 77' Attendance: 0
Referee: Peter Stuart
12 December 2020 8 Clyde 0 – 3 Falkirk Broadwood Stadium
15:00 Report Telfer Goal 30'
Mercer Goal 55'
Hall Goal 59'		 Attendance: 0
20 December 2020 9 Falkirk 0 – 1 Airdrieonians Falkirk Stadium
15:00 Report Connell Goal 82' Attendance: 0
26 December 2020 10 Falkirk 0 – 0 Partick Thistle Falkirk Stadium
12:00 Report Rudden Red card 64' Attendance: 0
Referee: Duncan Williams
2 January 2021 11 East Fife 2 – 1 Falkirk Bayview Stadium
15:00 Smith Goal 20'
Hamilton Goal 69'		 Report Morrison Goal 47' Attendance: 0
Referee: Graham Beaton
20 March 2021 12 Falkirk 2 – 0 Montrose Falkirk
15:00 Durnan Goal 12'
Morrison Goal 90'		 Report Stadium: Falkirk Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Gavin Duncan
27 March 2021 13 Forfar Athletic 0 – 2 Falkirk Forfar
15:00 Report Telfer Goal 25'
Alston Goal 48'		 Stadium: Station Park
Attendance: 0
Referee: Steven Reid
30 March 2021 14 Falkirk 1 – 1 Dumbarton Falkirk
19:45 Dowds Goal 74'
Durnan Red card 81'		 Report Omar Goal 68' Stadium: Falkirk Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Steven Kirkland
6 April 2021 15 Airdrieonians 2 – 1 Falkirk Airdrie
19:00 Roy Goal 9'
Carrick Goal 81 pen.'		 Report Telfer Goal 35' Stadium: Excelsior Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Colin Steven
10 April 2021 16 Falkirk 2 – 1 Clyde Falkirk
15:00 Hall Goal 9'
Keena Goal 68'		 Report Jack Goal 84' Stadium: Falkirk Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Craig Napier
17 April 2021 17 Cove Rangers 2 – 0 Falkirk Cove Bay
12:00 Megginson Goal 12', 48' Report Stadium: Balmoral Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: David Dickinson
20 April 2021 18 Peterhead 1 – 0 Falkirk Peterhead
19:45 Brown Goal 81' Report Gomis Red card 75' Stadium: Balmoor Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Duncan Williams
24 April 2021 19 Falkirk 2 – 2 Cove Rangers Falkirk
15:00 Morrison Goal 19 pen.'
Sammon Goal 86'		 Report McIntosh Goal 36'
Megginson Goal 76'		 Stadium: Falkirk Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Gavin Duncan
29 April 2021 20 Partick Thistle 5 – 0 Falkirk Glasgow
19:00 Rudden Goal 30'
Graham Goal 32', 41', 59'
Cardle Goal 72'		 Report Stadium: Firhill Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: David Dickinson
1 May 2021 21 Falkirk 1 – 2 Montrose Falkirk
15:00 Sammon Goal 5' Report Ballantyne Goal 45'
Milne Goal 62'		 Stadium: Falkirk Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Steven Kirkland
4 May 2021 22 Airdrieonians 2 – 0 Falkirk Airdrie
19:00 Thomson Goal 88'
Turner Goal 90+4'		 Report Stadium: Excelsior Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Scott Lambie

Scottish League Cup[]

Main article: 2020–21 Scottish League Cup § Group E

Group Stage[]

Results

6 October 2020 1 Falkirk 3 – 0 [A] Kilmarnock Falkirk
19:45 Stadium: Falkirk Stadium
9 October 2020 2 Dunfermline Athletic 2 – 0 Falkirk Dunfermline
19:45 Murray Goal 58', 65' Report Stadium: East End Park
Attendance: 0
Referee: Grant Irvine
13 October 2020 3 Falkirk 2 – 1 Clyde Falkirk
19:45 Keena Goal 13'
Morrison Goal 47 pen.'		 Report Goodwillie Goal 17' Stadium: Falkirk Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Lloyd Wilson
10 November 2020 4 Dumbarton 0 – 4 Falkirk Dumbarton
19:45 Report Morrison Goal 12', 49'
Sammon Goal 73'
Dowds Goal 82'		 Stadium: Dumbarton Football Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Scott Lambie
Pos Team
 Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification DNF FAL KIL CLY DUM
1 Dunfermline Athletic 4 4 0 0 0 9 2 +7 12 Qualification for the Second Round — 2–0 — 3–2 —
2 Falkirk 4 3 0 0 1 9 3 +6 9 — — 3–0 2–1 —
3 Kilmarnock 4 2 0 0 2 4 6 −2 6 0–3 — — — 2–0
4 Clyde 4 1 0 0 3 6 9 −3 3 — — 0–2 — 3–2
5 Dumbarton 4 0 0 0 4 2 10 −8 0 0–1 0–4 — — —
Source: [6]
Rules for classification: 1) points, 2) goal difference, 3) goals scored, 4) away goals scored, 5) matches won, 6) away matches won, 7) drawing of lots.[7]

