Skipper Joe Shaughnessy scored with the very last kick of the match, seven minutes into injury time, to give the Dark Blues a vital 1-0 away to Ross County this afternoon. A close and competitive match looked certain to end goalless but Luke McCowan whipped a superb free kick against the post and Shaughnessy knocked the loose ball home to trigger mayhem in the away stand behind that goal.
Dundee made two changes from the team that played Rangers last week. In attack Zach Robinson came in for Zak Rudden, who was on the bench. Owen Beck was fit and came back in at left wing back replacing Aaron Donnelly, who moved infield to take the place of the injured Antonio Portales in a central defensive role.
County midfielder Yan Dandha tried a shot straight from the kick off. It was a decent effort that wasn’t far wide. After that neither keeper had anything to trouble them for almost 20 minutes.
Both teams were working and running hard without finding the composure to cut open the defences. After 20 minutes Simon Murray sent a dangerous cross beyond the far post and Jordan McGhee blocked well from Ben Purrington’s header. McGhee did even better four minutes later when he cleared Murray’s shot off the goal line after the Staggies striker had pulled dowm a long ball and turned cleverly to find space.
Dundee had their share of attacking in the remainder of the first half. They created a few promising opportunities but their attacks either ran into a County wall in the penalty area or shots were blocked.
Luke McCowan and Lyall Cameron were both lively in midfield setting up attacks but Dundee couldn’t provide the strikers with the sort of service in the final third that would give them a shooting chance.
Right at the end of the half the Staggies broke away. Murray did well to cut inside and shoot from a tight angle but Trevor Carson saved.
Dundee threatened at the start of the second half. A neat passing move allowed Owen Beck to send Zach Robinson into the penalty area but his shot was blocked. County then had a dangerous few minutes with fast attacks down the left. They made a hash of trying to finish off the first two moves, but it took a fine tackle by Ricki Lamie to clear in the next attack. Murray went close when Dandha’s free kick glanced off the top o his head with the ball flicking the top of the net on its way into the stand.
Robinson had a chance for the Dee when he got in behind the defence but he couldn’t connect properly with his shot.
The match then reverted to the pattern of the first half. Neither side ever stopped grafting, running and chasing, but the two teams couldn’t find the control or the composure to find the vital opening goal.
Bakayoko came closest for the Dee when he headed over from Beck’s wicked inswinging corner.
Josh Mulligan and Mo Sylla came on for Lyall Cameron and Malachi Boateng and gave the Dark Blues a greater physical presence in the midfield and that proved crucial in the frantic closing minutes. Zak Rudden then replaced Zah Robinson.
County’s best chance of the second half came aftger 85 minutes when substitute Eamonn Brophy shot from 18 yards. Carson saved well but couldn’t hold the ball. James Brown followed in and, under pressure, scooped his shot over the bar.
Towards the end the Staggies charged forward whenever they got the ball. Their attacks were more frantic than dangerous. They tested the Dee defence but the Dark Blues always stood firm. Charlie Reilly came off the bench to replace Amadou Bakayoko as the clock ticked past 90 minutes and he immediately made an impression, giving the County defenders problem by running at them. That eventually proved crucial.
Six minutes of injury time were announced and Dundee went for the win. They had more control than County with their late attacks. Owen Beck almost scored a magnificent goal when he picked up a clearance from his corner. He dribbled into the penalty area, beating three men before his shot was cleared off the line.
At the end of those six added minutes Reilly’s run was stopped by a foul a yard outside the penalty area, in a perfect position for Luke McCowan. The midfielder duly took the kick and it was a beauty. He whipped his shot over the wall and off the post. The rebound cannoned back into the crowded goalmouth, off a defender and Joe SHAUGHNESSY chested the ball into the back of the net.
We then saw memorable scenes with limbs everywhere in the away stand behind the goal. Many fans spilled onto the pitch to celebrate. The added time was over and when the supporters were all ushered back into the stand there was no time to restart the game. The Dark Blues celebrated with the noisy travelling support before heading down the A9 with three precious points.
The defence had a few rocky moments early in the second half, but was solid apart from that and the defenders deserved their clean sheet. The midfield had a decent first hour, but the second half substitutions gave the Dee an edge in that area towards the end. The strikers did not have a great deal to work with but kept working and scrapping reusing to let County build easily from the back.
The Dee have played better football this season, but today they were never prepared to settle for a point and kept battling for the win to the end. That a central defender was up in the penalty area to score the vital goal tells a story. Luke McCowan was always going to shoot rather than chip, but Joe Shaughnessy was on hand in the goalmouth to take advantage if anything happened to break his way.
It wasn’t a classic match and if it had ended 0-0, as seemed likely, it would have been a fair result. However, Dundee reaped the reward for never giving up, for keeping going to the very end, and for finding the moment of high quality from Luke McCowan that led to the winner.
Ross County 3-4-1-2
Laidlaw
Nightingale, Baldwin (c), Leak
Brown (Samuel 88), Randall, Allardice, Purrington
Dhanda (Sheaf 75)
White (Brophy 67), Murray
Unused subs: Munro (gk), Turner, Sims, Loturi, Harmon, Henderson.
Booked: Randall (foul on McCowan).
Dundee FC 3-5-2
Carson
Shaughnessy (c), Lamie, Donnelly
McGhee, Cameron (Mulligan 61), Boateng (Sylla 61), McCowan, Beck
Bakayoko (Reilly 90), Robinson (Rudden 75)
Unused substitutes: Legzdins (gk), Kerr, Tiffoney, Robertson, Howley.
Goal: Shaughnessy (90+7).
Booked: Mulligan (foul on Allardice), Carson (dissent).
Referee: Colin Steven. Assistants: Paul McAvinue, Scott Anderson. Fourth Official: Colin Whyte. VAR: David Dickinson. Assistant VAR: Alan Mulvanny.
Attendance: 4,014 (including 922 happy Dees!).
Report: James Christie.
