Date	Tuesday, 07 April 2015
Competition	Scottish Premiership
Fixture/Score	Ross County 1:0 Saint Johnstone
Venue	Global Energy Stadium at Victoria Park
Attendance	3,319
Referee	Kevin Clancy
Comments	Match Report Report by Martin Dowden for the BBC. Ross County 1 Saint Johnstone 0 A late header from Liam Boyce maintained Ross County's remarkable run of form, making it seven wins in an eight-game unbeaten run. The Irishman steered home a cross from Jamie Reckord with a smart, looping effort after 84 minutes. And it was reward for the Staggies creating the best chances in Dingwall. Martin Woods went close with a free-kick, Alan Mannus made a good first-half double save and Rafa Da Vitta missed with a diving header. The victory keeps the Dingwall side three points ahead of Motherwell in the relegation play-off place, while they close to within a point of Partick Thistle. St Johnstone, on course for a fourth successive top-six finish, seldom troubled home goalkeeper Mark Brown and missed the opportunity to leapfrog Dundee United into fourth spot. It was County who threatened first when Woods fired a curling free kick over the defensive wall but just a yard wide, with Mannus sprawling. The home side took a grip of proceedings for a spell, with Saints forced deep to defend their penalty area in numbers. And the breakthrough almost arrived when Woods gathered centrally and fired in a low effort that had Mannus diving full length to save. Craig Curran slid in for what seemed a certain goal as the ball squirmed loose but Mannus reacted quickly and effectively to scramble across and hold on. St Johnstone struggled to create openings and James McFadden and Michael O'Hallaron should have done better after getting into promising positions. County looked determined at the start of the second period with Michael Gardyne prominent in attack. The midfielder gathered on the edge of the box, controlling on his chest before firing a volley narrowly wide. Gardyne then delivered a wonderful ball across goal from the right which the stooping De Vita could not quite direct on target. Boyce went close when he cut inside superbly, only to curl an effort inches wide with strike partner Craig Curran unimpressed given that a square pass may have left an easy finish. However, Boyce did prove to be the difference with a composed late finish just as it seemed a share of the points was inevitable. Full-back Reckord gathered on the left and delivered into a crowded area, with Boyce peeling off his marker and calmly nodding the ball just inside the post. Given Motherwell's emphatic win over bottom side St Mirren, a fifth home victory for the Staggies may prove crucial come the end of the season. St Johnstone can secure another top-six finish with a victory over Dundee on Saturday but will need to improve their ball retention in order to create openings. Ross County manager Jim McIntyre remains wary of St Mirren despite moving 13 points clear of the bottom side with victory over St Johnstone. Liam Boyce scored with a late header to make it seven wins from eight games for the in-form Dingwall side. With a visit to Paisley next, McIntyre said: "It's looking a tall order for St Mirren, no doubt. "But they are going to be determined when we go there. It's a last throw of the dice for them." Motherwell crushed St Mirren 5-0 to remain three points behind County in the relegation play-off spot but McIntyre insists he was paying no heed to the score at Fir Park. "We were just concentrating on our own game and until we face Motherwell that won't change," he told BBC Radio Scotland. "You've got to give credit to Motherwell who are also on a very good run." The Staggies are now just one point behind Partick Thistle, who are at Celtic Park on Wednesday night. "We want to catch the teams above us but we know that will be difficult," McIntyre explained. "Thistle are in good form right now, taking seven points from a possible nine. "We've just to concentrate on ourselves and see where that takes us." On a fifth consecutive home success, McIntyre added: "It was a hard fought game. We showed great desire, even though the quality was missing at times. "I thought we did a lot of things well but our final ball and cross was missing in the first half. "We spoke about it at half time and said if we could improve on that we could win the match. "Liam Boyce has been such a big part of this run, creating opportunities for others, so it was great for him to get a goal."
Ross County
Manager	Jim McIntyre
Starting 11	21: Mark Brown, 5: Scott Boyd, 11: Craig Curran, 12: Jamie Reckord, 16: Liam Boyce 1, 24: Raffaele De Vita, 26: Martin Woods, 36: Jackson Irvine 1, 40: Michael Gardyne, 43: Paul Quinn, 44: Marcus Fraser
Bench	1: Antonio Reguero Chapinal, 7: Joseph Cardle, 9: Jake Jervis, 10: Filip Kiss, 14: Abdoulaye Meite, 20: Darvydas Sernas, 22: Ruben Palazuelos Garcia
Saint Johnstone
Manager	Tommy Wright
Starting 11	Alan Mannus, David Mackay 1, Simon Lappin, Frazer Wright, Steven Anderson, Christopher Millar, Steven MacLean 1, David Wotherspoon, James McFadden 1, Brian Easton, Michael O'Halloran
Bench	Steven Banks, Thomas Scobbie, Daniel Swanson, Brian Graham, Gary Miller, Lee Croft 1, Christopher Kane