Scotland's leading clubs will be allowed to break from the Scottish Football League and form their own Premiership under a compromise solution expected to be announced this week.

The opposition from clubs in the lower divisions, so fierce that the separatists had threatened lengthy, messy and expensive legal action, has been removed by an agreement that will give the top division 12 teams and bring acceptable financial compensation to the lower orders. The deal will end months of wrangling that have threatened to leave the Scottish game impoverished by lack of sponsorship and no agreement over television rights.

The news that the new league will contain 12 teams means that there will be no relegation from the Premier Division at the end of this season. Instead, two will be promoted from the First Division, thereby satisfying those clubs who have invested heavily in full-time football with a view to joining the elite.

The removal of relegation, of course, eradicates the risk of serious financial damage to clubs such as Hibernian, Aberdeen and Motherwell, currently the bottom three in the Premier.

The clubs outside the Premier Division, whose revenue from the SFL's current sponsorship and television deals has, in recent seasons, amounted to an annual £1.3 million, will receive £2.5 million per year from the new league until the year 2008.

Details of precisely how the 12team league will operate have yet to be finalised, but there is a proposal to split the top six from the bottom at the half-way stage, one group to contest the championship and the other relegation.

But it is unlikely that the scheme will be adopted. There are fears among club directors that such an arrangement could have a an arresting effect on the sales of season tickets.

There is also the probability that clubs in, say, seventh or eighth place at the half-way stage would still have a realistic chance of qualifying for Europe. Nobody would want to surrender that opportunity. The present ten clubs have already been given permission in principle to leave, but they need the League's management committee to sanction their departure as early as the end of this season. That should now be a formality.

The Scottish Cup will loom as a much more appealing competition to many of its participants as a result of the proposed reconstruction of the Premier Division.

With the threat of relegation removed, many clubs who regard success in the cup as secondary to the need to survive in the league will be able to devote deeper commitment than might have been the case to the oldest competition of all.

The third round draw, with all of the leading clubs now involved, produced only one all-Premier Division tie, with Dundee United to meet Aberdeen at Tannadice. The teams met only hours before the ballot on Saturday, with Aberdeen winning 1-0 at Pittodrie to take themselves off the bottom of the league. Dean Windass scored the only goal of the match.

This was a huge improvement on Aberdeen's previous meeting with United, when a 5-0 drubbing at Tannadice was followed 48 hours later by the sacking of manager Roy Aitken. His successor, Alex Miller, has led the team to two successive victories, and they now share second-bottom place with Motherwell.

The Fir Park side would be relieved at drawing Third Division Dumbarton in the cup following their 4-1 thrashing in the league by Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. Paul Wright's double and singles from Ally Mitchell and Mark Roberts - Owen Coyle scored for the visitors - had given Motherwell a miserable start to the day.

Kilmarnock, the cup holders, have not only climbed to fourth place in the league, but will be confident about remaining in the cup with an away tie against Second Division Stranraer or Fraserburgh from the Highland League.

Those other unlikely climbers, St Johnstone, continued their ascent into fifth place with a 1-0 victory at Dunfermline through an own goal from Dave Barnett. The Old Firm, as always, share favouritism to win the cup and they should not be troubled to reach the fourth round.

Celtic are at home to Morton, currently sharing bottom place in the First Division, and Rangers are away to Hamilton, also from the First Division. Hearts, the third contenders for the league championship, have a home tie with the winners of the secondround match between Clydebank and Montrose.

THIRD ROUND: Hamilton v Rangers, Inverness Cal. v Annan Athletic, Dundee Utd v Aberdeen, St Johnstone v Partick, Hearts v Clydebank or Montrose, Livingston or Berwick v Albion, Hibernian v Raith, Dundee v St Mirren, Dumbarton v Motherwell, Airdrie v Ross County, Arbroath or Queen of South v Stirling Albion, Stenhousemuir or Deveronvale v Falkirk, Celtic v Greenock Morton, Stranraer or Fraserburgh v Kilmarnock, Alloa v Ayr Utd, Dunfermline v East Stirling or Edinburgh City. Ties to be played on Saturday, January 24th.