| Date | Saturday, 13 October 2001 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 1 |
| Fixture/Score | Arbroath 2:1 Ross County |
| Venue | Gayfield Park |
| Attendance | 665 |
| Referee | Craig Thomson |
| Comments | Match Report Report by Duncan McKenzie for the Press & Journal. Arbroath 2 Ross County 1 Ross County boss Neale Cooper insists his side's away form must improve after watching his troops slump to the bottom of the First Division table after Saturday's 2-1 defeat at Gayfield. It was the Angus club's second win over County this season and a surprise after the Dingwall club's midweek CIS League Cup victory over Dundee. Cooper admitted: "We didn't play well enough to win the game and our finishing was poor. "We created enough chances in the first 20 minutes to win the game but we didn't take them. "Our away record has been decent enough in the past two seasons, but this season it's been a different story. We have to start winning away from home." Steve Hislop almost had County in front early on when he was sent into the box by Perry but his powerful right foot drive was well saved by Craig Hinchcliffe. County went close again in 14 minutes when Alex Bone whipped the ball in from the right. The Lichties defence missed it and Hinchcliffe had to pull off another sensational save to stop Steve Ferguson's shot from the edge of the area. Former County midfielder John McGlashan saw his header from six yards cleared off the line five minutes before the break. But the Lichties persistence paid off a minute before the half-time whistle with an exquisite opening goal. McInally burst down the left flank. His low cross was left by Paul Brownlie and Andy Cargill arrived alongside him to power the ball into the bottom corner. The second half was just seven minutes old when Arbroath extended their lead and they had County keeper Bullock to thank after an astonishing blunder. He dallied with a back pass, Cargill stole the ball and took great delight in slamming the ball high into the empty net for his second of the match. The visitors pulled one back after 63 minutes and it was Hislop who did the damage. The big striker rose to power a header into the net after a corner from Mark McCormick. County pushed for the equaliser and Irvine and Hislop both went close in the final five minutes, but the Lichties held on for three vital home points. Their win lifted them off the bottom rung of the First Division ladder, but manager John Brownlie warned his players they still have a long way to go to guarantee survival. And he warned that any relief at moving away from the bottom would be short-lived if his players fail to show similar commitment against Airdrie this weekend. He said: "We're off the bottom, but there can't be any complacency because Airdrie put six past us earlier in the season." |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Neale Cooper |
| Starting 11 | 1: Anthony (Tony) Bullock, 2: Mark Perry, 3: Ian Maxwell, 4: Hugh Robertson, 5: Brian Irvine, 6: Bryan Dlugonski, 7: Steven Ferguson, 8: John Fraser, 9: Alexander Bone, 10: Steven Hislop 1, 11: Mark McCormick |
| Bench | 0: Andrew Shearer, 0: Steven MacKay, 0: Don (JNR) Cowie, 0: Karim Boukraa, 0: Martin Prest |
| Arbroath | |
| Manager | John Brownlie |
| Starting 11 | Craig Hinchcliffe, Innes Ritchie, David McInally, George Rowe, Jordan Tait, Steve Florence 1, Andy Cargill 2, Colin McKinnon, John McGlashan, Paul Brownlie, Graham Bayne |
| Bench | Craig Wight, John Cusick, David Arbuckle, Jim Gardner, Kevin Heenan |