Allan Johnston bemoans a missed opportunity as Dunfermline lose to Ross County

Dunfermline manager Allan Johnston felt his side deserved more after their William Hill Scottish Cup run was ended by a 1-0 defeat to Ross County in the fourth-round replay at Global Energy Stadium.

County substitute Raffaele De Vita, who came on at the start of the second half, hit the winner in the 70th minute and set up a meeting with either Linlithgow Rose or Forfar in the next round for the Premiership side.

But Johnston believes it is his League One leaders that should be planning for the next stage.

He said: I think over the two legs we were the team that deserved to go through. We were definitely on the front foot there. The only criticism I could maybe have is we never took our chances again.

But we showed our quality and kept on going right to the end. We pushed Ross County hard. The boys showed their quality by the way they passed the ball and dominated it for large parts of the game. We looked the Premiership team tonight.''

County boss Jim McIntyre was relieved to be in the next round.

He said: We played a bit better than we did on Saturday. (We) didn't leave as many spaces down the side, that was a pleasing aspect.

They've got good players, they have players who have played at a higher level for a reason. In bringing that type of performance it was no surprise to us.

When a team is on a run like Dunfermline are, you just need to look at the number of goals they've scored, they are a confident bunch. That goes a long way when you fancy your chances in any game.''

McIntyre added on the draw: We're delighted we've managed to get a home draw.

Our form in Dingwall has been excellent, and it is a chance for us to progress. But we've just seen how tricky the tie tonight has been so we will take nothing for granted.

We will do our homework properly and look forward to the game.''

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