Hearts have been notified of the sanction taken by the SPFL following the fielding of an ineligible player during last week’s Betfred Cup victory against Cove Rangers. At a disciplinary hearing on Monday afternoon, a sub-committee of the SPFL board decided that Hearts should be deducted two points and fined £10,000 – £8,000 of which has been suspended until the end of season 2019-20.
Hearts, who admitted breaching SPFL rules when they brought on Andrew Irving as a substitute – a player whose registration had not been uploaded to the SFA registration system – will not appeal the decision.
The decision means Craig Levein’s side now have three points in Section C of the Betfred Cup. They finish this round of the competition with two home games, against Cowdenbeath on Tuesday evening and Inverness Caledonian Thistle next Sunday. There is still a chance they can top the group but will need to win both games and score a few goals to do so.
Author of The Team for Me - 50 Years of Following Hearts. Runs Mind Generating Success, a successful therapy practice in Edinburgh. Contact me if you want rid of any unwanted habits. Twitter @Mike1874
