Date	Saturday, 14 November 1998
Competition	Scottish League Division 3
Fixture/Score	Ross County 5:1 Queen's Park
Venue	Victoria Park
Attendance	1,433
Referee	Steve Kaney
Comments	Match Report Report by Alasdair Fraser for the Daily Record. Ross County 5 Queen's Park 1 Comeback star Billy ferries tore the heart out of Queen's Park--then dedicated his stunning performance to the snipers who claimed he was washed up. The 32-year-old winger endured more than 12 months on the side-lines, battling against hamstring trouble. And he insists his year of torture was made even worse by the snide whisperers who branded him an ageing has-been. Football-loving Ferries--who says he's happy to play just for beer money and the crack--pointed out: "I spent a long and lonely year fighting back from injury, but if there was one thing that kept me going, it was the determination to prove those people wrong. "I knew some were saying I was past it and should be dumped on the scrapheap, but that just fuelled my desire to bounce back. "I love proving people wrong--and I've had to do it before with other injuries. "Now I've proved I am sharper, fitter and stronger than ever and still capable of giving my best for the club." When asked if the fans would see more of the Ferries of old, County's wing king laughed and said: "Hey, less of the old! "That's a touchy subject. We have a great mix of experience and youth here and I'm just glad to be part of it. "I wouldn't like to single out any of the younger players as the side is packed with talent. Anyway, They're all younger than nowadays!" Before Saturday County had missed their last six penalties--including three in the cup shoot-out at Tynecastle. But they bust their hoodoo in style with former Darlington and Shamrock Rovers striker Neil Tarrant converting two spot-kicks on the way to a hat-trick and Steve Ferguson grabbing another. County are Britain's second-top scoring club with 41 goals in 15 league matches. Sunderland have hit one more. More than 1400 fans watched a game that proved to be a nightmare for Paul Martin, who handled in the area after 15 minutes to allow Tarrant's spot-kick opener. Three minutes later Derek Carmichael rose unmarked from Kevin Finlayson's corner to level. Then, in 34 minutes, Ferries showed his sharpness after Martin's poor pass-back eluded keeper Barry Cooke and the winger won the race to slide in County's second. Roy McBain struck a post before half-time then two minutes after the break helped bring about County's second penalty after being hauled down by Ross Caven. It was Caven's second bookable offence and he was red-carded, while Tarrant buried the spot-kick to make it 3-1. Tarrant rounded off his hat-trick when Martin got caught in a defensive mix-up which left the striker with only the keeper to beat from 12 yards. And in 84 minutes--with Tarrant now subbed--Steve Ferguson scored from spot after Danny Ferry Tripped McBain. County boss Neale Cooper heaped praise on his side, especially Ferries, Tarrant and Kenny Gilbert. He said: "Kenny is a wonderful asset to the club. I've talked about him so much this season, the players are beginning to wonder if I've got a thing for him!" John McCormack was seething at referee Steve Kaney but Queen's manager chose his words carefully, saying: "Whether or not some of these decisions were warranted is not for me to say--people at the game can make up their own minds. "And in truth, we didn't handle being down to 10 men very well. "But there is a big financial gulf between us and County. They can lose a player such as Derek Adams, then spend. We lose players to a higher level with little recompense."
Ross County
Manager	Neale Cooper
Starting 11	1: Joseph (Nicky) Walker, 2: Stuart Golabek, 3: Ian Maxwell, 4: Mark Haro, 5: David Matheson 1, 6: Kenneth Gilbert, 7: Alexander Taylor, 8: Steven Ferguson 1 (1 pen) 1, 9: Roy McBain 1, 10: Keith (Billy) Ferries 1, 11: Neil Tarrant 3 (2 pens)
Bench	0: Robert (Robbie) Williamson, 0: Gary Higgins, 0: David Ross
Queen's Park
Manager	Graeme Elder
Starting 11	Barry Cook, David Alexander, Ross Caven 2 1, Barry Rossiter 1, Paul Martin, Graeme Elder, Danny Ferry, Paul Tyrrell, Scott Edgar, Derek Carmichael 1 1, Kevin Finlayson
Bench	Denis Connaghan, Thomas Little, Gordon Parks