| Date | Saturday, 03 May 2003 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 1 |
| Fixture/Score | Queen of the South 1:0 Ross County |
| Venue | Palmerston Park |
| Attendance | 1,810 |
| Referee | Iain Brines |
| Comments | Match Report Report from the Press & Journal. Queen of the South 1 Ross County 0 Ross County manager Alex Smith believes fan power can save the club from relegation. County go into this week's crunch match against Ayr United locked on 32 points with fellow strugglers Alloa--but have the cushion of superior goal difference. A win will guarantee safety for the Dingwall men, but anything less will have them relying on St Mirren, who face the Alloa Wasps at Recreation Park. Smith said: "We need our superb fans to get right behind us on Saturday. Sean O'Connor grabbed a first-half winner for the Doonhamers at Palmerston. It's going to be a nervous week for everyone connected with the Dingwall club as the prospect of the dreaded drop looms large. County were desperately disappointing and played like a team going through the motions. A much-improved display will be needed on Saturday when the Honest Men come to town as Second Division football is unthinkable for a club which had SPL ambitions at the start of the season. The home side deserved their winner in 31 minutes when O'Connor latched on to a Weatherson through ball to fire his eighth of the season through the legs of Bullock. Brian Irvine's header from a McLeish free kick crashed off the bar in 38 minutes as the visitors pushed for an equaliser. |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Alexander (Alex) Smith |
| Starting 11 | 1: Anthony (Tony) Bullock, 2: Hugh Robertson, 3: Brian Irvine 1, 4: Kevin McLeish, 5: Steven MacKay 1, 6: Steven Ferguson, 7: Mark McCulloch, 8: David Hannah, 9: Sean Higgins 1, 10: David Winters, 11: Craig Campbell |
| Bench | 0: Leslie Fridge, 0: Sean Webb, 0: Jordon Tait, 0: Conor Gethins, 0: Graham Bayne |
| Queen of the South | |
| Manager | John Connolly |
| Starting 11 | Colin Scott, Andrew Aitken, Eric Paton 1, Jim Thomson, Steve Bowey, Joe McAlpine, Derek Lyle, Peter Weatherson, Brian McLaughlin, Shaun O'Connor 1, Ben Dawson |
| Bench | Stuart Robertson, Paddy Atkinson, Willie Gibson, Brian McColligan, John Paul Burns |