Rangers supporters with valid tickets were refused entry to Tyncastle Stadium for their match against Hearts on Wednesday night.

Hearts officials launched an investigation and found a number of people got into the ground with fake briefs and as a result those with genuine tickets were knocked back when the Rangers end reached capacity.

The supporters affected will have their tickets refunded and Hearts released a statement apologising for the issue.

In May last year, a number of Celtic supporters were also turned away from Tynecastle, with Hearts chief Ann Budge also blaming forged tickets.

A spokesman for Rangers said: "The club is aware that a number of Rangers supporters who attended the match at Tynecastle last night were denied entry to the stadium despite having purchased tickets for the match.

"We have made Hearts aware of the complaints received and they will investigate the circumstances and intend to issue a statement later today.

"We can only apologise to supporters who took the time and expense to travel to Edinburgh and were denied entry.

"Supporters who were denied entry should retain their ticket and await the outcome of the investigation by Hearts."

A statement from Hearts said: "As part of the normal match operation at every game, the club monitors ticket sales and ticket entry for every stand at Tynecastle.

"Just at kick-off on Wednesday, the Rangers section of the Roseburn Stand reached its capacity.

"The number of tickets sold, 1478, reflected the computerised count, 1478, and at that stage, the club had no option but to close the turnstiles in the interests of crowd safety and in accordance with our licence."

It added: "This unfortunately led to a very small number of Rangers fans, who held valid tickets, to be refused entry into the stadium for the game.

"Following a club investigation, it is now clear to us that a number of people gained entry into the Rangers end without valid tickets and this created the situation where a small number of fans were then unable to gain admittance.

"We apologise to the Rangers fans who found themselves in this very unfortunate situation and we will work closely with Rangers to refund the cost of their match tickets and any associated fees."

The Tynecastle club won the match 4-1.