Our cup overfloweth

And so the Active Nation Scottish Cup returns this weekend with the promise of a sporting festival that will knock the Superbowl and Winter Olympics combined into a cocked hat.

Sadly prior engagements mean I'll only be able to keep one eye and half an ear on proceedings and the dictates of time rob me of the chance to write a complete preview.

So allow me to borrow some insight from Seb at Inside Left who, displaying the dedication that I lack, has cast his eye over the fixture card in an article that includes the following killer summary of life as an Aberdeen fan:

I realise I am being rather hard on my beloved AFC of late (ref: our previous posting), but fuck it, I feel like a right spanner walking around IKEA on a Saturday morning in my replica top being pointed and laughed at by small children; the parents are generally not much better either. Things have got to change, starting tomorrow. So, back the meat wagon up against the doorway at Stark’s Park and herd those Raith Rovers players into the whirling knives of our killer attack.

Seb sees no "cupsets" in the offing. I kind of disagree and can see Inverness at least doing enough to get Kilmarnock back to their place for slightly more than coffee. Of the all SPL clashes I'm backing St Johnstone to bounce back from the Hampden defeat in midweek. And, just to be contrary, I might well stick a wee fiver on St Mirren to deny Rangers the chance of a sixth successive domestic cup final.

Dunfermline entertain Celtic on Sunday. Defeat for Celtic is unthinkable. Surely.

Dundee v Ayr
Hibernian v Montrose
Kilmarnock v Inverness
Raith v Aberdeen
Ross County v Stirling
St Johnstone v Dundee United
St Mirren v Rangers