| Date | Saturday, 16 November 2002 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 1 |
| Fixture/Score | Falkirk 2:0 Ross County |
| Venue | Brockville |
| Attendance | 3,255 |
| Referee | John Underhill |
| Comments | Match Report Report from the Press & Journal. Falkirk 2 Ross County 0 There was to be no fairy tale start for County caretaker manager Danny McDonald as leaders Falkirk scraped to a flattering 2-0 victory. The Dingwall side were playing their first match since the shock resignation of Neale Cooper last Monday--an event which must have had an affect on them. County keeper Tony Bullock said the players were sad to lose Cooper and added: "It was very tough week. The boys didn't want the manager to go, but it was his decision. We have to accept it and get on in the best way we can. "Danny McDonald has been at the club for more than five years, so there was nothing strange and he tried to get a bit of joviality into the squad when he came in on Thursday. We all hope he can stay in some capacity. "We don't have the kind of player who can unlock a defence, but what we have is a bunch of honest guys who will fight for each other. "Maybe a new face as manager, or a change of luck, will turn things around for us, as you have to remember we have the basis of the team which finished fourth last term." The Bairns were sloppy--yet two-goal hero Lee Miller might well have had a hat-trick. The 19-year-old striker opened the scoring in the 24th minute when Bullock and defender Mark Perry collided as they attempted a clearance eight yards out. Miller dived in between the pair to score. County were much better in the second period, but Miller should have scored a second when clean through in the 75th minute, but his close-range lob was clawed away by Bullock. Alex Bone replaced Steven Hislop at the break and should have scored with the visitors' best chance in 80 minutes. But Bone shot against goalkeeper Allan Ferguson when clean through. A minute from the end, Miller headed home the second from an Owen Coyle corner as County charged forward in an attempt to rescue a point. It was Miller's eighth goal of the season, bringing the youngster level with veteran Coyle, and he said: "I am delighted to have scored two, but I really should have had a hat-trick. I tried to dink the ball over their goalkeeper, but you can't score them all. "Credit to County, though, they fought right to the final whistle and we got a couple of breaks." Falkirk manager Ian McCall is on record as saying it will be difficult to hold on to the young Bairn when the transfer window opens in January. Bullock accepted the blame for Falkirk's opener. He added: "We just didn't get any breaks and that's how it has been most of the season." |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Danny MacDonald |
| Starting 11 | 1: Anthony (Tony) Bullock, 2: Paul Deas, 3: Mark Perry, 4: Martin Canning 1, 5: Brian Irvine, 6: Steven Ferguson, 7: Don (JNR) Cowie, 8: Steven MacKay, 9: Mark McCulloch, 10: Steven McGarry 1, 11: Steven Hislop |
| Bench | 0: Leslie Fridge, 0: Sean Webb, 0: Hugh Robertson, 0: Graham Bayne, 0: Alexander Bone |
| Falkirk | |
| Manager | Ian McCall |
| Starting 11 | Allan Ferguson, John Henry, Kevin James, John Hughes, Jamie McQuilken, Scott McKenzie, Mark Kerr, Craig McPherson, Steve Tosh, Lee Miller 2, Owen Coyle |
| Bench | Darren Hill, Steven Rennie, Andy Rodgers, Collin Samuel, Ian McSween |