Brechin City, looking to progress into the fifth round of the Scottish FA Cup, are set to host Scottish Premiership side Hearts on Friday night.
The hosts are currently top of the Highland Football League, while the visitors compete four divisions higher, sitting 11th in the top flight of Scottish football.
Match preview
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Brechin have found themselves competing in the Highland Football League ever since being relegated from the Scottish League Two in 2020-21, which saw them lose 3-1 on aggregate to Kelty Hearts in the relegation playoff.
They have since placed third in 2021-22, first in 2022-23, losing in the promotion playoffs, and narrowly placed second last term, only finishing behind Buckie Thistle on goal difference.
Aiming to return to the top of the table to give them a chance at earning promotion back to League Two, Brechin have enjoyed a strong start to the campaign, currently sitting in first place with 48 points from 19 games.
Brechin have also made a positive run in the Scottish Cup, winning against Newtongrange Star, Huntly and Cowdenbeath to book their place in round four of the competition, marking the first time they have reached this round since losing 5-0 to Celtic in 2017-18.
Their opponents, Hearts, will be major favourites to secure a comfortable victory and progress into round five given they compete in the top flight of Scottish football, while they are also on a superb run heading into this one.
Hearts may find themselves in 11th place in the Scottish Premiership after a difficult start to the season, but a recent upturn in form has seen them close the gap on safety to just one point, while they only trail sixth-placed Hibernian by five points.
The Jambos have lost just one of their last seven outings across all competitions, recording three wins and three draws in that time, while they have kept clean sheets in all of their last three.
Those results will leave Hearts full of confidence in securing a win here, with an aim to continue their strong run of results ahead of crucial league matches against Kilmarnock and Dundee.
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Team News
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Brechin City have been afforded a lengthy rest in the build-up to this game, with the Hedgemen last playing in a 5-1 win against Huntly in late December.
Dayle Robertson scored his third hat-trick of the season in that thumping victory, and Patrick Cregg is expected to keep the striker in his starting 11 for this one.
As for Hearts, Calem Nieuwenhof, Frankie Kent, Gerald Taylor, Lawrence Shankland and Stephen Kingsley are all anticipated to miss out due to ongoing injury issues.
Neil Critchley could decide to make several changes to his side in order to rest starting players for their upcoming league matches, but 17-year-old James Wilson is likely to continue to lead the line.
Brechin City possible starting lineup:
Wilson; McHattie, Martin, Spark, Bright; MacLeod, Moreland, Milne; Sheridan, Robertson, Loudon
Hearts possible starting lineup:
Fulton; Forrester, Halkett, Rowles, Penrice; Devlin, Boateng; Drammeh, Grant, Vargas; Wilson
We say: Brechin City 0-3 Hearts
The visitors are undoubtedly the favourites given they compete in the top flight of Scottish football, leaving us to anticipate a comfortable win for Hearts.
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Ellis Stevens
