Rumour Mill: Halliday tackle should help clear Brown | Aberdeen want half

Patrick Roberts is hacked down by Rangers midfielder Andy Halliday. Picture: SNS

Keep up to date with all our sport news on The Scotsman’s Sport page on Facebook

Roberts: Halliday tackle should help Brown

Patrick Roberts believes Andy Halliday’s wild challenge on him in the Scottish Cup semi-final should help team-mate Scott Brown’s appeal. The Celtic captain was handed a two-game suspension for a hard foul on Liam Boyce at the end of his side’s 2-2 draw with Ross County. Roberts believes Brown’s tackle was nowhere near as severe as Halliday’s, which was only worthy of a booking in the eyes of Sunday’s referee Willie Collum. (Various)

- Roberts doesn’t know yet whether he’ll be able to play in next month’s Scottish Cup final as he’s due to be away with England for the under-20s World Cup. (Daily Record)

Why Rangers' Andy Halliday should have been sent off against Celtic

Dons want half

Aberdeen are set to demand a 50-50 ticket-split for their Scottish Cup final meeting with Celtic next month. Derek McInnes’ side made it to the final after outlasting Hibs in a five-goal thriller on Saturday. With over 20,000 supporters expected to want tickets for the showdown with Celtic, Aberdeen are going to lobby the SFA in order to secure as many briefs as possible. (Daily Record)

Interest in Celtic target

Celtic target Henry Onyekuru has been watched by scouts from three English Premier League sides. It’s looking increasingly difficult for the Scottish champions to bag the Eupen striker this summer. Brendan Rodgers’ side had previously put in a bid of over £1million for the player, but with Southamption, Bournemouth and Liverpool all watching Onyekuru at the weekend in Belgium’s Europa League play-off, his value is surely to be driven up. (Daily Record)

Defender open to Rangers return

Former Rangers centre-back Dominic Ball has revealed he’s open to the idea of returning to Ibrox one day. The defender spent last season on loan from Tottenham Hotspur and became a regular in the starting XI by the season’s end. Ball admits there was a chance to rejoin Rangers in the summer transfer window, but he wanted to focus on getting into the first-team at White Hart Lane. By the time he was released by the North London club, Rangers had concluded their summer spending. (Daily Record)

Lennon: Hibs are second best team

Neil Lennon has boldly claimed Hibs are “the second-best team in the country” – despite losing out to Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup semi-final at the weekend. The Dons currently sit in the runners-up spot in the Premiership and are widely regarded as second only to Celtic in Scottish football. But Lennon reckons his team can lay claim to being better than the Pittodrie outfit. (The Scotsman)

Rodgers happy to jeopardise unbeaten season

Brendan Rodgers has admitted he’s content to put Celtic’s unbeaten season at risk in an effort to help his side secure the treble. The champions have five games of their league season remaining before they take on Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup final. With Celtic’s European campaign starting in mid-July, Rodgers is keen to get some of his big talents rested and ready to go for next month’s clash with the Dons. (Various)

Hill happy to stay at Rangers

Clint Hill has said he’s happy to sign a new contract to stay at Rangers for at least another 12 months. The veteran centre-back sees his current deal expire in the summer and isn’t aware of whether Pedro Caixinha plans to keep him for a second season. Hill missed Sunday’s Old Firm derby semi-final as a recent injury limited his involvement to a place on the bench. (Scottish Sun)

Cathro: winning is all that matters

Ian Cathro admits winning is Hearts’ priority over performance during the final five games of the season. The Edinburgh club must overhaul a four-point deficit between themselves and St Johnstone to finish fourth in the Ladbrokes Premiership and qualify for Europe. Stylish victories are Cathro’s preference but, as he prepares his squad to face Partick Thistle at Tynecastle this weekend, the Hearts head coach acknowledged that winning is all that matters at this stage in the campaign. (Evening News)

Curran signs new deal

Craig Curran has signed a new 12-month deal at Ross County to stay until the end of the 2017/18 season. The 27-year-old striker has been a solid option up front for Jim McIntyre since the Staggies boss recruited the player in January 2015. His previous deal was due to expire in the summer. (BBC)

Stirling signs for Queens

Queen of the South have signed Andy Stirling on a two-year deal. The Dumbarton winger has put pen to paper on a new contract and will join up with Gary Naysmith’s men in the summer. In the meantime the 27-year-old is focused on helping Dumbarton survive the second tier relegation battle. (Dumbarton Reporter)

Rumour Mill: Halliday tackle should help clear Brown | Aberdeen want half | interest in Celtic target