The long awaited Scottish Cup semi-final between Hibs and Hearts will be played on the weekend of Saturday, 31 October and Sunday, 1 November with dates and kick-offs subject to live broadcast.

The final, which was originally scheduled for Saturday, 9 May, will now be played on Sunday, 20 December.

All three fixtures will be played at Hampden Park. The following changes to the cup competition rules were also agreed for the remaining fixtures in the competition:

Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership – Heart of Midlothian v Hibernian. Tynecastle Park, Edinburgh, Midlothian, UK. 26/12/2019. Pic shows: Hibsā€™ left midfielder, Daryl Horgan, tries to break through the home defence as Hearts go down 0-2 to Hibernian in the Ladbrokes Scottish Premiereship, Edinburgh Boxing Day derby at Tynecastle Park, Edinburgh. Credit: Ian Jacobs

ā€¢ Players who have previously played for another team during the 2019/20 competition will not be cup-tied.

ā€¢ Clubs will be permitted to use five substitutes, as per the changes to the Laws of the Game agreed by IFAB.

Ian Maxwell, Scottish FA Chief Executive: ā€œWe are pleased to confirm dates for the remaining stages of the 2019/20 William Hill Scottish Cup.

ā€œIt has always been our intention to play the tournament to a finish and while the impact of COVID-19 has dramatically altered the schedule, we are confident that the final will be a unique and memorable showpiece event during the Christmas holidays.

ā€œThe dates for the final stages of the competition will give the semi-finalists the best chance to prepare for such important fixtures. By ensuring no players will be cup tied, we have also ensured that each club will be able to field their strongest possible teams.

ā€œThe dates also give us the best possible chance of having supporters attend the matches at Hampden. The health and wellbeing of players, staff and supporters are of paramount importance and we will continue to follow the public health guidance from the Scottish Government.ā€

Details of the 2020/21 Scottish Cup fixtures will be issued in due course.

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John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.