Stranraer's Scottish Cup hopes have been dashed after the club was expelled from the competition for fielding an ineligible player in a recent match against Queen's Park. The decision has left Stranraer reeling, with estimates suggesting they will lose out on £200,000 that would have kept them afloat financially for several years.
The Scottish FA confirmed that Stranraer had been "ejected" from the competition following a tribunal, and Championship strugglers Queen's Park will now face Glasgow rivals Rangers in the last 16 on February 8th. This is a repeat of their 2025 fixture, when Queen's Park pulled off a shock 1-0 victory at Ibrox.
Stranraer's decision to bring in loan signing Lyndon Tas from Hearts without getting approval for emergency loans has come under scrutiny. The 17-year-old goalkeeper was signed on the day of the match and played a key role, saving a penalty in the shootout after a 1-1 draw at Stair Park.
However, Stranraer's attempt to replace Josh Lane, who had returned to Hamilton Academical at the end of his loan spell, has been deemed unlawful. The SFA can sanction emergency loans, but Stranraer failed to meet this requirement.
Stranraer's expulsion from the Scottish Cup will be a huge blow to their season, which saw them climb up to fourth in League Two and potentially secure a promotion play-off spot. Queen's Park, on the other hand, have already been knocked out of the Challenge Cup quarter-finals after a penalty shoot-out at home to Raith Rovers.
The club has accepted the decision, acknowledging that their actions were "unfortunate" but ultimately taking responsibility for player registration and selection. Stranraer have offered sincere apologies to everyone involved with the club, while Queen's Park have wished them well for the remainder of the season after having previously breached the same rule themselves in 2022-23.
The Scottish FA confirmed that Stranraer had been "ejected" from the competition following a tribunal, and Championship strugglers Queen's Park will now face Glasgow rivals Rangers in the last 16 on February 8th. This is a repeat of their 2025 fixture, when Queen's Park pulled off a shock 1-0 victory at Ibrox.
Stranraer's decision to bring in loan signing Lyndon Tas from Hearts without getting approval for emergency loans has come under scrutiny. The 17-year-old goalkeeper was signed on the day of the match and played a key role, saving a penalty in the shootout after a 1-1 draw at Stair Park.
However, Stranraer's attempt to replace Josh Lane, who had returned to Hamilton Academical at the end of his loan spell, has been deemed unlawful. The SFA can sanction emergency loans, but Stranraer failed to meet this requirement.
Stranraer's expulsion from the Scottish Cup will be a huge blow to their season, which saw them climb up to fourth in League Two and potentially secure a promotion play-off spot. Queen's Park, on the other hand, have already been knocked out of the Challenge Cup quarter-finals after a penalty shoot-out at home to Raith Rovers.
The club has accepted the decision, acknowledging that their actions were "unfortunate" but ultimately taking responsibility for player registration and selection. Stranraer have offered sincere apologies to everyone involved with the club, while Queen's Park have wished them well for the remainder of the season after having previously breached the same rule themselves in 2022-23.
! They got expelled from the competition because of some dodgy player registration, and now they're gonna lose out on £200k 
! I mean, I get it, mistakes happen, but that's a huge amount of money... anyway, at least they took responsibility for their actions 
. Queen's Park's gonna have to step up and make the most of this 
. Rangers vs Queen's Park in the last 16 is gonna be interesting 
... they were cruising along and now it's like all their hard work just went out the window 
... I mean, who makes a rookie mistake like that? Lyndon Tas should've been flagged ASAP 
... it's not like it was a big deal at first but then you're playing in the Scottish Cup and everything comes crashing down 
... and now they'll be lucky if they get promoted next season 
. £200k gone down the drain... I mean, who signs a player on the day of the match without checking if it's okay with the league first? 
Lyndon Tas might've saved that penalty for us but now we're the ones getting sacked from the competition 
. They're going to miss out on so much more than just £200,000 – their season, potentially even their chance at promotion 
they were doing alright too, climbed up to fourth in League Two and all that... now it's like £200k just gone out the window 
and now it looks like queen's park are gonna have to deal with rangers again, ugh 
at least they wish each other well tho 
this is so sad for stranraer's fans...i feel bad for them, they worked so hard to get to that cup spot and now it's all over just because one player wasn't registered properly 
.
it’s like, you can make mistakes but it doesn’t mean you get to just shrug and move on 
I mean, who makes a rookie mistake like that? 
They were just one step away from getting promoted and now it's all being taken away from them. That £200k is gonna be huge 
Like, maybe switch from all bold font to a clean sans-serif? 
. on the bright side, queen's park gets to play rangers and i'm sure they'll give it their all 