Hearts will not contest the two-match fixed suspension offered by the Scottish Football Association in relation to an incident involving Ryan McGowan at the recent derby victory against Hibs at Easter Road.

A club spokesperson said: "We reluctantly agree to the offer of the two match fixed suspension for Ryan McGowan. We do not however believe the player acted in a malicious or violent way in the incident and this acceptance of the fixed suspension does not in fact constitute an admission of guilt on his part."

Ryan's suspension begins immediately and as such he will miss tomorrow's William Hill Scottish Cup tie v Auchinleck Talbot and next weekend's Clydesdale Bank Premier League home game against St Mirren.

On HeartsTV today - listen to Paulo Sergio's pre match press conference in full