Scottish League One Season Predictions 25/26 - Kai Watson's 1-10
Craig Jones 
It's time to look at our Scottish League One season predictions as we continue our deep dive into the UK football leagues, and we've still go plenty more to come over the next week!
Yesterday saw the release of our Scottish League Two season predictions from Kai Watson, now it's time to go one league up, and take a look at League One.
Kai will be with us all season, delivering weekly Scottish football tips & sharing insights with his followers about teams and players to watch.
Scottish League One Season Predictions
The second day of my predictions brings me to League One, which looks to be really exciting this year! Hamilton were relegated whilst Peterhead won League Two and East Fife came up via the Play-Offs.
It’s still early in the summer transfer window so a lot can change but this is currently how I predict things to go.
Hamilton - 1st
1st - Hamilton - Hamilton Accies are the massive favourites to go up for me. If it wasn’t for their point deduction they would have finished 7th in the Championship last season but mismanagement at the top of the club led to them losing 15 points and playing this season in League One.
John Rankin, so far, has managed to keep a lot of his players and, quite frankly, a lot of them are way too good to be playing in League One. They have a plethora of players that have recent experience playing in the Scottish Premiership like;
- Connor Smith
- Oli Shaw
- Steven Bradley
- Barry Maguire
- Scott Robinson
- Stuart McKinstry
- Tony Gallacher
- Stephen Hendrie
- Dylan McGowan
Even outside of them they have plenty of players with a lot of Championship experience like Ben Williamson, Lee Kilday, Kevin O’Hara and Dean Lyness. Even without any additions, if they can keep this squad it’s head and shoulders above the rest of the league, on paper at least.
If they don’t go back up this season then I’d be very surprised if John Rankin can keep his job, there’s a lot of pressure due to the expectation on them to immediately bounce back. It will be interesting to see if this Hamilton side can bring back a winning mentality that was missing for a lot of last season.
The players can consider themselves unlucky because the relegation wasn’t their fault but they need to show that they are above this level, a slow start to the season, as previously mentioned, puts massive pressure on Rankin and the team he’s put together.
*Boylesports are currently top price from UK betting sites on Hamilton winning League One this season.
Inverness Caledonian Thistle - 2nd
2nd - Inverness Caledonian Thistle - The Inverness players can also consider themselves unlucky to be playing in League One again this season. If they didn’t have their 15 point deduction for administration they would have finished second instead of seventh.
In fact, they lost the least amount of games over the course of the season with ten defeats (joint with Arbroath) and also had the joint best away record in the league with Cove, who did actually finish second.
Scott Kellacher deserves massive credit for the results his side got last season and for their play really deserved a shot at the Play-Offs and the team they had probably stood a better chance than any of the other sides that managed to make it.
Not only did they have a squad full of hungry players, they had strong depth and they’ve already improved that for the upcoming season. They’ve signed two new goalkeepers in Logan Ross and Ross Munro, both who came through at Ross County but at 21 and 25, respectively, don’t have that much experience in professional football.
Ross Millen is a solid signing on the defensive end, David Wotherspoon has plenty of experience and can play all up the right-hand side. Joe Chalmers adds creativity and goal contributions in the final third then the loan signing of Liam Sole from Livingston adds depth and energy in the attacking areas.
Billy McKay will still be asked to score a lot of goals so they may falter if he doesn’t continue his career form then they will be relying on goals coming from their range of other attackers. If those goals don’t come then they may struggle but I don’t foresee that being a reality.
*The latest football betting markets has Inverness as favourites to lift the title.
Peterhead - 3rd
3rd - Peterhead - Peterhead won League Two last season, kept a lot of their most important players and managed to add extra quality. Max Barry and Kieran Shanks were two massive players for them in their title win.
Barry is a creative attacking midfielder/winger and scored five goals with four assists last season. He was with Aberdeen as a youth player, like many other Peterhead players, but really stood out last season and has a chance to show what he can do at a higher level.
Shanks, also came through at Aberdeen, is a striker and scored eight goals in just 1256 minutes in League Two. His movement in and outside the box, along with his instincts within the six-yard box lead me to think that he can also score goals in League One.
Adding to their striker power, they’ve brought in Fraser Mackie, son of Darren, from Aberdeen (again). He’s only 18-years-old but was highly regarded at Aberdeen so I was surprised he was allowed to leave permanently already.
Jack Newman is a former Scotland U21 international and potentially The Blue Toon’s new number one, an excellent addition on a free transfer. Nial McGinn has been brought in and brings an incredible amount of experience having played over 200 Scottish Premiership games.
