Ross County came back from behind for the first time this season as they prevailed 2-1 over ten men Kilmarnock in Dingwall this afternoon.

Despite going in front from Corey Ndaba’s fine strike, Killie were reduced to ten men and punished with goals from Jordan Wright and a Joe Wright own goal secured County all three points.

County kicked off for what was a torrid affair through the first thirty minutes. Neither side was able to create many chances as both teams struggled to control the midfield. Danny Armstrong and Matt Kennedy were bright sparks for the visitors as they looked to get down the sides of the County backline. They offered Watkins and Vassell plenty of balls into the box, but Laidlaw would claim them all comfortably.

The game then burst into life midway through the first half as Killie began to step it up a gear. They had a dangerous cross whipped in by Armstrong and was met with Marley Watkins, but, leaning back, he was unable to connect properly, and his effort went wide of the post.

It was then the host’s turn to try their luck at goal. Noah Chilvers picked up the ball just to the left of the Killie box. His effort was dipping towards goal, but Ross McCrorie made a fantastic diving save to keep the game level.

Stuart Findlay would almost score the goal of his life moments later, he picked the ball up midway into the County half and drove forward, skipping past three County defenders. A 1-2 on the edge of the box was played back to him. He’d then cut onto his right foot and shot well into the left-hand corner, but Ross Laidlaw was down with a big left hand to deny him the glory.

The Killie pressure finally told, however, as on the 39-minute mark, a throw-in wasn’t dealt with by the Staggies’ defence. Corey Ndaba made a darting run to the loose ball and hit a sweetly struck shot low and hard into the bottom corner to give the visitors the lead.

County almost had the equaliser seconds before the half-time whistle; Chilvers again found himself 20 yards from goal; his strike was driven low, but it was straight at McCrorie, who collected it to put Kilmarnock ahead at the break.

The second half looked like the pattern of the game would be very much the same as the first, with Kilmarnock looking the sharper of the two. That would all change, though, as just on the hour mark, the visitors would be reduced to ten men after Liam Donnelly picked up to quick yellows. Already in the book for kicking the ball away, he then committed a cynical foul less than ten minutes later, giving Matthew MacDermid no option but to dismiss the midfielder.

The Staggies immediately punished Killie with a free kick. Chilver’s ball into the area was met with an Akil Wright shot being blocked, but Jordan Wright was on hand to fire it into the goal to draw County level.

The red card had well and truly turned the game on its head, and County were firmly in the ascendancy now. Manager Don Cowie rolled the dice and made the attacking change, bringing on Alex Samuel in place of defender Ryan Leak as County pushed for the winner.

Derek McInnes had attempted to shore things up, making numerous defensive changes, including taking off captain Kyle Vassell as Killie tried to withstand the County pressure. It was to no avail, though, as County deservedly took the lead with ten minutes from time. A deep corner from the left side deflected off the thigh of Joe Wright and skipped off the surface into the goal, leaving McCrorie with no chance.

Kilmarnock did bring on Bruce Anderson to chase an equaliser in the closing minutes, but County stood firm to secure their first win since September. A late red card almost compounded the misery onto McInnes, but the VAR overturned it, deeming Joe Wright’s foul only worthy of a yellow.

Don Cowie was full of praise for his side’s reaction to going behind:

“It was about being calm at half-time and then looking to create a bit more of a threat.”

“The sending off has a big bearing on it, but we earned the sending off through Chilvers showing that bravery and conviction.”

When questioned on how important Countys home form is, he told SPFL News Now:

“It is important in giving you that platform and base to work from, but you can’t be reliant on it, and you need those away points, and it is something we are striving to do.”

Speaking to the media after the game, Derek McInnes was left feeling frustrated with a combination of his side and the decisions that went against them:

“I thought in the main we dealt with the directness of Wright and Hale buzzing about him.”

“But we lose the game through a combination of our own efforts and a couple of harsh decisions on us have had an impact on the game. And we’re scratching our head on how we’ve managed to lose a game where we’ve been so dominant.”

He added: “The only game we’ve had when we’ve not been down to ten men was the result at St Mirren. So, I do think that frustration is partly caused by ourselves.”

Ross County are back at home on Wednesday as they entertain Hibernian, whilst Kilmarnock goes to Tynecastle to face Hearts.