| Date | Saturday, 03 February 2001 |
|---|---|
| Competition | Scottish League Division 1 |
| Fixture/Score | Raith Rovers 0:4 Ross County |
| Venue | Starks Park |
| Attendance | 1,380 |
| Referee | Kevin Toner |
| Comments | Match Report Report by Paul Smith for the Press & Journal. Raith Rovers 0 Ross County 4 It may be another fortnight away but already Ross County are reaping the benefits of their Scottish Cup tie against Rangers. County turned in a superb away performance to dump Raith 4-0 as the Dingwall Players pulled out all the stops to hold on to their places. Assistant manager Gordon Chisholm said: "The fact that the Rangers game is coming up has added a little bit of spice. With everybody fit now, there is already competition and nobody wants to lose their jersey. Considering we've not played a great deal recently, either in games or training, we were delighted to go away from and get a result like that. In the first-half we thought the boys lacked a little bit can only be improved by playing games." County handed new signing Hugh Robertson his debut at left back in place of the suspended Eddie Cunnington. Robertson, signed from Dundee on Thursday, received a vote of approval from his new management team and Chisholm Added: "Hugh came straight into the team and had a good debut. He looked comfortable and the fact that he already knows quite a few of the boys helped him settle quickly. Hugh will be a good addition to our squad." Robertson was in the thick of the action straight from kick-off as he crossed for Mark McCormick to send in a driven shot that was blocked by a Rovers defender. Raith were forced to withdraw the dangerous Ivan Mballa after just 25 minutes due to injury and they struggled to create any opportunities of note. County broke the deadlock after 34 minutes when a cross from Owen Coyle was knocked home by Darren Henderson. It took until the 59th minute for County to make it 2-0 thanks to a goal from Maxwell at the end of a good move between Coyle and Karim Boukraa. Substitute Alex Bone, on in place of Boukraa, staked his claim for a starting place with a late double to secure the points for County. Bone's first was a superb solo effort after 76 minutes. He set off on a run down the right wing before cutting inside and curling a shot past keeper Craig Coyle from the edge of the box. He made it 4-0 for County with just one minute left on the clock when he skipped past a challenge inside the box before firing the ball home. |
| Ross County | |
| Manager | Neale Cooper |
| Starting 11 | 1: Joseph (Nicky) Walker, 2: Mark Perry, 3: Ian Maxwell 1, 4: Hugh Robertson, 5: Brian Irvine, 6: John Fraser, 7: Darren Henderson 1 1, 8: Steven Ferguson, 9: Owen Coyle, 10: Karim Boukraa, 11: Mark McCormick |
| Bench | 0: Garry Hamilton, 0: Landy Zahani-Oni, 0: David MacKay, 0: Kenneth Gilbert, 0: Alexander Bone 2 |
| Raith Rovers | |
| Manager | Peter Hetherston |
| Starting 11 | Craig Coyle, Paul Browne, Greig McCulloch 1, John Inglis, Paul Hampshire, Kevin Nicol, Peter Hetherston, Kenny Black, Graham Bayne, Andy Clark, Ivan Mballa |
| Bench | Laurie Ellis, David McInally, Steven Hamilton, Derek Niven, Trialist |