Match Report | Ross County 1-0 St Mirren

Ross County defeated St Mirren 1-0 in the cinch Premiership this afternoon at the Global Energy Stadium.

In an almost identical match to Wednesday’s hard-fought victory over Motherwell, a Joseph Hungbo penalty was enough to seal all points for the Staggies as Malky Mackay’s side soared into the top six for the first time since September 2020!

It was a scrappy affair to begin with in Dingwall as neither side were able to carve open a clear goalscoring opportunity in the first 45 minutes. Malky Mackay’s side did have a grasp of proceedings as they dominated early possession, but the visitors soon grew into the game with nothing to separate the two sides in the first half.

After just 2 minutes, Joseph Hungbo ran with the ball from his own penalty area to deep into the opposition half before giving up possession to Harry Paton. The Canadian’s deep cross picked out Ross Callachan in the box, but the midfielder failed to convert his swivelling effort.

The cinch Premiership’s top scorer was causing problems for the Buddies as both a dangerous low cross as well as a firm shot around the 25^th minute were repelled by the St Mirren rear guard.

13 minutes later Jordan Tillson came close to grabbing a rare goal when he got on the end of a partial St Mirren clearance. The midfielder attempted a scissored volley attempt as he met the bouncing clearance, but his effort cleared Dean Lyness’s crossbar.

Malky Mackay would have again been pleased with his side’s defensive performance to match the resolute display from Wednesday night away to Motherwell.

Less than 2 minutes after the restart, County were awarded a penalty! Jack Baldwin’s trademark long throw-in was met at the front post by Kayne Ramsay as he flicked the ball on for Joseph Hungbo who took the ball on his chest and attempted to go past Alex Gogic. However, the Cypriot midfielder clattered into the side of Hungbo and the Watford-loanee hit the floor giving the referee no option but to point to the spot.

Hungbo won the penalty and he stepped up to convert. The winger wrapped the ball off the underside of the crossbar and into the top left corner to grab his third goal in as many games!

On the 59^th minute, St Mirren had their best chance of the match when an excellent Jordan Jones run resulted in a left-footed Curtis Main attempt. The Northern Irish international shrugged off Jordan Tillson’s attempt to ground him before nutmegging Kayne Ramsay and delivering the ball into the box. His near-post cutback found Main, but his sweeping left-footed effort was tipped around the post by Ross Laidlaw.

The Staggies remained calm for the rest of the match and, in similar fashion to the win over Motherwell in midweek, were able to suffocate any St Mirren attacks. The Buddies bombarded the County box with crosses but failed to create any clear chances as the hosts crusaded to another dogged 1-0 victory.

The result lifts Malky Mackay’s side into top 6 of the cinch Premiership for the first time since September 2020 as the Staggies find themselves just 1 point behind Hibernian, who occupy the lucrative final European spot.