Nine Scottish Cup third-round ties postponed

Beith Juniors had covered their pitch with covers

Freezing temperatures have forced the postponement of nine of Saturday's 15 Scottish Cup third-round ties.

St Mirren's game against Lowland League side Spartans was called off "due to a problem with the under soil heating".

Beith Juniors' Bellsdale Park pitch was also deemed unplayable for their match at home to Greenock Morton.

Albion Rovers v Queen of the South and Clyde v Arbroath also fell foul of the weather after pitch inspections held on Friday afternoon.

Stirling Albion v Wick Academy was called off late on Friday, with East Fife v Edinburgh City, Stranraer v East Kilbride, Brechin City v Ayr United and Formartine United v Annan Athletic all postponed after pitch inspections on Saturday morning.

Queens' trip to Coatbridge has been rescheduled for Tuesday 29 November, while Arbroath's match in Cumbernauld will be played on Tuesday 6 December, both with a 19:45 GMT kick-off.

West of Scotland Superleague side Beith will now play host to their tie on Saturday 3 December with a 13:30 kick-off.

It means that Morton's Championship game away to Raith Rovers has been postponed, with no date for the rearranged league match having been announced.

Morton said in a website statement: "The majority of the Bellsdale Park playing surface has been frozen since Wednesday despite the junior outfit putting covers down."

St Mirren and Spartans will attempt to play their game on Tuesday, with a 20:00 kick-off.

The Paisley club said in a website statement: "We are investigating the cause of the problem and will meet with our insurers next week to see if the repairs are covered under our policy of insurance."

Rugby Park, Kilmarnock, will host the draw for the fourth round of the cup on Monday at 18:35.

The Premiership club have been chosen to mark the 20th anniversary of the Ayrshire club winning the 1996-1997 Scottish Cup.

They defeated Falkirk 1-0 in front of more than 48,000 spectators at Ibrox Stadium to end a 68-year wait to lift the famous trophy for a third time.