McGinn’s experience alongside the likes of Peter Pawlett and co-managers Jordon Brown and Ryan Strachan give Peterhead an excellent mix of youth and older heads. I expect a lot of their League Two side to be more than capable of stepping up and I think they’ve made some solid additions to give them a chance of successive promotions.
Queen of the South - 4th
4th - Queen of the South - Queen of the South finished third last season and I think they will be there or thereabouts again. They did lose some players, like Adam Brooks who moved to Crusaders, Daniel Church who moved to Alloa and Harry Cochrane left on a free.
Brooks was impressive last season scoring ten goals and getting four assists in the league alone so those numbers will need to be replaced. Church was a player with massive potential but unfortunately injury issues derailed his development in Dumfries.
Cochrane was a key player last season and even captained the side. The former Hearts youth product wants to try his hand at a higher level and he deserves that chance.
Taylor Charters joined permanently having been on loan last season and adds quality to the midfield. Another interesting signing in the middle of the pitch is Jack Stott from Middlesbrough, he joins with plenty of experience in the U18 Premier League and Premier League 2, he could be a player to watch this season.
Alongside Stott, centre back Jack Hannah also joined from Middlesbrough permanently having been on loan last season. Another player who joins permanently after a loan spell is Jordan Allan who scored five goals in sixteen appearances and they’ll be hoping he continues that form to replace the outgoing Brooks.
Another striker that’s been added is former Livingston man Kurtis Guthrie, he had a decent record in the lower leagues in England but never replicated that in West Lothian. Peter Murphy will be hoping that can change and his first spell in League One will be one that includes a lot of goals.
*Betfair are currently top price about Queen of the South winning League One, and if you're interested in finding out more about this brand, check out our Boylesports review that details everything they have to offer.
Stenhousemuir - 5th
5th - Stenhousemuir - Similarly to Queen of the South, I predict that Stenhousemuir will finish around the same area as they did last season. They finished fourth last time out but some of the players they have lost make me think they may slip down a place.
Matty Yates, although not always a starter, contributed six goals and seven assists last season and left on a free transfer to try a new challenge, those goal contributions won’t be easy to replace. The experienced Nat Wedderburn also left to go to Cowdenbeath, while other experienced midfielders in Kyle Jacobs and Blair Alston departed on frees.
Alston scored nine goals last season and, again, will be a difficult one to replace, not only in terms of the goals contributed but also the experience he added to the pitch and dressing room.
That being said, keeping Ross Taylor and Corey O’Donnell could be huge for their potential success this season. Taylor was a constant threat down the right side, with his ability to carry the ball forward and put fullbacks under pressure. He had three goals and three assists last season and seemed to only get better as the campaign went on.
Corey O’Donnell was a bit of a surprise package for a lot of people last season and ended up scoring eight goals in 1489 minutes. His ability to link the play and put the ball in the net could be the difference between Stenhousemuir challenging for the title or being on the outskirts of the Promotion Play-Offs.
Cove Rangers - 6th
6th - Cove Rangers - Paul Hartley’s Cove Rangers side finished second last season and the reason I predict they won’t be as good this season is losing two crucial players in Adam Emslie and Findlay Marshall. Emslie scored fourteen goals and had six assists and Marshall scored ten goals with five assists.
That’s 35 goal contributions they need to replace for this season and that, in my opinion, is a big ask. They have been very active in the transfer market so far but haven’t really focused much in the forward areas. Mitch Megginson did score twelve goals and get three assists last season but the club captain turns 33 this month and his form continuing into this season isn’t guaranteed.
They have signed Irishman David Eguaibor, but the big striker only played 453 minutes for Cobh Ramblers and managed one goal. Perhaps the change of scenery can kick start his career but so far he only has one senior goal in his career. It may be a lot to ask for him to replace the goals of Emslie and Marshall.
Declan Glass is a player that may step up this season, he scored three last season with four assists but the former Dundee United man may be capable of stepping into the role that Marshall played last season.
Robbie Mutch is a solid addition in the goalkeeping department, Layton Bisland and Liam Parker are good additions in the defence with MacKenzie Strachan another good option just in front of them.
Goals are what I’m concerned about for Cove, which is why I have them as finishing sixth this season.
Alloa - 7th
7th - Alloa - Alloa finished 5th last season but I just believe the sides above them have stronger squads. They lost some quality players in goalkeeper PJ Morrison, centre backs Morgyn Neill and David McKay, central midfielder Miko Virtanen and forward Kevin Cawley retired.
Those were all good League One level players who needed to be replaced and they have been active in the market. Liam McFarlane has joined on loan from Hearts to fill the gap left by Morrison, Daniel Church has been added at left back, Owen Foster has joined as an option on the wing and Kalvin Orsi has joined as another forward option.
