| Date | Saturday, 31 January 1998 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 3 |
| Fixture/Score | Ross County 0:0 Berwick Rangers |
| Venue | Victoria Park |
| Attendance | 1,342 |
| Referee | Ian Elmslie |
| Comments | Match Report Report by Alasdair Fraser from the Daily Record. Ross County 0 Berwick Rangers 0 John Martin JNR last night wrote County's chances of wrecking his dad's Scottish Cup dream. The 19-year-old Hibs hitman, who is on a three-month loan spell at Berwick, reckons the Dingwall side have no hope of an upset against Airdrie. In fact if madcap Diamonds keeper Martin Snr has as quiet a time as Berwick's Gary O'Connor did on Saturday, Airdrie should coast through. Young Martin said: "I wasn't really on a spying mission but I will be chatting to my dad about County before the game although to be honest there wasn't a lot you could say about their performance. "I was surprised we had so much of the ball and I don't think our keeper was really troubled until Steve Ferguson's chance late on. "I'm sure Airdrie will be too strong in the replay." Martin Jnr has netted twice for the Borderers since moving there in December. And he feels his taste of regular first-team action could help him bounce back into Jim Duffy's plans. He said: "I'm back at Easter Road on March 18 and feel I'll have benefited from playing at Berwick. "It's totally different playing first-team football--reserve games just can't match the competitiveness. "I've had three seasons in the reserves but hopefully, this time, I can make the breakthrough." Berwick boss Paul Smith took his side's hard-earned draw as a mark of the progress he and player-assistant John Clark have made. He said: "We came north in only our second game in charge and lost 2-0. But we have now changed the system and brought in some new faces. "We're confident of winning against any side in this league now." Smith, a team-mate of County boss Neale Cooper for three seasons at Dunfermline, added: "Neale's had a bit of bad luck with injuries but I'm sure County will bounce back. "Their cause would be helped if their fans made a bit more noise. There were 1300 there but you wouldn't have known it." Cooper was furious with his players for a "disgraceful" display. He said; "I'd like to apologise to the fans on behalf of the players. After everything they achieved last week against Airdrie this was a shambles. "There was no zest and no creativity. If we play like that in the cup replay we have no chance. "I had warned them before the game that there is often a kick in the teeth on the back of a great result." Midfielder Charlie King, on loan from St Johnstone, was one of the few who impressed for County but he was well-marshalled. Berwick went close to an 18th-minute lead when Martin Neil almost caught, keeper Nicky Walker napping with a 30-yard effort which went just wide. Ten minutes later, Derek Adams went close for County with a header which was cleared off the line by Kenny Rafferty, who crashed into a post for his troubles. County improved after the break and Ferguson had a shot held in the final seconds. |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Neale Cooper |
| Starting 11 | 1: Joseph (Nicky) Walker, 2: William (Billy) Herd 1, 3: David MacKay, 4: Alexander Taylor, 5: Charles King, 6: Steven Ferguson 1, 7: Kenneth Gilbert, 8: Richard Hart, 9: Derek Adams, 10: Neil Tarrant, 11: Jamie MacPherson |
| Bench | 0: Gerard Farrell, 0: James Slavin, 0: Connor Campbell |
| Berwick Rangers | |
| Manager | Paul Smith |
| Starting 11 | Gary O'Connor, Grant McNicoll, John Clark, Davie Beaton, Neil Irvine, Martin Neil 1, Kevin Walton, Kenny Rafferty 1, John Martin, Stevie Laidlaw, David Finlayson |
| Bench | Paul Forrester, Shaun Smith, Ugo Robbard |