Scottish Cup draw abandoned after ball opens prematurely

Draw was broadcast on Sky Sports

(Sky Sports)

The draw for the quarter-final of the Scottish Cup had to be voided and done again after a ball from the pot opened prematurely in front of the Sky Sports cameras.

Dundee United vs Celtic, the first tie of the draw, had been set up without incident.

The home side for the second tie was going to be the winner of Dumbarton or Dundee, however, as Scottish FA President Alan McRae reached in to pick the away side, he was left red-faced as the ball had already been opened.

The draw was made at the second time without issue, but the damage had been done.

With the TV cameras and a large viewing audience, plenty saw the miscue and saw it as another opportunity to criticise the already weak Scottish domestic game.

The Scottish Cup quarter-final live draw was stopped and restarted after one of the balls was opened prematurely! pic.twitter.com/DmQVorB40V

— Secret Footballer (@TSF) February 8, 2016

McRae even apologised for the farce. "I apologise to everybody here, the clubs and the fans for what has just happened," he said.