Orsi only managed three goals and two assists for Dumbarton last season but he adds depth in all positions across the front of the pitch.
A big thing for Alloa was managing, so far, to keep hold of their most promising talent in Luke Rankin. After a standout season for East Stirling in the Lowland League in 23/24, he was given plenty of opportunities last season and repaid that faith with ten goals at just 20-years-old. He offers a bit of everything up top, can link the play, can hold the ball up and is also capable of making chances for himself.
He’s a player that could probably try stepping up a level so it would be massive for the Wasps if they could keep him and he would be learning from an experienced pro in Connor Sammon if he were to stay.
They still have a decent squad but, as previously mentioned, I think it’s weaker than the sides above them unless some of their players massively step up their games this season.
East Fife - 8th
8th - East Fife - If you pay any attention to the Scottish lower leagues you’ll know there’s one thing that you should never do and that’s underestimate Dick Campbell (although that is exactly what I’m going to do right now).
I can’t see much about them having added players to their squad (having searched Transfermarkt and their official Twitter page) but I wouldn’t be surprised if Campbell showed a lot of faith in the side that got them up through the Play-Offs.
That being said they have lost a few players already with Jack Healy going to East Kilbride, Kallum Higginbotham going to Bonnyrigg Rose, Stewart Murdoch to Stirling and Scott Shepherd going to Forfar. Those are players that will need to be replaced if they want to remain in the division.
They do have some incredible experience with the likes of Brian Easton and Alan Trouten though. The latter was phenomenal in League Two last season scoring twenty goals at 39-years-old but can he sustain that level of performance whilst also stepping up a level?
They also have Nathan Austin as a striking option who has spent more time in the Championship than he has in League One but has an incredible record at League Two, scoring more than a goal every other game.
Trouten and Austin will be key to their survival and if they can add to the foundation of the side that got them promoted last year, they may prove me wrong.
Kelty Hearts - 9th
9th - Kelty Hearts - Thomas O’Ware took charge in May after a really poor spell under Charlie Mulgrew, who replaced Michael Tidser after he left for Dunfermline. Two wins in their last four added gloss to what really was a poor season. Despite finishing sixth in the table, they were only four points clear of Montrose in eight and eight away from the Relegation Play-Off spot.
Losing Ross Cunningham to Stirling was a massive blow, he scored twelve goals last season mostly playing from midfield and those goals are hard to replace. Despite not always starting they’re also losing the experience of Scott Allan in the middle of the pitch and from the dressing room. He decided to hang up his boots this summer and has taken a coaching role at East Kilbride alongside Mick Kennedy.
They have added some interesting players though, ex-Rangers youngster James Graham has joined from Stirling having scored four goals in League Two last season. He can play a variety of positions across the front line and on the right side. Young winger Aaron Arnott also joined from Bonnyrigg Rose having covered various positions for them this season, Kelty have definitely added depth and versatility so far.
Craig Clay signed for Dunfermline to replace that experience they lost from Scott Allan, Alex Ferguson has joined from St. Johnstone having gained plenty of experience in League Two and One in multiple loan spells. Kai Kirkpatrick who joined from Albion Rovers is potentially a wildcard one to watch, an attacking midfielder who can also play on the right should add a goal threat to this Kelty side.
I think they’re weaker than last season and have an inexperienced manager so I’m tipping them to float around the bottom of the table this campaign.
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Montrose - 10th
10th - Montrose - Montrose finished eight last season and I think, on paper at least, they have the weakest squad in the division. Stewart Petrie has been in charge since 2016 but after finishing fourth in 23/24 they dropped massively in the 24/25 season and I don’t see the 25/26 season being any better.
I do think they’ve made two great signings in Kieran Freeman and Craig Wighton. The former, despite only being 25-years-old, has plenty of experience at most levels of Scottish football and has 45 Premiership appearances under his belt. He’ll add two way quality at right-back for the upcoming season.
Wighton hasn’t had the career that was anticipated and most teams think they can help him unlock that potential which lead to him being a Scotland U21 international and moving to Hearts in 2018. He was on loan at Links Park in the second half of last season and got one goal and one assist in 577 minutes. One of the biggest issues with him, however, is managing to keep him fit.
If they can, there’s no doubt he’s capable of scoring goals in League One, he will turn 28 this month so should technically be in his prime. Is this the move that triggers that era of his career? I have doubts over the quality and depth of this Montrose side but they do have plenty of time to rectify that, according to Transfermarkt they not only have one of the smallest squads but also one of the oldest, on average.
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