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ROSS COUNTY 2; Queen of the South 0 |
Ross County substitute Martin Wood celebrated his home debut for the club with a late goal against former Motherwell teammate Andy Goram.
It was one to savour for Wood, who had hitherto never beaten "The Goalie".
He said: "I'm happy to be enjoying my football again and it was great to finally beat Andy Goram. I never managed it in training at Fir Park but it's great to see one go in when it matters.
"I didn't feel part of the club at Motherwell but I feel at home already here in Dingwall. I like playing in the hole behind the strikers."
County opened the scoring with man-of-the-match Conor Gethins the provider. The Republic of Ireland under-19 international raced clear down the right wing and his pinpoint cross was met by captain Steve FERGUSON, who bulleted a header past Goram from eight yards.
The visitors almost equalised in 57 minutes when Steven Bowey's 20-yard strike beat County 'keeper Tony Bullock only to hit a post.
WOOD made the points secure with the second goal in the last minute. Steve McGarry chipped the ball across goal and Wood dummied Derek Anderson before lashing the ball high past Goram into the top right hand corner from 18 yards.
Ross County: Bullock; McCulloch, Webb (Deas 46), Perry, Irvine, Gilbert, McGarry, Ferguson, Gethins (Bone 77), Cowie, MacKay (Wood 61). Unused Subs: Fridge (gk) and Canning.
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Queen of the South 2; ROSS COUNTY 0 |
A quite surreal afternoon in Dumfries when the sight of a winded referee being swung back and forth by Andy Goram and Derek Anderson could be witnessed. Cue the announcer asking if there was an official in the stand and then, bizarrely, the Benny Hill theme tune being played as one was sought. It was also an afternoon when Quees recorded their first win over Ross County.
Prior to the game, the ball boys had paraded The Bell's Challenge Cup around the trackside, Queens first trophy in their 126-year history. One wonders if next week a County shirt will be paraded to supporters after this one-sided encounter.
The hosts should have taken the opportunity to stun their dozy visitors inside the first minute. Peter Weatherson, the first to react to a lazy clearance, left the County defence dizzy with some neat footwork only to see his perfect cross headed wide by Derek Lyle, who emerged as man-of-the-match.
The confidence engendered by a piece of silverware had certainly rubbed off on Queen of the South - they were quick and clever, passing well and tenaciously chasing down every ball. County were taking time to settle, perhaps surprised by their opponents' furious opening.
The match programme had dubbed the Highland team a nemesis - eight matches played and not a single win for Queens. But on 12 minutes this particular statistic was cast aside when Bowey left County's Brian Irvine on the turf after dancing past him. He fed Lyle in the penalty box and he cracked the ball past Tony Bullock.
County were a mess, altogether untidy and failing to clean up when their opponents pushed forward. When in possession they lacked invention, while Queens were taking route one, seizing every loose ball and firing it into or across the box.
It should have been two on 19 minutes when Lyle shot over from close range. His side were completely in control at this point but within ten minutes County had addressed the threat and were creating chances of their own. The puff had seemingly been knocked out of Queens and they squandered another chance when Weatherson headed over the top.
The home side had whetted the appetite with a delicious starter but had failed to deliver the main course. Only tasty tackling and the odd half chance were keeping the crowd satisfied when the most powerful shot of the afternoon struck referee David Somers. He was knocked flat and winded, and duly picked up by Goram and Anderson. Normal service was resumed after ten minutes when a replacement was found.
With the second half under way, the game had taken on the much more familiar appearance of a contest. Queens were lively and County were awake to the challenge. When Weatherson gathered the ball 30 yards out and displayed some fine keepie-uppie, the last thing anyone expected was a rasping shot which dipped over Bullock and cracked the bar. It was a wonderful effort that allowed Lyle to display predatory striking instincts and slot the ball home.
The game got tousy, but once aggression was spent, County, perhaps winded by midweek exertions, simply sat back and waited for the final whistle.
Ross County: Bullock; Irvine, Robertson, Canning, Deas, Gilbert, Cowie, Hislop (Lynch, 69), Higgins (McKay, 46), McCulloch and McGarry (Davidson, 69). Unused Subs: Fridge (gk) and Perry.
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