Boyd again the difference for Killie as County boss McIntyre shrugs off drop-zone chat
KRIS BOYD sent Ross County crashing to their fourth consecutive home defeat in the Premiership since the turn of the year with an 85th-minute winner. But manager Jim McIntyre refused to press the panic button ahead of Saturday’s biggest Highland derby for years.
The Staggies are now just four points better off than bottom side Inverness Caledonian Thistle after only one win in their last eight fixtures.
But McIntyre said: ‘I’d be panicking if we weren’t creating anything and looking as if we weren’t in games, but we certainly are and we’ve shown that.
‘We played very well at times and created plenty, also limiting Kilmarnock to very little, but just couldn’t get the goals our play deserved. Equally, though, we’ve got to give ourselves a helping hand and make sure we maintain our concentration levels for 90 minutes.’
Kilmarnock crept to within two points of a topsix place while County slipped closer to becoming embroiled in the fight for Premiership survival as they prepare for a crucial showdown at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium.
Yet had the home side made more of their chances they would have secured their first home league win since beating their closest rivals on December 31 with goals to spare.
Alex Schalk had several chances to score but the Dutchman lacked the necessary cutting edge to punish the opposition.
While the first half was a largely dire spectacle, mercifully the second was altogether more watchable from the moment Conor Sammon gave Kilmarnock the lead after two minutes of the restart. Boyd turned provider for his strike partner and Sammon duly beat Aaron McCarey from around 12 yards.
The County players were stung into an immediate response and Freddie Woodman had to produce a save of quality to prevent Chris Routis from equalising. But Woodman could do nothing to also deny Liam Boyce in the 58th minute when the striker made himself available to accept
a delivery from Craig Curran. After taking a split second to compose himself, Boyce drilled a fierce shot into the bottom-left corner of the net from 20 yards. Kenny van der Weg’s was denied by the woodwork, but when County’s defenders failed to recognise the threat posed by Boyd, they were punished. He swooped to take advantage of an attempted clearance by Paul Quinn in the 85th minute, toe-poking the ball past McCarey from close range.
Kilmarnock caretaker boss Lee McCulloch described his team’s triumph as a ‘fantastic win’ and waxed lyrical about his scoring sensation Boyd.
He said: ‘His movement is fantastic, as is his finishing, and he’s a credit to the club, the way all the young players look up to him.’