| Date | Saturday, 14 September 2002 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 1 |
| Fixture/Score | Ross County 1:1 Falkirk |
| Venue | Victoria Park |
| Attendance | 3,129 |
| Referee | Mike Ritchie |
| Comments | Match Report Report by Paul Third for the Press & Journal. Ross County 1 Falkirk 1 Falkirk saw their 100% start to the season come to an end--and County boss Neale Cooper believes his side deserved their share. Kenny Gilbert's strike two minutes from time was just reward for County, who had created numerous chances. The game was overshadowed by an incident just after County's equaliser which led to Bairns boss Ian McCall being spoken to by police. McCall reacted furiously to County's late goal, kicking a half-full bottle of water which appeared to hit a 12-year-old ball boy. McCall apologised to the youngster but he could be disciplined by the SFA. McCall refused to comment on the incident. County boss Neale Cooper said: "I thought we deserved something from the game. Falkirk are a strong side and they really came at us. I can see why they are top of the league as they are an excellent side, but their keeper had a superb save just before we equalised. "We've been playing well all season--with the exception of the recent derby with Caley Thistle in which we didn't perform. But I'm sure we can go on from here with confidence." Having spoken on the need for more width, Cooper was delighted with the response and believes his side can end another record when they face St Johnstone on Saturday, the Perth men having yet to concede a goal. Cooper said: "We created more chances against Falkirk than we have done in a while and we showed great hunger and determination to fight back. "It looks like Steve Hislop will be back in three of four weeks, which will give me more options up front. Morale is great here right now. St Johnstone have still to concede a goal in the league but we feel we can go to McDiarmid Park and take all three points." The Bairns started the game well with Andy Lawrie wasting a good chance to open the scoring when he headed Jamie McQuilken's cross straight at home keeper Tony Bullock. The home side were forced to play counter-attacking football and Alex Bone was unlucky to see his fierce 20-yard strike deflect off Scott MacKenzie safely into Alan Ferguson's arms. With Cooper's men content to hit on the break, County were creating the better chances, Steve McGarry almost breaking the deadlock just before half-time with a 25-yard drive. The team-talk from McCall during the interval was clearly effective, with the Bairns playing far more directly in the second half--and they took the lead in the 58th minute. Substitute John Henry released McQuilken down the left and the full back's cutback was met first time by the onrushing Owen Coyle, who hammered the ball high past Bullock from 10 yards. Coyle squandered a great chance minutes later when he latched on to Lee Miller's knockdown, firing high over the bar with only Bulloch to beat. County came close to equalising in the 75th minute when Mark McCulloch headed Graham Bayne's cross into Bone's path, but his shot was well-saved by Ferguson. County's pressure paid off two minutes from time when McGarry broke clear down the right and his cross was volleyed past Ferguson by Gilbert. |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Neale Cooper |
| Starting 11 | 1: Anthony (Tony) Bullock, 2: Hugh Robertson, 3: Martin Canning, 4: Mark Perry, 5: Brian Irvine, 6: Kenneth Gilbert 1, 7: Mark McCulloch, 8: Graham Bayne 1, 9: Steven McGarry, 10: Martin Wood, 11: Alexander Bone 1 |
| Bench | 0: Leslie Fridge, 0: Sean Webb, 0: Don (JNR) Cowie, 0: Steven MacKay, 0: Conor Gethins |
| Falkirk | |
| Manager | Ian McCall |
| Starting 11 | Allan Ferguson, Kevin James, Andy Lawrie, John Hughes, Jamie McQuilken, Scott McKenzie, Mark Kerr, Craig McPherson, Steve Tosh 1, Lee Miller, Owen Coyle 1 |
| Bench | Darren Hill, John Henry, Philip Creaney, Steven Rennie, Collin Samuel |