Maclean proves extra special as ten-man Motherwell seal place in cup quarter-finals

0 Ross County’s Andrew Davies slides in to tackle Chris Cadden.

ROSS COUNTY

Schalk 65, Curran 14

MOTHERWELL

Bigirimana 50, Cadden 93, Maclean 112 Young Ross Maclean’s icycalm finish in extra-time gave ten-man Motherwell a place in the Betfred Cup last eight.

The 20-year-old from Bellshill tore through to grab the Steelmen’s third of a dramatic evening in Dingwall.

On a night of ragged, tireless football, County, the 2016 winners, foundered despite Charles Dunne’s sending off and after twice clawing their way back into the match.

Ross Draper’s six-figure flit across the Kessock Bridge to join Ross County, announced just a couple of hours before kick-off, dominated prematch chatter among the home support.

The Caley Thistle stalwart of five years joined a sizeable list of players to have served on both sides of the Highland divide,butthedealwasinfused with greater significance than most. The Dingwall club, now a league above Inverness for the very first time, have for many years been accustomed to having their best players pinched by the neighbours.

The totemic capture of Scottish Cup-winner Draper, who wore the Inverness captain’s armband as recently as Saturday, underscored the power-shift now at play between the clubs.

County had failed to capture the 28-year-old Englishman in three previous five-figure bids but Draper’s transfer request forced Caley Thistle’s hand.

Draper passed a medical before the game to finalise the switch but was cup-tied in any case.

Motherwell settled first. Young Chris Cadden, lively and in the thick of it from the off, sent in a decent cross from the right but Craig Tanner’s