| Date | Saturday, 18 August 2001 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 1 |
| Fixture/Score | Ross County 1:0 Raith Rovers |
| Venue | Victoria Park |
| Attendance | 2,099 |
| Referee | Garry Mitchell |
| Comments | Match Report Report by Mike Tremlett for the Press & Journal. Ross County 1 Raith Rovers 0 Ross County needed a touch of luck to break their league goal and points duck, but manager Neale Cooper believes Hugh Robertson's winner is one-in-the-eye for his side's critics. While Cooper's men have marched into the Challenge Cup quarter-finals--they face Brechin City at home tomorrow--two previous league outings had both ended in defeat. Cooper said: "Forget the cup run. People were only talking about us having two games played in the league, two lost and no goals. you can't put that kind of pressure on the players, so I told them to forget about that and just go out and enjoy themselves. "They showed they were very much up for the job and I don't think the pressure, if they felt any, got to them at all out there." Yet Robertson's 11th-minute goal came as a huge relief to the Dingwall fans. The former Aberdeen and Dundee player crashed in a drive from just outside the penalty box which clipped Rovers defender Jamie Clark's leg. The deflection left keeper Simon Miotta stranded. But if there was an element of luck about the winner, several facets of the home side's performance suggested they have shaken-off league jitters. Cooper handed Canadian international Richard Hastings his home league debut and called up Irish teenager Sean Webb--changes which meant no starting berth for veteran Brian Irvine. Former Caley Jags defender Hastings rewarded Cooper's faith with a superb performance and Webb's assured display suggest big-club scouts will be flocking to Victoria Park before long to assess his potential. While a sound defensive platform in place, County could have doubled their lead before half-time but Miotta's fine save from Alex Bone kept the Fifers in the game. Midway through the second half, substitute Derek Holmes's first touch hit the side-netting when clever play by Bone put him in. Rovers almost equalised late on through former County striker Darren Henderson. But despite having their share of possession, Rovers saw their cutting edge blunted very effectively by the Dingwall defence. Rovers boss Peter Hetherston said: "We worked hard and created quite a lot, but we are crying out for a goal-getter." |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Neale Cooper |
| Starting 11 | 1: Anthony (Tony) Bullock, 2: Richard Hastings, 3: Hugh Robertson 1, 4: Sean Webb, 5: Mark Perry, 6: Ian Maxwell, 7: Don (JNR) Cowie, 8: John Fraser, 9: Alexander Bone, 10: John McQuade, 11: Steven Hislop |
| Bench | 0: Stefan Gonet, 0: Steven Ferguson, 0: Steven MacKay, 0: Martin Prest, 0: Derek Holmes |
| Raith Rovers | |
| Manager | Peter Hetherston |
| Starting 11 | Simon Miotto, Jamie Clark, Laurie Ellis, Paul Browne, Greig McCulloch, Shaun Dennis, Jorge Zoco, Wilfred Nanou, Ross Matheson, Darren Henderson, Scott Crabbe |
| Bench | Samuel Monin, Paul Hampshire, Kevin Nicol, Jay Stein, Andy Clark |