Date	Saturday, 31 October 2026
Competition	Scottish League Division 1
Fixture/Score	East Kilbride 1:2 Ross County
Venue	The Bumblebee Stadium
Referee	Josh Hay
Ross County
Manager	Stuart (Ketts) Kettlewell
Starting 11	30: Nickolas Suman, 4: Akil Wright, 6: Connor Randall 1, 7: Richard Chin 1, 9: Brian Graham 1, 15: Dylan Smith, 16: Chris Hamilton 1, 19: Luke McCarvel, 20: Jack Turner, 22: Adam Emslie, 43: Josh Reid
Bench	21: Jayden Reid, 5: Lewis Reid, 8: Dean Cornelius, 10: Jamie Lindsay, 11: Kieran Phillips 1, 17: Ricco Diack, 23: Ross Docherty, 24: Lewis Jamieson, 28: Jamie Williamson
East Kilbride
Manager	Michael Kennedy
Starting 11	Marcus Gill, Mitchell Robertson, Aaron Steele 1, Jamie Hamilton, Sean Fagan, Lewis McGrattan, Owen Moffat, Rhys Armstrong, Craig McGuffie, Sam Culbert, Cameron Elliott 1
Bench	Darragh O'Connor, Callum McKenzie, Joao Balde 1, Liam Kennedy, Shay Kelly, Euan East, Owan Calder, Rhys Dargie, Alexander Smith
Attendance	689
Match Report	Ross County Goal Scorers: Brian Graham (30') Kieran Phillips (76') Ross County Substitutions: Jamie Lindsay for Luke McCarvel (57') Lewis Reid for Connor Randall (58') Kieran Phillips for Brian Graham (69') Ricco Diack for Adam Emslie (79') Ross Docherty for Jack Turner (79') Ross County Cautions: Connor Randall (22') Chris Hamilton (28') Richard Chin (80') East Kilbride Goal Scorer: Joao Balde (91') East Kilbride Substitutions: Callum McKenzie for Lewis McGrattan (69') Darragh O'Connor for Jamie Hamilton (82') Joao Balde for Cameron Elliott (88') East Kilbride Caution: Cameron Elliott (17') Aaron Steele (74') Report from the Press & Journal. East Kilbride 1 Ross County 2 Stuart Kettlewell has praised Ross County’s character and determination after they maintained their unbeaten league record with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over East Kilbride. The Staggies extended their unbeaten start in the league to 13 games after overcoming a stern test against Simon Ferry’s side. Kettlewell was delighted they found a way to secure three points following a demanding week which also included matches against Airdrie and Hamilton. The Staggies boss was pleased by the contribution of his substitutes, including goalscorer Kieran Phillips. Kettlewell said: “Let’s not kid ourselves, this has been a really tough week for us. “We played Airdrie last Saturday, Hamilton on Tuesday and travelled down to play a really good East Kilbride side. “For us, the priority was to come and win the game. “I have seen us play a heck of a lot better, but ultimately it was about getting the three points, which we have managed to do. “I thought all the substitutes really contributed when they came onto the pitch, not least Kieran Phillips, who got a goal and has been unlucky not to be in the starting eleven. “I felt we could have been a lot better with our press. There are days when they are more fluent. They didn’t move the ball through the thirds, and it’s our job to solve that problem. “We could have been a lot braver with the ball, but I have just said to the players there are no negatives after such a tough week for us. “To come to East Kilbride and win another game of football keeps our undefeated record in the league.” On the hard-earned nature of the win, Kettlewell said: “It shows we have a group of players who, when we have days when we are not scoring the sevens, the fives and the fours, which we have managed to do of late, stick together and show a bit of steel and determination to get through. “Over the course of the week the players have shown brilliant personality to come through it. “I need to praise the players, who have barely let us down at any point over the course of the season.” County now have five of their next six fixtures at home in all competitions, starting with Tuesday’s KDM Challenge Cup tie against Celtic B at Dingwall. Kettlewell is keen to make the most of their home advantage but insists his side must be capable of adapting to different conditions and surroundings. He said: “Our pitch is obviously great and we like playing at home, but one of our challenges this season is that, whether you’re playing at home, on astroturf, in a high wind or on grass, we have to be a team for all seasons and adjust. “We can’t be a team at the end of a game making excuses. “The games just keep on coming. We will recover and be ready for that one. “There were no injuries from Saturday, just a few niggles and knocks.” Kettlewell also acknowledged the backing of the County support, who travelled to East Kilbride and created what he described as a brilliant atmosphere behind the goals. The manager was less pleased with the late concession, with East Kilbride scoring in the 90th minute, but insisted he was not about to dwell on the negatives. He said: “Losing a goal in the 90th minute was very avoidable. East Kilbride were trying to get in behind our four defenders. I thought we had got into the position and covered it and defended it. “We always set ourselves high standards, but I’m not going down the negative route. I’m all full of positives, which isn’t like me.”