| Date | Saturday, 16 February 2002 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 1 |
| Fixture/Score | Ayr United 0:0 Ross County |
| Venue | Somerset Park |
| Attendance | 2,186 |
| Referee | Hugh Dallas |
| Comments | Match Report Report from the Press & Journal. Ayr United 0 Ross county 0 Ross boss Neale Cooper insists that County's First Division safety charge is still on course--despite fellow-toilers Arbroath and Raith both snatching shock wins. The goalless draw with League Cup Finalists Ayr looked a good result--until news of those surprise victories drifted in. Cooper said: "There are a lot of teams in there. We still have two games in hand on one or two. I can't ask for more than I'm getting from my players. We came here on the back of two convincing wins and to get a draw against the form team who are playing a lot of good stuff has got to be a very good point for us. "We set out our stall to have a goal and we played with three strikers just as we have in the last two weeks." Cooper hailed hero keeper Tony Bullock, who made his comeback to the team with a string of super saves including a fabulous block from a Paul Sheerin penalty. He said: "Bullock has been outstanding all season but that was one of the best performances I have seen from him. "As for the penalty, the lads round about the incident felt Ayr player kicked Karim Boukraa and then fell. I felt Karim shouldn't have gone near as the Ayr man was no threat and was going away from goal. Ayr are a strong side who put us under a lot of pressure but credit to the defence for holding out." Boukraa had the first chance after only five minutes when he raced clear of the Ayr defence but, under pressure from David Craig, the Frenchman trundled a shot just past. Alex Bone was then denied by Craig Nelson's outstretched boot when he tried a low drive from the edge of the box in 27 minutes. Brian Irvine fired wide from a Hugh Robertson's cross before Boukraa's 51st-minute challenge on James Grady led to the penalty and Bullock's super save. Ayr swarmed forward after that but County still created chances with substitute Mark McCormick curling a free kick just wide. Then in the final minute Nelson had to produce the save of the match to keep out a downward header from Steven Ferguson as the County fans behind the goal were preparing to celebrate. |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Neale Cooper |
| Starting 11 | 1: Anthony (Tony) Bullock, 2: Hugh Robertson, 3: Ian Maxwell, 4: Mark Perry, 5: Brian Irvine, 6: Steven Ferguson 1, 7: Cedric Anselin, 8: Kenneth Gilbert, 9: Alexander Bone, 10: Steven Hislop, 11: Karim Boukraa |
| Bench | 0: Ramiro Gonzalez, 0: Richard Hastings, 0: David Lilley, 0: Mark McCormick, 0: Conor Gethins |
| Ayr United | |
| Manager | Gordon Dalziel |
| Starting 11 | Neil Duffy, Craig Nelson, David Craig, John Robertson, Paul Lovering, Marvyn Wilson, Paul Sheerin, Pat McGinlay, Kevin Twaddle, James Grady, Scott Crabbe |
| Bench | John Dodds, Craig McEwan, Lee Sharp, Scott Chaplain, Brian McLaughlin |