| Date | Saturday, 29 August 1998 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 3 |
| Fixture/Score | Ross County 2:0 Cowdenbeath |
| Venue | Victoria Park |
| Attendance | 1,553 |
| Referee | Ian Fyfe |
| Comments | Match Report Report by Alasdair Fraser for the Daily Record. Ross County 2 Cowdenbeath 0 Deadly Derek Adams last night insisted he Will leave Ross County--if the directors get the fee they want for him. Striker Adams rubbished weekend reports that he'd decided to stay at Dingwall until the end of the season. County have had two firm offers of £100,000 for the 23-year-old that would break the previous club record but they are holding out for more money. But Adams set to hold them to their pledge not to stand in the way of his ambitions if the interested club is right for him. Manchester City, Sunderland, Huddersfield, Hibs and Morton are all known to be interested. And scouts from both sides of the border watched Adams net a landmark 50th goal for County to send them three points clear at the top of the Third Division. Adams said: "I honestly can't say if that will be the last time I score for County but the goal was important because it helped us win the game. "I wanted to show the supporters that despite my own situation, I am still giving all I've got. "There have been offers and they are for £100,000. County haven't accepted them and want more money. But if the club is right and they are in the right division, then I would go for it. "I'm happy to stay if nothing materialises but in any job you look for promotion. "I can't speak to any club right now and I'm just keeping my options open and trying to keep focused." Adams enhanced his hopes of landing a deal with a superb performance despite a nervy start. He struck the killer second goal before half-time against a Cowdenbeath side who started brightly but were soon swamped. County boss Neale Cooper admitted he would love Adams to put his big-time ambitions on hold until the end of the season. He said: "It would be brilliant if Derek stayed on to boost our promotion hopes. "I thought he was brilliant, specially considering all the press attention he's had following the offer we received for him. "I think he likes it here and I'd love to keep him here until the end of the season. Is that realistic? Who knows." Steve Ferguson had sent County on the way to the top in eight minutes when he pounced on a poor clearance to blast a 15-yard shot past former County keeper Steve Hutchison. Young David MacKay was stretchered off in 25 minutes and replaced by Garry Wood, lining up against his former club, a striker who slotted into the less familiar defensive role. He had some shaky moments and Cowden had a brief revival. On the half-hour, Graeme Brown had a spot-kick saved by Nicky Walker after William Stewart was tripped in the area and County were soon in command again. Two minutes before half-time, Roy McBain sent a piercing through ball to Kenny Gilbert on the right and the midfielder's instant cross found Adams perfectly positioned to sweep the ball past Hutchison from 10 yards. In a poor second half, Steve Ferguson came closest for County with an ambitious over-head kick and Neil Tarrant's drive was tripped onto the crossbar by Hutchison. Adams admitted he was surprised by Cowdenbeath's quality. He said: "We didn't expect that from them--they are vastly improved under Craig Lavein." |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Neale Cooper |
| Starting 11 | 1: Joseph (Nicky) Walker, 2: Ian Maxwell, 3: William (Billy) Herd 1, 4: David MacKay, 5: Kenneth Gilbert, 6: Franck Escalon, 7: Steven Ferguson 1, 8: Alexander Taylor, 9: Roy McBain 1, 10: Neil Tarrant, 11: Derek Adams 1 1 |
| Bench | 0: David Ross, 0: Garry Wood, 0: Connor Campbell |
| Cowdenbeath | |
| Manager | Craig Levein |
| Starting 11 | Stephen Hutchison , Murray Urquhart, Ritchie, Colin Bowsher, Scott Sneddon 1, Malcolm Robertson, Craig Winter, Alistair Hamilton, Graeme Brown, Willie Stewart, Willie Burns 1 |
| Bench | Martin Humphreys, Darren Pryde, Darren Murray |