Date	Wednesday, 10 February 2016
Competition	Scottish Premiership
Fixture/Score	Ross County 0:3 Heart of Midlothian
Venue	Global Energy Stadium at Victoria Park
Attendance	3,391
Referee	Steven McLean
Comments	Match Report Report by Martin Dowden for the BBC. Ross County 0 Heart of Midlothian 3 Hearts moved 11 points clear of Ross County in third place in the Premiership with three second-half goals in Dingwall. Jamie Walker broke the deadlock when he got a lucky break in the box after an attempted clearance deflected off him. Then substitute Abiola Dauda scored his first goal for Hearts with a fine finish. He made it three when he finished off a strong run and cut-back from Dario Zanatta. The home side were given a significant double boost before kick-off with the news that top scorer Liam Boyce had signed a contract extension and was fit to start the match. Loanee David Goodwillie made his debut against a Hearts side who started with debutant John Souttar at centre-back. Hearts threatened immediately when Sam Nicholson gathered and fired narrowly off target from outside the box after only 18 seconds. Martin Woods then handed Juanma possession but the visiting striker snatched at his shot and it sailed over. After that County emerged as an attacking force, using set plays to good effect. Ian McShane's delivery found Jackson Irvine's intelligent run but the midfielder powered his header over from six yards. Irvine was then close to connecting with Michael Gardyne's wonderful low ball across the six-yard box. Souttar did well to flick Goodwillie's shot narrowly over the bar before Gardyne and Boyce got in behind the Hearts defence but failed to test Neil Alexander. It was Jim McIntyre's side who started the second period on the front foot, with Boyce slamming a curling shot against the crossbar after a slick attack. Boyce then rose superbly to nod towards goal but could not generate the required power to beat Alexander. The decisive moment came in the most fortunate circumstances from a Hearts corner. Don Cowie whipped it towards the near post, Irvine attempted to head clear but the ball cannoned off Walker with goalkeeper Scott Fox claiming he was impeded. Substitute Alex Schalk had a good opportunity to level from close range before Gardyne delivered a ball to Boyce who turned brilliantly to create an opening but shot wide. Boyce again turned provider for Gardyne, who drove towards the edge of the box but the winger smashed it way over the bar, summing up a frustrating night for the hosts. Hearts substitute Dauda announced his arrival in Scottish football when he gathered possession on the left, took his time and bent a fantastic finish into the far corner to settle the match. He was not finished there as Zanatta fed the Nigerian striker on the edge of the box and he curled in another beauty - this time with his left foot. Dauda promises much on this evidence. A three-goal margin was harsh on McIntyre's side but they simply could not find a route past a resolute Hearts defence, failing to score in a home match for the first time this season. Hearts head coach Robbie Neilson praised the performance of his two young centre-backs as his side defeated Ross County 3-0 in Dingwall. Substitute Abiola Dauda scored two late goals after a Jamie Walker deflection to move Hearts 11 points clear in third place in the Premiership. Neilson was delighted with new signing John Souttar and fellow youngster Jordan McGhee in defence. "They're two teenagers, and the two of them did really well today," he said. "I'm really pleased at the performance. We had two young centre-backs in Jordan McGhee and John Souttar. We had (Callum) Paterson, (Sam) Nicholson, (Dario) Zanatta coming on, Liam Smith, all young kids. "For McGhee and Souttar to play against two experienced players in (David) Goodwillie and (Liam) Boyce I thought they played really well and dealt with the physicality of it, and they passed the ball really well. "It's a difficult place to come, Jim's got a great team here, so to come here and get a 3-0 win is a great performance." Dauda, 28, joined the Tynecastle club on transfer deadline day to replace top goalscorer Osman Sow, and Neilson believes the Nigerian has shown enough to suggest he will be yet another shrewd signing for the club. "He's a top quality player and I think you saw that with his two finishes, they were real quality," Neilson told BBC Scotland. "He's a top player, there's no doubt about that, and I'm really pleased to get him. "I didn't want to start him today because he has such a hard game at the weekend (2-2 draw with Hibernian) but I knew if we got him on for 30 minutes he'd show his quality." Ross County were the more threatening side before the deadlock was broken, with Jackson Irvine missing a good headed chance in the first half and Liam Boyce hitting the crossbar during a strong spell after the interval. It was the first time this season the Dingwall side have failed to score at home. "It was a never a 3-0," bemoaned Staggies manager Jim McIntyre. "It's one of those games when we haven't taken our chances and we've gifted them the lead. "We know the goals we gave away were poor. "The first one we should have cleared but we headed off each other and it ended up in the back of the net. "The second goal, Scott Fox should do better, he has to save it. "When Hearts get in front they are a very hard team to break down. "For spells we were the dominant team but you need to put the ball in the net. "I saw my team make good chances against a good team on a bobbly pitch. The performance level was good but we made individual errors and we've been punished."
Ross County
Manager	Jim McIntyre
Starting 11	1: Scott Fox, 2: Marcus Fraser, 7: Michael Gardyne, 8: Ian McShane, 10: Liam Boyce, 12: Richard Foster 1, 15: Andrew Davies, 25: David Goodwillie, 36: Jackson Irvine, 42: Martin Woods 1, 43: Paul Quinn
Bench	21: Gary Woods, 3: Jamie Reckord, 6: Christopher Robertson, 9: Brian Graham, 17: Jonathan Franks, 18: Stewart Murdoch, 23: Alex Schalk
Heart of Midlothian
Manager	Robbie Neilson
Starting 11	Neil Alexander, Callum Paterson, Juwon Oshaniwa, Jordan McGhee, John Souttar, Jamie Walker 1, Sam Nicholson 1, Miguel Pallardo Gonzalez, Don Cowie, Arnaud Sutchuin-Djoum, Juan Manuel Delgado Lloria
Bench	Jack Hamilton, Gavin Reilly, Abiola Dauda 2, Angus Beith, Robert Buchanan, Liam Smith, Dario Zanatta