Livingston 3
Ross County 1
League (Premiership)

Match Report

Source unknown.

Ross County were defeated this afternoon by an in-form Livingston side who have extended their unbeaten run in the Scottish Premiership.

Scott Robinson opened the scoring for Livi before Charlie Lakin equalised mid-way through the first half.

Late goals from Alan Forrest and Jack Hamilton snatched the win for the hosts as County were searching for their own winner.

County started positively, but it was Livingston who took the lead after 9 minutes. Nicky Devlin’s volleyed pass over the Staggies defence was latched onto by Scott Robinson who then lifted the bouncing ball over Ross Laidlaw from the edge of the box and into the back of the net.

The Lions came close 4 minutes later when Scott Pittman nearly netted the home side’s second volley of the match. The midfielder let the ball come over his shoulder before unleashing a looping volley from the edge of the box, but his effort could not come down quick enough as the ball flew just over the bar.

In the 23rd minute, County grabbed an equaliser. Harry Paton drifted inside from the left and found space to release shot, but his effort was deflected into the path of Charlie Lakin who calmy slotted the ball home from close range.

With 34 minutes on the clock, County should have gone ahead! Excellent build-up play led to Jason Naismith finding space on the right-hand side to deliver an inviting his cross. His delivery was met by a diving header from Oli Shaw just outside the six-yard box, but his attempt was fired well over the crossbar.

County entered the break on level terms, which was probably a fair reflection of the game thus far. Both teams enjoyed sporadic periods of pressure, but the majority of the match was played inside the middle third of the pitch.

The second half was not blessed with many chances and continued to be a cagey affair. A Craig Sibbald shot for the hosts and a Keith Watson header were the only half-chances that threatened before the 80th minute.

However, with just 9 minutes to play, Livingston found themselves ahead after a fantastic counter-attacking goal. Substitute Jay Emmanuel-Thomas broke forward from midfield and found Scott Pittman in space on the edge of the box. Pittman then played a one-two with Jack Hamilton before sliding a pass over to Alan Forrest on his left, who wrapped his foot around the ball and passed it towards the bottom right-hand corner. The substitute’s effort, which was already going in, was then deflected into his own net by Alex Iacovitti in an attempt to clear the ball.

5 minutes later, new signing Tony Andreu had a golden opportunity to equalise for the Staggies. Alex Iacovitti surged forward and sent in a low cross that was blocked, the ball breaking to Andreu around 12 yards from goal. The Frenchman fired his effort straight at Max Stryjek to deny himself of a dream start to his Ross County career.

Inside the first minute of additional time, Livingston secured all three points with a late goal from Jack Hamilton. Alan Forrest burst down the left wing before drifting past Coll Donaldson and cutting the ball back to Hamilton on the penalty spot. The striker, who has just returned from a successful loan spell with East Fife, tapped the ball in from close range and sealed the win for the hosts.

*Match report courtesy of Ross County Football Club*.