| Date | Saturday, 08 March 2003 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 1 |
| Fixture/Score | Ross County 0:2 Inverness Caledonian Thistle |
| Venue | Victoria Park |
| Attendance | 4,621 |
| Referee | Kenny Clark |
| Comments | Match Report Report from the Press & Journal. Ross County 0 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 2 Caley Jags manager John Robertson was delighted by the response of his players following the recent 5-1 drubbing at the hands of Highland rivals Ross County. Second half goals from Ritchie Hart and Barry Robson ensured that revenge was swift as the Inverness men beat County 2-0 at Victoria Park to make it three wins on the trot after that shock defeat. A delighted Robertson said: "County deservedly beat us in that 5-1 game, so it was nice to come back and redress the balance. But this was not about revenge of retribution. We showed what a good side are and the other result was a one off. "I thought County were the better side for the first 20 minutes. They were sharper and they created a couple of half-decent chances early on. "But after that, we really got in about them and their goalkeeper had to make two or three terrific saves." Robertson added: "In the second half, we dominated from the start to finish. It was a really good, clinical performance. "We missed a couple of really good chances before Ritchie Hart scored with a magnificent free kick. It was a thoroughly convincing and merited victory." County manager Alex Smith saw things differently. He said: "The free kick turned the game their way. It wasn't as if they were any better than us. What disappointed me a little bit was I didn't think we did enough to get back into the game. "Apart from that, I thought we played really well and we matched them, apart from the last quarter of an hour when we gave them too much space to play in." County started well and Hugh Robertson was first to test Mark Brown with a deflected shot which the Caley Jags goalkeeper turned past the post. At the other end. Hart sent in a fierce free kick which Tony Bullock smothered at the near post. Bullock had to be quick off his line in the 15th minute to clear the ball off the feet of Dennis Wyness as the Caley Jags striker raced clear on goal. County looked to have taken the lead four minutes later when an in swinging corner from Hugh Robertson was helped over the line by Graham Bayne. But keeper Brown was clutching the ball and referee Kenny Clark immediately awarded a free kick to the visitors. Cowie had the best chance of all six minutes after the break when he played a neat one-two with Bayne. But, with only Brown to beat, Cowie delayed his shot too long and his effort was cleared. It was to prove a costly miss. When Caley Jags were awarded a free kick 30 yards from goal nine minutes later, Hart stepped up to fire the ball into the top corner. Grant Munro almost stretched the lead with a spectacular over-head kick that man of the match Bullock somehow got a hand to. With only three minutes left, Robson drilled home the killer second goal after a Steve Hislop shot had been blocked. The win keeps the Inverness men just two points behind second-placed St Johnstone in the First Division title race, but seven adrift of leaders Falkirk. |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Alexander (Alex) Smith |
| Starting 11 | 1: Anthony (Tony) Bullock, 2: Jordon Tait, 3: Sean Webb, 4: Hugh Robertson, 5: Brian Irvine 1, 6: Kevin McLeish, 7: Mark McCulloch, 8: Kenneth Gilbert 1, 9: Don (JNR) Cowie, 10: Graham Bayne, 11: Steven McGarry |
| Bench | 0: Leslie Fridge, 0: Martin Canning, 0: Steven MacKay, 0: Sean Higgins, 0: Conor Gethins |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | |
| Manager | John Robertson |
| Starting 11 | Mark Brown, Ross Tokely, Grant Munro, Stuart Golabek, Stuart McCaffrey, Charlie Christie 1, Barry Robson 1 1, Roy McBain, Richie Hart 1, Dennis Wyness, Paul Ritchie |
| Bench | Michael Fraser, Graeme Stewart, David Bagan, Liam Keogh, Steven Hislop |