IT WAS legendary Rob Roy who is said to have uttered the immortal words: "Despite them" in the face of harsh authority.
Kenny McLean is no rabble-rouser but might easily have muttered the same in steely defiance at officialdom after St Mirren's monumental win in the Highlands.
The classy St Mirren midfielder was briefly relieved of his makeshift striking role by the arrival of released Ross County striker Yoann Arquin until the furore surrounding the Frenchman's red carding by referee Brian Colvin. McLean shone again, both behind Arquin and as sole striker after the red card, before Stevie Mallan's thrilling winner settled the relegation showdown. Footage of Arquin's alleged misdemeanour will need to be pored over but there is no doubting the fact that McLean and his team-mates believe they are getting the rough end of the stick from officials. Victory on their rivals doorstep was all the more impressive given the need to perform with 10 men for almost an hour after the new signing walked for the supposed stamp on Lewis Toshney.
St Mirren, revitalised under Gary Teale, moved three points above their rivals, who still have a game in hand, but the psychological worth of the win was far greater. "I think it shows the character the boys have got. It shows a togetherness," said McLean, a target of Sky Bet League One Fleetwood Town among other suitors.
"The goal we conceded was poor, it was a low blow. Our heads could have gone down and we could have lost the game. Mark Ridgers pulled off a magnificent save at 1-1 which kept us in the game. But we always looked quite dangerous on the counter, which was good. Sometimes we've been lacking that.
"We probably should have been up more than 1-0 at half-time. I'll need to see the decision again, but I think the red card was pretty harsh. It's another one against us, but we've picked ourselves up.
"There's nothing we can do about the decisions going against us. We just had to keep going and we've come out in the end with three points. It's easy just to accept things and take them the wrong way. But we used it as a positive when Yoann got sent-off. After that, the boys stuck together and worked for each other and I thought the character was magnificent.
"We've been in that position before with 10 men and we've dealt with it well. When a midfielder gets into their box with five minutes to go when we've got 10 men just shows how much we want to win. It's only one game. It was a massive game, the biggest game of the season so far, and we've come out of it with three points. But we need to take that into Wednesday, against Dundee United, and keep that going."
McLean's stock is high right now but he knows that 18-year-old match-winner Mallan, who has developed a penchant for making headlines with recent exploits, is another who will soon have scouts in regular attendance.
"It's the biggest goal of our season, by a distance," he said. "For him to be in that area to finish is great for him. It'll do his confidence wonders, and hopefully he can just keep doing what he's doing. He's given the boys a real spark. Sometimes you need that and he's like a new signing coming in. Hopefully he can continue to progress.
"The delivery from Sean Kelly was perfect for him, and Stevie just dived in at the right place, right time. It was the biggest goal of the season, in the biggest game of the season, so he should be delighted."
Kelly scored a fine opener after 16 minutes for the dominant Paisley side, finishing on the rebound from an Antonio Reguero save from Mallan, but Arquin's tangle with Toshney changed the tone of the game before the break. County pushed and pushed - with new signing Craig Curran missing a glorious one-on-one with the goalkeeper - and eventually levelled with eight minutes left as sub Liam Boyce stopped to head home a Jackson Irvine flick-on.
County, by then, looked like being the only winners but Kelly's tremendous surge and cross on the left sent Mallan diving in to execute the winning header.
While the attacking players in his side also earned plaudits, much of the praise had to go to St Mirren's solid, tireless defence. Defenders Jim Goodwin and Marc McAusland, in particular, put in a power of work. "Both of them are so experienced," McLean added. "For Ozzy [Isaac Osbourne] and John McGinn in front of them, their voice is like an extra man. The way they've been playing recently, I think they deserve a clean sheet, and they were unlucky not to get one today.
"The way we've been defending has been brilliant. We've been defending as a team and it augurs well for matches ahead."
For County's goalscorer Liam Boyce defeat was clearly painful. The Northern Irishman, now with four goals to his name despite making just two starts, said: "We just have to keep fighting, keep pushing, and see if we can break through this spell of results. At times, we moved the ball a bit too slowly and couldn't capitalise on our chances in the game.
"When we equalised, I thought there was only going to be one team going on to win it, but we need to concentrate more. They were joint bottom with us and we needed a big win today, but we just need to take it on the chin and push on from here. We know there are plenty more points to play for.
"Drawing away to Celtic was a great result but that's obviously a bonus. You need to be beating teams around you and today, unfortunately, we didn't."
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