Ross County 0-0 St Mirren: Report

27 November 2012 22:01
Ross County 0-0 St Mirren: Match Report - view commentary, squad, and statistics of the game as it happened.


Woodwork ensures share of the spoils

Ross County and St Mirren settled for a point apiece in an entertaining goalless draw at Global Energy Stadium.

The teams produced nine goals the last time they met but although there were no goals on this occasion the match was not short on incident.

County's Sam Morrow headed against the crossbar in the first half and the visitors twice thought they had broken through in the second, with Sam Parkin denied by a post and John McGinn's effort cleared off the line.

After kick-off was delayed by five minutes as the lights temporarily went out, the home side made a bright start as an Iain Vigurs shot was blocked in front of goal in the fifth minute after he played a one-two with Rocco Quinn.

Kenny McLean let fly from distance at the other end but his effort was well wide of Mark Brown's left-hand post.

Saints threatened again five minutes later when an angled cross from David van Zanten was only partially cleared and McGinn hooked his shot high and wide.

At the other end Richard Brittain laid the ball off for Morrow 16 yards out but the forward's effort flew well over the crossbar.

Play was swinging from end to end and McGinn picked up a loose clearance from Ross Tokely but inside but this time his effort was straight at Brown.

County came closest to an opener in the 16th minute when Brittain sent an inviting cross into the box for Morrow, whose header crashed off the face of the crossbar before being cleared.

Saints came close themselves five minutes later when Jim Goodwin drive just cleared Brown's crossbar after some stout defending from the home side.

The visitors were seeing more of the ball and they forced two corners in quick succession. From the second, Gary Teal's delivery was met by Steven Thomson but his flick-header flew wide of Brown's left-hand post.

The chances kept coming and after McLean lashed a shot wide whilst in a good position, Vigurs whipped a free-kick just wide of Craig Samson's left-hand post.

The County man looked as if he was heading clean through when he was taken down by Lee Mair, who became the first player to go into referee Steven McLean's book.

Both sides made changes at the start of the second half, with Colin McMenamin and Marc Fitzpatrick coming on for Morrow and Grant Munro while St Mirren replaced Stephen Thompson with Parkin.

A McLean shot was deflected behind for a corner off Tokely's head as St Mirren started the second half on the front foot.

The visitors were pressing for the opener and they came close again in the 59th minute when the ball fell for McLean but his shot from 12 yards broke off Tokely and behind for another corner.

The Paisley side were looking the more dangerous at this stage and they came agonisingly close to the opener in the 63rd minute. Brown did well to parry a close range shot from McGinn and when they ball fell for Parkin his drive cannoned off the keeper's right-hand post.

County were living dangerously and Parkin dribbled his way towards the County goal but a last-ditch tackle by Tokely denied him the chance to shoot.

At the other end, Vigurs curled a ball in for McMenamin whose glancing header flew wide of the far post.

Samson was forced to make his first save of the match in the 70th minute when Vigurs got on the end of a Mark Fotheringham pass and his shot was on target before the Saints keeper got a hand to it at the near post.

But it was mostly Saints and Scott Boyd, making his 200th appearance for County, was forced to clear the ball off the goal-line in the 77th minute after McGinn made contact with a Parkin knock-down.

Source: DSG