Held at Ingliston Showground near Edinburgh on 20 and 21 January, the 1985 Tennent's Sixes was the second edition of the Tennent's Sixes.
Celtic declined to enter. Nine clubs from the 1984–85 Scottish Premier Division therefore took part, with First Division side Airdrieonians completing the ten-team field.
Heart of Midlothian won the competition for the first time, beating Morton 4–1 in the final. John Robertson scored three of Hearts' goals and Jimmy Bone the other.
Format Two groups of five produced four semi-finalists, with the top two clubs in each section progressing. Each club played four group matches. Wins were worth two points; a penalty shoot-out decided matches which finished level.
Group stage
Group 1
Team Pld W L GF GA GD Pts Dundee 4 3 1 9 5 +4 6 Morton 4 3 1 10 7 +3 6 Rangers 4 2 2 10 9 +1 4 Hibernian 4 1 3 5 6 −1 2 St Mirren 4 1 3 6 9 −3 2
Team Score Team Date Morton 3–1 Dundee 20 January 1985 Dundee 3–1 Rangers 20 January 1985 Dundee 3–0 Hibernian 20 January 1985 Rangers 4–3 Morton 20 January 1985 Morton 2–1 Hibernian 20 January 1985 Morton 2–1 St Mirren 20 January 1985 St Mirren 3–1 Rangers 20 January 1985 Hibernian 4–1 St Mirren 20 January 1985 Dundee 2–1 St Mirren 21 January 1985 Rangers 4–0 Hibernian 21 January 1985
Morton's only group defeat came against Rangers, 4–3. Wins over Dundee, St Mirren and Hibernian took them into the semi-finals, with Jim Holmes scoring the goal which secured qualification.
Group 2
Team Score Team Date Aberdeen 4–2 Heart of Midlothian 20 January 1985 Aberdeen 2–1 Dumbarton 20 January 1985 Aberdeen 4–2 Airdrieonians 20 January 1985 Heart of Midlothian 1–1Hearts won 3–1 on penalties Dundee United 20 January 1985 Airdrieonians 2–1 Heart of Midlothian 20 January 1985 Dundee United 2–1 Dumbarton 20 January 1985 Dundee United 5–1 Airdrieonians 20 January 1985 Dumbarton 2–1 Airdrieonians 20 January 1985 Aberdeen 0–0Aberdeen won 3–2 on penalties Dundee United 21 January 1985 Heart of Midlothian 3–0 Dumbarton 21 January 1985
Aberdeen and Hearts progressed to the semi-finals.
Knockout stage
Semi-finals
Team Score Team Date Morton 5–1 Aberdeen 21 January 1985 Heart of Midlothian 4–1 Dundee 21 January 1985
Jim Duffy scored three penalties in Morton's 5–1 win over Aberdeen. It was Aberdeen's heaviest defeat during their early appearances in the tournament.
Final
Team Score Team Date Heart of Midlothian 4–1 Morton 21 January 1985
Robertson's hat-trick and Bone's goal gave Hearts their first Tennent's Sixes title. Dougie Robertson was Morton's leading scorer in the tournament with five goals.
Prize money Each club received £3,500 for taking part. Losing semi-finalists received a further £1,500, the runners-up £2,500 and the winners £3,500. Separate awards of £400 and £300 were available to the highest and second-highest scoring teams respectively.
Morton's participation payment and runners-up award amounted to £6,000. Tennent's also promised a £1,000 payment to charity if the tournament produced more than 100 goals.
Attendance and coverage Around 8,000 spectators attended on each of the two days at Ingliston. The tournament was televised on BBC Scotland.
References
External links Tennent's Soccer Sixes at the Scottish Football Historical Archive