Dow reflects on tight finish to Highland derby win

Ross County forward Ryan Dow played an important role in his side's Highland derby win against Inverness but felt the 3-2 victory should have been a lot more clear-cut than the scoreline suggested.

Liam Boyce scored either side of a Carl Tremarco header to give County the edge in the first half.

Martin Woods stretched the lead to 3-1 just after the hour mark but a late counter from Caley Thistle substitute Alex Fisher made for a nervy last few minutes for the home side.

Dow, who joined County from Dundee United in September, was part of an effective three-pronged attack, alongside Boyce and Alex Schalk.

He said: We probably made it a bit hard for ourselves with them scoring in the last few minutes. We were 3-1 up and we could have made it a lot easier for ourselves and enjoyed the last 15 minutes. But they throw everything at you and it is backs to the wall. It was a hard shift but the boys deserved it.''

Dow revealed County were aiming for a place in the top half of the table ahead of the derby.

He added: That was our aim coming into this break - getting into the top six, you can see a bit of distance open up now. If there was another game we would have liked to keep the momentum going but it takes you into the break with a good bit of confidence.''

Despite a 2-0 defeat to Celtic in midweek, Dow admitted the players took a lot of heart from their performance against the runaway league leaders.

He said: The boys put in a great shift at Celtic Park, you come away from there thinking 'did they really cut us open that much?'

We've conceded six and scored none against Celtic this season. Looking at that people would say one team dominated, but we had chances against them up here and at Celtic Park. They are the top team, and after playing like that against them it gave us confidence (against Inverness).''

Dow is also looking forward to playing against his old club Dundee United, who visit Dingwall on January 21 in the fourth round of the Scottish Cup, County's first match back after the break.

He said: I am really looking forward to it. Hopefully we can put in a good performance and progress in the cup. After being put out of the League Cup it would be good to have a Scottish Cup run.''

Caley Thistle manager Richie Foran hopes the enforced break in January will reinvigorate his players.

A 10-match winless run sees them rooted to the foot of the Premiership table.

He said: They need the break. After today they need to go away, get their minds refreshed and come back stronger individuals and find that bit of quality while they're away and bring it back with them.''