Knockout Stage[]

29 November 2020 Second Round Falkirk 0 – 4 Rangers Falkirk
17:00 Report Defoe Goal 6'
Bassey Goal 30'
Barišić Goal 41'
Tavernier Goal 51'		 Stadium: Falkirk Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Bobby Madden

Scottish Cup[]

Main article: 2020–21 Scottish Cup
23 March 2021 Second Round Arbroath 1 – 2 Falkirk Arbroath
15:00 O'Brien Goal 8' Report Telfer Goal 42'
Fotheringham Goal 87'		 Stadium: Gayfield Park
Attendance: 0
Referee: David Munro
3 April 2021 Third Round Celtic 3 – 0 Falkirk Glasgow
15:00 Forrest Goal 56'
Christie Goal 58'
Elyounoussi Goal 79'		 Report Stadium: Celtic Park
Attendance: 0
Referee: John Beaton

Player statistics[]

As of 4 May 2021 (UTC)[8]
No. Pos Nat Player Total League One League Cup Scottish Cup
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1 GK Scotland Robbie Mutch 21 0 17+0 0 2+0 0 2+0 0
2 DF Scotland Scott Mercer 19 1 15+1 1 2+0 0 1+0 0
3 DF Scotland Paul Dixon 21 0 16+0 0 4+0 0 0+1 0
4 DF Northern Ireland Ben Hall 21 2 16+0 2 4+0 0 1+0 0
5 DF Scotland Mark Durnan 15 1 11+1 1 3+0 0 0+0 0
6 DF Scotland Gary Miller 19 0 14+3 0 1+0 0 1+0 0
8 MF Scotland Blair Alston 24 3 20+1 3 2+0 0 1+0 0
9 FW Republic of Ireland Aidan Keena 14 2 7+4 1 2+0 1 1+0 0
10 FW Scotland Anton Dowds 23 3 10+7 2 2+2 1 2+0 0
11 MF Scotland Aidan Connolly 6 1 2+3 1 0+1 0 0+0 0
14 MF Senegal Morgaro Gomis 23 0 16+2 0 3+1 0 1+0 0
15 DF Scotland Lewis Neilson 10 0 7+1 0 0+0 0 2+0 0
16 FW England Akeel Francis 22 2 4+13 2 1+2 0 2+0 0
17 FW Scotland Robbie Leitch 27 2 10+11 2 3+1 0 2+0 0
18 FW Republic of Ireland Conor Sammon 25 4 14+5 3 2+2 1 2+0 0
19 DF Northern Ireland Euan Deveney 7 0 1+3 0 0+1 0 2+0 0
20 FW Scotland Aidan Laverty 1 0 0+0 0 0+1 0 0+0 0
21 MF Scotland Charlie Telfer 17 5 7+6 4 1+1 0 2+0 1
22 DF Scotland Blair Sneddon 0 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 0+0 0
24 FW Scotland Kai Fotheringham 13 1 10+1 0 0+0 0 1+1 1
25 GK Scotland Jay Cantley 0 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 0+0 0
33 DF Scotland Sean Kelly 16 0 11+3 0 2+0 0 0+0 0
38 MF Scotland Callumn Morrison 25 10 19+2 7 4+0 3 0+0 0
72 DF Northern Ireland Kyle McClelland 8 0 5+1 0 0+0 0 2+0 0
Players who left the club during the 2020–21 season
7 MF England Josh Todd 12 0 3+5 0 3+1 0 0+0 0
23 GK Scotland Peter Morrison 7 0 5+0 0 2+0 0 0+0 0
30 GK Scotland Matthew Connolly 0 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 0+0 0
99 FW Scotland Lee Miller 7 0 0+7 0 0+0 0 0+0 0

