Date	Saturday, 16 October 2021
Competition	Scottish Premiership
Fixture/Score	Ross County 2:3 Saint Mirren
Venue	Global Energy Stadium at Victoria Park
Attendance	3,882
Referee	David Munro
Comments	Match Report Report by Matthew Reed for the BBC. Ross County 2 Saint Mirren 3 Struggling Ross County must stop their individual errors, suggested manager Malky Mackay after his side fell to the bottom of the Scottish Premiership after succumbing to St Mirren. Eammon Brophy gave the away side the lead before Marcus Fraser and Scott Tanser scored either side of a deflected free-kick from Blair Spittal in a dominant first-half display from Jim Goodwin's side. Alex Iacovitti's header forced St Mirren into some nervy moments in the closing stages, but it wasn't enough. "Having that many shots and crosses and coming away with a defeat really shows that we just need to work on those individual errors." Mackay said. "It's not the way we're applying ourselves, it's not the team selection, it's those individual errors that have to stop." It was deja vu for the home side, who will point to some neat football in patches, but their repeated mistakes have been their downfall this season and it proved the case again with all three goals avoidable. Brophy had threatened from a near identical position moments before he gave his side the lead, slamming the ball high into the net. Questions will be asked of goalkeeper Ash Maynard-Brewer being beaten at his near post. That would not be the last time Maynward-Brewer looked suspect. After the opening goal, Jim Goodwin's visitors continued to show their dominance and Matt Millar had a gilt-edged opportunity to give Brophy his second but elected to shoot from a tight angle. Millar's team-mates quickly made amends for his poor decision-making as Fraser nodded in at the back post from Tanser's corner. Maynard-Brewer was again at fault as he rushed out of his box only to miss the floating ball and leave the goal gaping. The home side responded immediately as Ross Callachan brought a wonderful save from Jak Alwnick before Spittal's free-kick looped over the St Mirren goalkeeper. That looked to have given County a lifeline, but calamitous play between Jack Baldwin and Maynard-Brewer allowed Tanser to sneak in and re-establish St Mirren's two-goal cushion with a poked finish. The away team could not maintain their control in the second period as Mackay's men improved with a series of dangerous crosses and free-kicks. Harry Clarke emerged as their main attacking figure and hit a post after the ball had dropped to him from a Spittal delivery. Clarke was on hand moments later, this time as provider, to send a delicious cross towards Iacovitti, who used the pace on the ball to flick it into the far corner. That meant a nervous finish for Goodwin's men, but County were unable to craft any clear-cut chances in the final minutes. It's same old, same old for Ross County. Decent performances but individual errors continue to cost them. Maynard-Brewers will now be under pressure to keep his place, with Ross Laidlaw awaiting his chance to step in. For St Mirren, after a slow start they have appear to have found a settled side capable of getting results against most sides in the division. Jamie McGrath was again a key performer and Goodwin has said they are prepared for more interest in the Ireland international in January. The question is, if they lose him, do they lose their top-six hopes too? Ross County head coach Malky Mackay: "I think, if the fans take the games and look at the stats and the amount of chances we're creating, they'll see a team that's going toe-to-toe with every team in the division. "If we were getting hammered every week, I'd be distinctly worried, but we're not." St Mirren manager Jim Goodwin: "I've got to give great credit to the players, because when you're winning comfortably, your standards can slip a bit and I thought we completed ever so well and stuck in there. "We could easily have dropped a couple of points here, but instead we've got our third win in a row, which is a great achievement for the team."
Ross County
Manager	Malcolm (Malky) Mackay
Starting 11	31: Ashley Maynard-Brewer, 4: David Cancola, 5: Jack Baldwin, 6: Harrison Paton, 7: Blair Spittal 1, 8: Ross Callachan 1, 9: Alexander Samuel, 16: Alexander Iacovitti 1, 17: Regan Charles-Cook, 18: Jack Burroughs, 20: Harrison Clarke
Bench	1: Ross Laidlaw, 10: Dominic Samuel, 15: Keith Watson, 22: Jordon Tillson, 23: Joseph Hungbo, 24: Benjamin Paton, 26: Jordan White
Saint Mirren
Manager	Jim Goodwin
Starting 11	Jak Alnwick, Joe Shaughnessy, Conor McCarthy, Marcus Fraser 1, Scott Tanser 1, Alan Power, Ethan Erhahon, Matthew Millar, Jamie McGrath, Eamonn Brophy 1, Connor Ronan
Bench	Richard Tait, Ryan Flynn 1, Curtis Main, Kyle McAllister, Charles Dunne, Kristian Dennis, Dean Lyness