OH, BROTHER! THE SHINNIES ARE A FAMILY AT WAR

GRAEME and Andrew Shinnie will forget brotherly love when they face each other in the Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden next month.

The ex-Inverness Caley Thistle players will go toe-to-toe in their battle to reach the grand finale in May.

Aberdeen vice-captain Graeme is looking forward to going up against older brother Andrew’s Hibs in what is sure to be an intriguing encounter.

The Dons star said: “It will be a good occasion for the whole family.

“I suppose my mum and dad can’t lose because they’ll have someone in the Final either way.

“They will have to stay neutral and sit in the main stand – or maybe my mum will support me and my dad support Andrew.

“We’ll wait and see, but it’s bound to be a nice problem for them to have.

“It’s a new one for us because the only time we have played against each other was in a friendly when Inverness played Birmingham.

“Apart from that day, we have always played on the same team.

“It will be a great occasion and something that we will be able to look back on it – although who remembers it best will depend on who wins.

“Playing against each other will be a novelty. When I was younger, Andrew used to stick me in goal and blast the ball at me.

“I think he wanted me to become a goalkeeper back then so it might be a chance for me to get payback for all the balls he fired at me.”

Graeme already knows what it takes to lift the Scottish Cup after captaining Caley Thistle to glory in 2015.

Andrew, a Birmingham player at the time, made it into the dressing room to celebrate the greatest moment in his former club’s history.

Shinnie added: “When Inverness won the Cup, he was there as he was a guest on the television that day and came down afterwards to congratulate the lads.

“There won’t be a distraction because he’s my brother.

“He’s my brother before it and after it, but during the game he’s just going to be like any normal opponent.”