Team Statistics[]

League table[]

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion, qualification or relegation
1 Partick Thistle (C, P) 22 11 7 4 40 18 +22 40 Promotion to the Championship
2 Airdrieonians 22 12 2 8 35 24 +11 38 Qualification for the Championship play-offs
3 Cove Rangers 22 10 6 6 28 18 +10 36
4 Montrose 22 9 6 7 33 33 0 33
5 Falkirk 22 9 5 8 29 26 +3 32
6 East Fife 22 10 3 9 30 33 −3 33
7 Peterhead 22 9 2 11 24 27 −3 29
8 Clyde 22 8 2 12 27 38 −11 26
9 Dumbarton (O) 22 7 4 11 14 24 −10 25 Qualification for the League One play-offs
10 Forfar Athletic (R) 22 4 5 13 18 37 −19 17 Relegation to League Two
Source: SPFL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Head-to-to head points; 5) Head-to-head goal difference; 6) Play-off (only for deciding promotion, play-off participation and relegation).[9]
(C) Champion; (O) Play-off winner; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated

Division summary[]

Round12345678910111213141516171819202122
GroundAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAAAAHAHA
ResultWDWDWWWWLDLWWDLWLLDLLL
Position2222211111111111122445
Updated to match(es) played on 4 May 2020[citation needed]. Source: [10]
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Transfers[]

See also[]

Notes
  1. ^
    A: Falkirk were awarded a technical 3−0 win over Kilmarnock who were unable to raise a team after six players tested positive for COVID-19.[30]

References[]

  1. ^ "Scottish Challenge Cup cancelled for season 2020-21". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  2. ^ "Scottish lower leagues & Scottish Cup suspended for three weeks". BBC Sport. 11 January 2021. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  3. ^ "Scottish Cup, lower leagues and women's football remain suspended". BBC Sport. 29 January 2021. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  4. ^ "Scottish League 1 & 2 clubs vote for 22-game season with split after 18 matches". BBC Sport. 16 March 2021. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
  5. ^ "Club Statement". Falkirk FC. 21 April 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  6. ^ "Summary - League Cup Group E". Soccerway. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  7. ^ "Format". SPFL. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  8. ^ "Falkirk 2018/2019 player appearances". Soccerbase. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  9. ^ "The Rules of the Scottish Professional Football League" (PDF). SPFL. pp. 38–39. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  10. ^ "Scottish Championship 2019/20". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  11. ^ "Sneddon Joins the Bairns". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 14 July 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  12. ^ "Anton Dowds Joins the Club". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 20 July 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  13. ^ "Aidan Keena Signs from Hartlepool". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 5 August 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  14. ^ "Bairns Sign Callumn Morrison". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 10 August 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  15. ^ "Blair is Back!". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 18 August 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  16. ^ "Akeel Francis Signs". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 24 September 2020. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  17. ^ "Matthew Connolly Signs". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  18. ^ "PJ Morrison Signs". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 16 October 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  19. ^ "Euan Deveney Signs". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 23 October 2020. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  20. ^ "Sean Kelly Signs". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 28 October 2020. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  21. ^ "Kyle McClelland Signs". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 6 March 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
  22. ^ "Falkirk bring in Dundee United pair Lewis Neilson and Kai Fotheringham on loan". falkirkherald.co.uk. Falkirk Herald. 12 March 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
  23. ^ "Falkirk bring in Dundee United pair Lewis Neilson and Kai Fotheringham on loan". falkirkherald.co.uk. Falkirk Herald. 12 March 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
  24. ^ "Former Rangers star signs again for non-league side as they push for promotion". dailyrecord.co.uk. Dailry Record. 20 July 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  25. ^ "Denny Johnstone Signs for Dumbarton". dumbartonfootballclub.com. Dumbarton FC. 25 July 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  26. ^ "Michael Doyle becomes a Spider". queensparkfc.co.uk. Queens Park FC. 28 July 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  27. ^ "Former Falkirk duo make Championship moves, with another poised for Hearts". falkirkherald.co.uk. Falkirk Herald. 18 August 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  28. ^ "New Signing - Louis Longridge". queensparkfc.co.uk. Queens Park FC. 31 August 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  29. ^ "JOSH TODD JOINS AYR UNITED ON LOAN". falkirkfc.co.uk. Falkirk FC. 29 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  30. ^ "SPFL Statement". SPFL. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
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