Queen’s Park kicked out of Scottish Cup for fielding ineligible Hearts loanee during fourth round tie

Queen’s Park have been thrown out of the Scottish Cup after admitting to fielding an ineligible player during their rescheduled fourth round tie against Inverness at the Caledonian Stadium earlier this week.

The Spiders ran out 2-0 winners over their Championship rivals in the highlands, but were cited by the Scottish FA for naming Euan Henderson in their starting line-up after the striker joined on loan from Hearts last Friday (January 27).

However, the 22-year-old should not have played as he wasn’t signed prior to the original date of the game (January 21) before it was postponed due to the weather. Scottish Cup rules state that players can only be fielded if they are registered before the original date.

A statement from the Scottish Football Association on Friday read: “Following a disciplinary tribunal, Queen’s Park have been ejected from the Men’s Scottish Cup for a breach of Competition Rule 12.5, relating to player eligibility. Livingston will now face Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Fifth Round.”

The club have acknowledged the charge and accepted the decision which sees them ejected from the competition by the governing body. Inverness have been reinstated and will now travel to Livingston in the fifth round next weekend.

Queen’s Park president David Hunter said: “We have been advised by the Scottish Football Association that our participation in this season’s Scottish Cup is at an end. An error was made regarding the eligibility of a player who featured in Tuesday night’s game with Inverness Caledonian Thistle and we have accepted the SFA’s decision.

“It is a regrettable mistake. One we will learn from. Our team put on a tremendous display on Tuesday to win the tie and obviously today’s result is a hugely disappointing outcome. As upsetting as this matter is, it’s vital that we put this behind us quickly, move on and focus on our league campaign.”

He continued: “The support we received from our fans on Tuesday was terrific. We are conscious that they invested time and money travelling to the game. I will be speaking to the Supporters Association over the coming days to suggest how the club can recognise the efforts of the travelling support.”