Stranraer expelled as they miss Rangers cup pay day

Stranraer have missed out on a major pay day against Rangers after being expelled from the Scottish Cup for fielding an ineligible player in last week’s victory over Queen’s Park.

The League 2 club have estimated they will lose out on £200,000 that would “keep the club running for three or four years”.

The Scottish FA confirmed that Stranraer had been “ejected” from the competition following a tribunal on Wednesday.

The governing body is expected to confirm that Championship strugglers Queen’s Park will instead visit Glasgow rivals Rangers in the last 16 on 8 February.

Accepting the inevitable decision, Stranraer said: “While we believe the circumstances surrounding the breach were unfortunate and exceptional, we recognise that the responsibility for player registration and selection ultimately rests with the club.”

Goalkeeper Lyndon Tas was signed on loan from Hearts on the day of the game and saved a penalty in the shootout after a 1-1 draw at Stair Park.

But the tie had originally been scheduled for the previous Saturday but was called off because of a waterlogged pitch and cup rules state that only players registered for the original date can play in the event of postponements, abandonments or replays.

The SFA can sanction emergency loans but says the move for 17-year-old Tas did not get such approval as Stranraer looked to replace Josh Lane, who had returned to Hamilton Academical at the end of his loan spell.

“This will come as an immense disappointment to all our supporters, staff, volunteers and players, particularly in view of the incredible effort to win our tie with Queen’s Park and the rewards that a tie against Rangers would bring,” Stranraer add.

“Naturally, we share this disappointment, particularly given the positive progress being made both on and off the pitch this season and would like to offer our sincere apologies to everyone involved with the club.”

Stranraer have lost once in 12 outings, moving up to fourth in League 2 and a possible place in the promotion play-offs.