Celtic and Rangers will meet each other twice in the space of 11 days in a double-header that could hold the key to the destination of the title after the run-in to the Clydesdale Bank Premier League season was announced last night.

The Scottish Premier League have chosen to play the last Old Firm game of the season at Celtic Park on Sunday April 27 but with the Glasgow clubs already due to meet each other on April 16 at the same venue, to contest a rearranged derby that was postponed in January, it means a fresh twist to the championship.

The SPL issued the fixtures for rounds 34-38 after the “split” into the top six and bottom six.

Rangers lead Celtic by seven points and have a game in hand but Walter Smith's side will face back-to-back visits to the east end of Glasgow, as they have no other Premier League games in between.

The SPL took police advice in playing the last Old Firm game as soon as possible after the split.

The trouble-strewn encounter at Celtic Park in May 1999 after Rangers clinched the league on the ground of their fiercest rivals means careful planning from the SPL and the police to ensure that it does not become a “decider” ever again.

Celtic will open up postsplit on Saturday April 19 at home to Aberdeen who took their place in the top six last night by defeating Falkirk 2-1 at Pittodrie, thanks to a late goal from Chris Maguire after Falkirk had equalised to look as if they might make the top six themselves.

The team which finished third last season, to claim a place in the Uefa Cup, are unlikely to repeat that feat but they could influence this season's battle for third place and, of course, the title race.

The Old Firm will be away on week 36 with Celtic going to Motherwell and Rangers to Hibernian, before both sides have home fixtures on the penultimate weekend with Celtic facing Hibernian and Rangers taking on Dundee United.

The last weekend on May 18 sees both sides away, with Celtic going to Tannadice to face Dundee United and Rangers head ing to Aberdeen.

The SPL have still to fix dates for Rangers' outstanding away games at St Mirren and Motherwell, which were not played before the split because of postponements and could not be squeezed into the Ibrox club's busy schedule.

Postsplit fixtures

Kick-off 3.0 unless stated

April 19: Falkirk v Gretna; Heart of Midlothian v St Mirren; Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Kilmarnock; Celtic v Aberdeen. April 20: Dundee United v Hibernian (2.0, live on Setanta Sports).
April 26: Heart of Midlothian v Inverness Caledonian Thistle; Kilmarnock v Gretna; St Mirren v Falkirk; Aberdeen v Hibernian.
April 27: Celtic v Rangers (TBC, live on Setanta Sports).
April 28: Motherwell v Dundee United (7.45, live on Setanta Sports).
May 3: Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Gretna; St Mirren v Kilmarnock; Aberdeen v Dundee United; Motherwell v Celtic (12.30, live on Setanta Sports).
May 4: Hibernian v Rangers (2.0, live on Setanta Sports)
May 5: Falkirk v Heart of Midlothian (7.45, live on Setanta Sports).
May 7: Rangers v Motherwell (7.45, live on Setanta Sports).
May 10: Falkirk v Inverness Caledonian Thistle; Heart of Midlothian v Kilmarnock; St Mirren v Gretna; Motherwell v Aberdeen; Rangers v Dundee United (12.30, live on Setanta Sports).
May 11: Celtic v Hibernian (12.30, live on Setanta Sports).
May 17: Gretna v Heart of Midlothian; Inverness Caledonian Thistle v St Mirren; Kilmarnock v Falkirk.
May 18: Aberdeen v Rangers (1.30); Dundee United v Celtic (1.30); Hibernian v Motherwell (1.30).