| Date | Saturday, 27 August 1994 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 3 |
| Fixture/Score | Ross County 1:3 Inverness Caledonian Thistle |
| Venue | Victoria Park |
| Attendance | 4,000 |
| Referee | Joe Kelly |
| Comments | Match Report Published: Green Final 27/8/1994 Ross County 1 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 3 Own-goal agony for County County started with a flourish and a Grant shot flashed past the post. But it was straight to the other end where Hercher's height saw him climb above the Ross rearguard to head over. At the other end Barry Wilson shot over then Grant did likewise as this local derby took off at breakneck speed. The first corner fell to Caley Thistle and Mike Andrew's flag kick struck the top of the bar and then Hercher scooped the ball past as the visitors began to take command. And the Inverness side went ahead in the 12th minute when disaster struck the home side. Central defender Sandy MacLeod turned a Wilson Robertson cross past his own keeper. County reply was swift and skipper Robbie Williamson had McRitchie making a diving save after Ferries had crossed perfectly. But the home side were being repeatedly beaten to the ball and even two corners faild to trouble the towering Inverness defence. Grant and Ferries got mixed up and it looked good for County, but Caley Thistle were content to soak up the pressure. Andrew was booked in 34 minutes as County pushed forward looking for the equaliser. MacLeod's tale of woe continued when he was booked in 36 minutes and then Billy Herd had his name taken two minutes later. With close on 4,000 fans in the refurbished Victoria Park, it was Hectic stuff. Four minutes before the interval, County's Gary Campbell was sent off for retaliation and then Andy McLeod and Jamie MacPherson were shown yellow cards as tempers flared. (Half-time: 0-1) McRitchie dived to save from McPherson as County's 10 men went searching for on equaliser. In the 49th minute, Graham Bennett of Caley Thistle was booked for a foul on Ferries. County almost got the equaliser when McRitchie saved a fierce Wilson shot, but in the melee County were awarded a penalty. And before Andy MacLeod scored from the spot via a post, Andrew was sent off for his second bookable offence. Now both were down to 10 men as County stormed into the attack. Caley thistle clinched the game through a Somerville own goal in 62 minutes and Robertson 10 minutes later. |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Robert (Bobby) Wilson |
| Starting 11 | 1: Stephen Hutchison, 2: Christopher (Chris) Somerville 1, 3: Gary Campbell 1, 4: Robert (Robbie) Williamson, 5: Alexander (Sandy) MacLeod 1 1, 6: William (Billy) Herd 1, 7: Keith (Billy) Ferries, 8: Andrew (Andy) MacLeod 1 (1 pen) 1, 9: Brian Grant, 10: Jamie MacPherson 1, 11: Barry Wilson |
| Bench | 0: Donald (Don) MacMillan, 0: Gordon Connelly, 0: Alan Duff |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | |
| Manager | Sergie Baltacha |
| Starting 11 | Mark McRitchie, Dave Brennan, Mark McAllister, Alan Hercher, John Scott, Mike Andrew 2 1, Danny MacDonald, Paul MacKenzie, Mike Noble, Graeme Bennett 1, Wilson Robertson 1 |
| Bench | Jim Calder, Richard Hastings, Norman Macmillan |