Ross County 1 St Johnstone 0: Place in the top flight is safe as houses as Highlanders continue to build

Monday 18 February 2013

Maybe it is the geographical location of Dingwall, home of Ross County and not exactly a hive of media activity, that has allowed the club to slip, almost unnoticed, under the radar to secure their safety in Scottish football's top tier.

Ivan Sproule celebrates scoring the only goal of the game

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Frank Gilfeather

A win over St Johnstone on Saturday extended the Highland side's unbeaten run to seven matches and has allowed them to look forward to consecutive seasons in the top flight.

Such success merits a far bigger fanfare than it has received but at least there was still occasion to note "the project" of County's first season in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League – as Derek Adams, the County manager, has taken to calling it – is working, and working well. Their latest win owed much to the same of organisation and spirit which brought them up to the top division in the summer yet there was also an indication that they have progressed, since Ivan Sproule's goal was befitting of the Premier League.

It was certainly fit enough to win a game with St Johnstone, Sproule looping the ball across goal and in off the far post. "I fancied a whip at it and luckily for me it flew into the top corner," said the County forward. "I'm in a rich vein of form. I was trying to put it in off the post, there was no other place I could have put it."Sproule has now scored four goals since joining County last month and, as such, is a prime example of those who comprise this County team. The Dingwall side are made up largely of journeymen – many of whom were discarded by other clubs – but there is a cohesion and an admirable work ethic, if not necessarily a great deal of flair. There was still cause to marvel at the performance of Paul Lawson in a defensive midfield role at the weekend, though."I didn't get playing at Hibs. It was nothing to do with my form," added Sproule. "It was about the personal choice of the manager [Pat Fenlon] but he has decisions to make and I respect that."He has settled well at County and is an integral component to how his side play, since they relied heavily on counter-attacking play against St Johnstone. Steve Lomas, the Perth side's manager, claimed the hosts put five midfielders behind the ball after they scored, although Sproule should have had a second when he was through on goal, only to fire his shot into the arms of goalkeeper Alan Mannus.County will seek to be more assured as they begin to target a place in the top six – sixth-place St Johnstone are just a point ahead – and they would seem unlikely to lose ground on the Perth side tomorrow, when Celtic visit McDiarmid Park. It was that fixture which enabled Callum Davidson to be philosophical about defeat in the Highlands and allowed him to shift focus immediately to an opportunity to redress their disappointment."We've had a couple of good results against them this season and it's up to us to get over Saturday's defeat and go again," said the St Johnstone full-back. "We put pressure on County after they scored – I'm not sure Sproule meant it – but nothing really fell for us. It was one of those games when you pat Ross County on the back for their defending."It was a big game for us going into the Celtic game on Tuesday. If we got a result today it would have put us in a prime position."Instead, they have been left bruised but a win against the league leaders – and maintaining the club's ambitions of qualifying for Europe – seems a good way to quieten that grief. "We were all angry and upset in the changing room after the result; that shows the lads care," he said. "Celtic are in the middle of a big run at the moment, we'll see what team they put out."

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Ross County 1 St Johnstone 0: Place in the top flight is safe as houses as Highlanders continue to build

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