Airdrieonians vs Ross County: Match Preview

We kick off our William Hill Scottish Championship campaign on Saturday, the second of August, with a trip down the A9 to face Airdrieonians at the Albert Bartlett Stadium.

Kick-off in Airdrie is at 3:00 PM.

Tickets: https://t.co/2kl9nQYsNP

Matchday information for supporters: Airdrieonians vs Ross County: Scottish Championship Matchday Information - RCFC

Ross County

The Staggies will be looking to right a few wrongs as the league gets underway after what has been an up-and-down Premier Sports Cup group stage campaign.

Wins over Edinburgh City and Queen of the South, as well as a point earned on the road in Stranraer, weren’t enough to see the Staggies through to the knockout stages of the tournament.

Partick Thistle ran out 3-1 winners in the final match of the group, meaning seven points was the overall tally earned.

There has been much change throughout the club over the summer months, as Don Cowie and new assistant manager John Robertson have been carefully shaping their squad with the task clear: promotion at the first time of asking.

Hear from summer signing Ben Crompton: https://x.com/RossCounty/statu...

Player to Watch

Having been on hot form at the tail end of last season, Northern Ireland international Ronan Hale has continued his scoring streak into pre-season.

The former Cliftonville man hasn’t let rumours get in the way of his main focus – finding the back of the net.

After scoring on 18 occasions in the Scottish Premiership, Hale will be looking to continue his form and to better his tally.

Airdrieonians

Coming off the back of a difficult season where they stayed up via the play-offs, Airdrie will be looking for a much-improved overall campaign this season.

Led by young and talented manager Rhys McCabe, the Diamonds are renowned for their possession-based style, which can cause problems for any team.

Airdrie have had some impressive results during the Premier Sports Cup group stage, with wins over Montrose, Bonnyrigg, and, impressively, Premiership side Dundee.

However, in their last match, they were defeated by Alloa 3-2.

Player to Watch

Former Hearts man Euan Henderson has netted three goals in his last three matches.

Henderson, who was a teammate of Don Cowie’s at Hearts, has added a real attacking threat to the forward area of McCabe’s side.

He will be looking to turn his hot cup form into consistent goals in the Scottish Championship, starting on Saturday afternoon.

Previous Encounters

The clubs last met in the second round of the League Cup in 2023.

County, then spearheaded by Malky Mackay, made difficult work of the tie against a team from the division below, but won 4-3 after extra time.

Our most recent ties prior to the above came in the first division in season 09/10 – where Ross County maintained an unbeaten record against the Diamonds.

Familiar Faces

Kyle Turner, Tony Bullock and Joe Cardle have had spells in both Dingwall and Airdrie.

Team News

Connor Randall returns to contention alongside Gary Mackay-Steven.

Akil Wright is a doubt.

Noah Chilvers, Josh Reid and Andrew Macleod miss out.