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ROSS COUNTY 1; Clyde 1 |
Forgetable as the football was at Victoria Park, there was no faulting the effort expended. If Berti Vogts fears the work ethic he remembers from his playing days has been sapped from Scottish football, he should come and take a look at the First Division.
This game was all about grafting in the hope that something would give. Clyde, as the away team, will have been happier with the outcome, if only for that reason.
The STV cameras were here again and could have condensed their coverage into the final minutes, with Clyde seemingly pushing towards victory with the 85th-minute opener, only to lose their lead within 120 seconds thanks to a Martin Canning reply. A share of the spoils was a fair outcome with genuine goalscoring chances few and far between and neither side able to claim ill-fortune.
After only a matter of days training together, Clyde gave on-loan Dunfermline striker Colin Nish a start along side ex-Dundee United frontman Stephen McConalogue in what looks a powerful and promising, if still unproven, pairing.
The hosts certainly started brightly. Steven MacKay’s inswinging cross on six minutes had Clyde 'keeper Bryn Halliwell scrambling to clutch the ball. Minutes later, the Bully Wee’s Andy Millen hit back with a powerful drive just over. County controlled most of early play without seriously troubling their opponents.
A fine move on 14 minutes saw young midfielder Don Cowie supply Steven McGarry at the edge of the box before connecting with his cross. Halliwell again dealt comfortably with the header. Then, just before the break, County’s Alex Bone sped into the box and was desperately unlucky to strike the inside of the post with Halliwell beaten.
In the second half, Clyde tried to hit on the break and the ploy almost worked a treat in 57 minutes with McConalogue heading just wide.
County’s defence did well to withstand the pressure as the Bully Wee sensed they could grasp a valuable first away win. A drive from Steve Convery spun off County legs and into side-netting eight minutes from time, and from McLay’s corner Clyde stunned the Dingwall men. Canning hooked the ball off the goal-line but he was unable to repeat the feat as Jack Ross powered in the rebound. But County produced the swiftest of responses. Don Cowie’s corner found CANNING leaping superbly above his markers to head in the equaliser from six yards.
Ross County: Bullock; McCulloch, Canning, Perry, Irvine, Cowie, Wood (Gethins, 63), McGarry (Bayne, 71), Bone, McKay and Robertson. Unused Subs: Fridge (gk), Webb and Campbell.
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Clyde 2; ROSS COUNTY 1 (Martin Canning) |
Clyde's fine run continued with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Ross County who will feel that they did enough to earn a draw.
The home side took the lead after six minutes when Paul Kane floated over a corner from the left and the ball flew across the face of the goal to the back post where Pat Keogh arrived to nod home.
The lead was doubled after 37 minutes when Keogh and Kane combined to tee up Jack Ross and his 25-yard effort flew in with the aid of a telling deflection.
This jilted the visitors into life and two minutes later Martin CANNING strode forward to get on the end of a Steven Ferguson pass before driving low into the goal.
The second half saw action at both ends with Colin Nish hitting the visitors' post and then missing a chance from close range.
Mark McCulloch was also denied a fine solo goal by home keeper Bryn Halliwell.
Ross County: Bullock; Deas, Robertson, Perry, Canning, Ferguson (McGarry, 84), Cowie, Wood, Hislop (Davidson, 68), Bayne and McCulloch. Unused Subs: Fridge (gk), Irvine and McKay.
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ROSS COUNTY 1; Clyde 1 |
Alex Smith bared an iron fist to his players from beneath the velvet glove after last weekend’s disappointing show, demonstrating his man-management-style is built around more than just gentle cajoling.
A miserable defeat at Arbroath seven days earlier was the root of his unhappiness, and hammered home to Dingwall supporters there is no magic wand to be waved by Neale Cooper’s successor.
This result, as ultimately unsatisfactory for both sides as it was hard-earned, would have reinforced the message - although Smith, in particular, took positives from the effort expended and a controversially-annulled goal that might have brought victory.
The new County manager deals in sustainable progress, not sweeping change. While he has his players working tirelessly for the cause, the veteran is still working to cement fragile confidence.
County carved a lead, but somehow it was not enough to sweep away the old uncertainties that crept into his players’ minds before they eventually succumbed to a confident Clyde’s second-half response.
There was some consolation for County, however, as the advantage on the two relegation favourites broadened to nine points, as they crept above St Mirren in the table. Clyde, for their part, are still far from finished in the title race.
Still, for Alan Kernaghan, the visitors’ player-manager, this might be viewed as two points lost, rather than one gained, given recent form.
He set out to inflict fresh problems on a club who reportedly short-listed him for the recent vacancy, and whether or not this acted as an extra incentive, by the close the Bully Wee could be classed as the more maligned.
County’s Steven Hislop made the first impression with a sharp turn, close control and pace taking him into the box only for his powered cross ball to elude everyone in the danger area.
Clyde settled into the more coherent play, though, and Kernaghan fired wildly over from an angle in the box in 35 minutes after heavy pressure.
A minute later, he was cursing that mistake as County took the lead a little against the run of play. From a half-cleared corner, Steve McKAY collected the ball five yards out from the angle of the box. With a cross expected, the youngster let rip with a low left-foot drive which caught Bryn Halliwell unawares, and nestled in the net.
There was a real sense of grievance in the home camp when Don Cowie’s header made the back of the net in 51 minutes, only for the offside flag to puzzle most spectators and abruptly end home celebrations.
Clyde were always dangerous, though, and equalised in 66 minutes when Pat Keogh’s cross was flicked on and substitute Steve Convery, just nine minutes on the field, pounced with a header past home 'keeper Tony Bullock from five yards.
Ross County: Bullock; Canning, Irvine, Webb, Deas, Cowie (McGarry, 82), Gilbert, Perry, McKay, Hislop and Bayne. Unused Subs: Fridge (gk), Robertson, Wood and Bone.
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