NOBODY at Ross County needs to be told that anything can happen in the second leg of the Premiership play-off final.
The Dingwall club were trailing Partick Thistle by three goals on aggregate with 20 minutes of regulation time remaining in the fixture last year and ended up winning on penalties and securing their top flight survival.
So there is no chance of the Highlanders, who beat Raith Rovers 2-1 in the first leg at sodden Stark’s Park tonight, becoming complacent ahead of the rematch at the Global Energy Stadium on Sunday. Their lead is a narrow one.
It is, though, very much advantage to Don Cowie’s men at the halfway stage in their double header with Ian Murray’s charges.
They dominated their encounter with the second-placed club in the Championship and could and really should have prevailed by a far more comfortable margin.
Rovers, who have fared better away than they have at home in the second tier this term, are expected to take 2,500 fans up the A9 for the second leg this weekend. But they will have to perform an awful lot better than they did this evening to return to the top flight for the first time in 27 years.
Murray had a shot blocked in just the fourth minute after being supplied by James Brown and White came agonisingly close to turning in a delivery which bobbled invitingly across the six yard box shortly afterwards.
The early statistics told a story. In the opening 10 minutes County completed 29 passes in the opposition final third. Raith, meanwhile, did not manage one. The home supporters who had roared their heroes onto the park were quickly silenced.
Yan Dhanda, who will be departing for Hearts this summer regardless of whether County stay up or not, looked capable of creating an opening for one of his team mates or scoring himself whenever he got on the ball.
But the opening goal did not materialise for the visitors. George Harmon found Murray in the opposition penalty box with a free-kick only for the forward’s glancing header to fly past the right post.
When one team controls proceedings to such a degree and fails to capitalise they run the risk of being hit on the counter attack and the travelling supporters must have feared the worst when Aidan Connolly made a searing break down the right wing against the run of play.
Ryan Leak brought the winger down clumsily, earned himself a red card from referee John Beaton and gave away a free-kick in a dangerous area. However, Euan Murray nodded the Connelly delivery well wide.
Rovers had their keeper Kevin Dabrowski to thank for keeping them on level terms just a couple of minutes before half-time when Jack Baldwin got on the end of a Dhanda corner and jinked past a couple of defenders. His shot was kept out by the perfectly-positioned goalie.
Whatever Murray said to his players during the break in play appeared to have the desired impact. The hosts started the second-half brightly and Lewis Vaughan went very close to finally breaking the deadlock with an attempt from an acute angle.
Their fightback, though, ended as suddenly as it started. They conceded a penalty almost immediately when Murray inadvertently handled a powerful Eli King shot inside his own area.
Beaton only awarded the spot kick after being urged to look at a replay on his pitchside monitor by his VAR colleague Alan Muir over at Clydesdale House. It took him an eternity to reach his decision. But it was the correct call.
Dhanda stepped forward and netted off the inside of the right upright. Dabrowski had no chance. Hearts are getting one hell of a footballer. Scorer then turned provider. Baldwin rose and powered his corner into the goal.
Sam Stanton pulled one back with eight minutes left on the clock after burying a Ross Matthews cutback beyond Ross Laidlaw. His strike gives Raith hope they can prevail. But a stark improvement is still required from the Kirkcaldy club on Sunday.
