Ross Laidlaw saves penalty to help Ross County to draw with St Mirren

Ross Laidlaw was the hero for Ross County after saving a penalty to earn the Staggies a precious 0-0 draw at St Mirren.

A William Hill Premiership encounter low on quality brought little in the way of goalmouth action, until the decision to award the hosts a penalty just after the half-hour mark.

Greg Kiltie’s spot-kick, however, was denied by the legs of the County goalkeeper.

There were opportunities for both sides in the final stages, though neither side could find the cutting edge required to earn victory.

Marcus Fraser flashed a powerful strike just wide of the target as the hosts threatened in the early exchanges.

St Mirren survived a penalty scare in the 21st minute after Jack Grieves’ shot appeared to strike the hand of Alex Gogic. There was no interruption to play however, with Don Robertson not required to consult the VAR monitor.

The Buddies were awarded a penalty after 33 minutes in bizarre circumstances. After a County attack fizzled out, play was stopped for a VAR check to determine whether Richard Taylor had been held inside the box by Elijah Campbell during the previous attack.

This time, the spot-kick was awarded, though Kiltie would fire straight down the middle from 12 yards and Laidlaw kept the ball out.

Don Cowie’s side passed up a glorious opportunity of their own just before the break. Connor Randall did well to find space down the right and his low delivery was met by Jordan White, who blazed over from close-range.

Both teams made a double change at the break in an attempt to breathe some life into their attack.

It was one of the home changes that nearly paid dividends eight minutes after the restart.  A beautifully floated cross by Scott Tanser was met by Jonah Ayunga who saw his header superbly clawed round the post by Laidlaw.

The visitors almost broke the deadlock with their first chance of the second half. The St Mirren defence failed to clear their lines and Randall’s skimming shot crept inches past the post.

County were defending in numbers but looking increasingly dangerous when they attempted to hit on the counter.

In the 77th minute, a long ball over the top sent Ronan Hale clear on goal, and it would take a fingertip save by Ellery Balcombe to prevent the ball finding the bottom corner.

With the game looking set to end in stalemate, Hale spun in the box before having his powerful effort well blocked by Taylor.

Mikael Mandron spurned the final chance for Stephen Robinson’s men when he found himself unmarked inside the box but sent his attempt high and wide.

There was a moment of panic in added time when the Staggies were awarded a free-kick in a dangerous position following a poor challenge on White by Taylor.

Hale’s attempt from the resulting kick was blocked, and White suffered the same fate when the ball broke his way.