Hearts to be forced to hand over full Roseburn Stand to Celtic fans for Scottish Cup tie

Celtic should be backed by three times the usual away support at Tynecastle when they face Hearts in the Scottish Cup next month.

The two sides will meet at Celtic Park in the SPFL on Wednesday March 8 then at the weekend for a place in the semi-final draw for the Scottish Cup.

Over recent seasons Hearts have greatly reduced the allocation of tickets given to Celltic for Tynecastle with just 1,264 away fans inside the ground in Octoer when Celtic won 4-3 in the first fixture with VAR in use.

However Rule 29 of the Scottish Cup states:

For any Match, excluding the Semi-Final Matches and the Final Match, to which admission is wholly or partly by ticket and/or by cash admission at the turnstiles, the Away Club shall have the right to claim admission for its supporters of up to 20% of the spectator capacity of the Registered Ground at which the Match is to be played.

With Tynecastle holding a capacity of 19,852 the hoops should have the backing of 3970 fans, with the Roseburn Stand holding 3,676 that issue should be easily covered.

Having three times their usual backing should give Ange Postecoglou’s side a massive lift for the match which will be shown live by Viaplay.

A Saturday tea-time kick-off is likely to suit the broadcaster but the police may want an earlier kick off on Saturday or Sunday to make life easier for what is sure to be a lively match.

Both sets of supporters will be charged the same price for equivalent seats with Celtic due a 50% cut once expenses have been deducted.