The dramas produced over the years even include an episode that would bewilder the conspiracy theorists: the day in 1959 when a Celtic win gave the title to Rangers.

The post-war era was one when goal average counted instead of goal difference, and a win was worth only two points. Dundee seemed set for the title when the 1949 campaign reached the final day. However, Alec Stott missed a first-half penalty and they lost 4-1 to Falkirk while Rangers were winning 4-1 away to Albion Rovers to prevail by a point.

The following April, a crowd of 101,000 at Ibrox saw Rangers and Hibs end up goalless. That left them level on points but Rangers, with an inferior goal average, had a game in hand, which they drew 2-2 away to Third Lanark.

In 1953 Rangers won on goal average with a record of 80-39 against the 93-51 of Hibs, who would have won on goal difference.

Four years later came the first major collapse by the long-time leaders as Rangers, nine points behind Hearts in January, put together 14 wins and two draws to take the title. A 1-0 win at Tynecastle in mid-April, with a Billy Simpson goal, was not quite a decider but they went on to clinch the flag a fortnight later with a 3-0 vic-tory away to Queen of the South, a Johnny Hubbard penalty and Max Murray double taking them above Hearts on goal average with a game to spare.

No final day was more spectacular than April 19, 1959. Bobby Rankin put Hearts ahead at Parkhead in the first half but Celtic came back to win 2-1, giving the title to Rangers even although they lost at home to relegation-threatened Aberdeen by the same score. Rangers (55 points) and Hearts (53) finished with identical goals records of 92-51 after a remarkable day. Dunfermline, with a dreadful goal difference, routed Partick Thistle 10-1, with Harry Melrose scoring six, to avoid relegation, and the great John White hit a penalty against the bar as Falkirk took the drop after a

In 1962 Dundee won 3-0 at St Johnstone to take the title by three points from Rangers.

Three years later came the most famous head-to-head decider. Hearts led for 30 weeks out of 34 but Willie Waddell's Kilmarnock beat them 2-0 at Tynecastle - with goals by Davie Sneddon and Brian McIlroy - to take the title on goal average. Had goal difference applied, Killie (62-33) would have needed six more goals to overhaul Hearts (90-49).

Goal difference had replaced goal average by the final day of 1973, when Celtic visited Hibs needing a point to make it eight titles in a row. A goal by Kenny Dalglish and a Dixie Deans double in front of a crowd of 45,443 made sure that Rangers' 2-0 home win over East Fife was in vain.

Six years later, Celtic's final game was at home to their oldest rivals, who trailed but had a game in hand. It looked black for the Hoops when Alex MacDonald scored for Rangers and then Celtic had Johnny Doyle sent off with half the game left. However, Roy Aitken and George McCluskey turned it around and although Bobby Russell equalised, the Parkhead men pulled off an unlikely 4-2 win with a Colin Jackson own goal and Murdo MacLeod's long-range shot in the final minute.

The champions blew a seven-point lead late in 1979-1980, letting Alex Ferguson's Aberdeen clinch the flag with a 5-0 win at Easter Road while Celtic were drawing 0-0 away to St Mirren.

Spectators were able to listen to radios then, and again two years later, when Celtic needed only a point at home to St Mirren, provided the Dons did not win by five goals at home to Rangers. The Parkhead game was goalless as the radios announced that Aberdeen were four up and, for once, the news that Rangers were losing brought dismay to the Celtic support, but goals by George McCluskey and Tom McAdam in the second half made the Pittodrie score academic.

Dundee United, Celtic, and Aberdeen all had a chance on the last day of the following season. The Dons won at home to Hibs, Celtic went to Ibrox and won with a remarkable comeback, but these efforts were in vain. At Dens Park, of all places, goals from Davie Dodds and Eamonn Bannon gave United their first championship.

The radios did bring joyous tidings to the Celtic fans in 1986 when, as their team demolished St Mirren 5-0 at Love Street to retrieve the goal difference problem, they still needed an unlikely slip by Hearts. There arose a mighty cheer, and then two, as they heard that Dundee's Albert Kidd had struck twice in the closing seven minutes against Hearts at Dens Park. Unbelievably, the Tyne- castle men had fallen at the final hurdle.

In 1991, Rangers were moving unconvincingly towards a third title in a row. On the penultimate Saturday they went down 3-0 at Motherwell, letting Aberdeen move above them on goal difference.

The confident Dons thus needed only a point at Ibrox but they froze on the day.

A Mark Hateley double gave Rangers victory and kept the sequence going, a sequence that could end today - or continue.

Old Firm fans probably feel they have had quite enough emotional turmoil for one season and will be relieved that today we are - at last - on the final page of the current chapter.