Ross County v Peterhead and the three opponents they share
A preview of Ross County against Peterhead in League One, built around the clubs both have faced in the past month and what those results say about Saturday.
By Barrie Moran,
The neatest way into this one is through the teams Ross County and Peterhead have both played recently. There are three of them, and the comparison does the visitors no favours.
Three shared opponents
- Montrose: Ross County won 5-0 there on 10 October. Peterhead lost 3-0 at the same ground a fortnight later.
- Queen of the South: Ross County won 7-1 away on 17 October. Peterhead lost 1-0 at home to them on 10 October.
- Hamilton Academical: Ross County drew 1-1 at home on 27 October. Peterhead lost 2-1 away on 3 October.
Across those three, County scored 13 and conceded 2. Peterhead scored 1 and conceded 6. Different dates and different venues mean it is not a perfect measuring stick, but when one side finishes eleven goals to the good against the same opposition and the other finishes five to the bad, the direction of travel is not in much doubt.
Ross County's run
County are unbeaten in five: W D W W W, with 19 scored, 3 conceded and two clean sheets. That is a formidable return, though it is worth showing where the goals came from. Sixteen of the 19 arrived in three matches between 10 and 24 October: 5-0 at Montrose, 7-1 at Queen of the South and 4-0 at home to Airdrieonians.
The two since have been more ordinary. A 1-1 draw at home to Hamilton, then a 2-1 win at East Kilbride last weekend. Still unbeaten, still winning, but three goals in two games rather than sixteen in three. I would call that a pause rather than a slowdown, but it is the one thread in their record worth watching.
Peterhead home and away
Peterhead's last five read W L W L L, with 5 scored and 7 conceded. The split by venue is the detail that matters. Both wins came at home: 2-0 against Cove Rangers and 2-1 against Alloa Athletic last Saturday. Their two away trips in that run produced two defeats, one goal scored and five conceded.
They have not scored more than twice in any of those five matches, and they are on the road on Saturday against the most prolific side in this sequence of results.
The previous meeting
The only recent meeting was on 1 August, when Ross County won 1-0 at Peterhead. That is a single match, played at the other end of the country, so it is a thin record to lean on. What it does show is that Peterhead have kept County to one goal before, and that County did not need more than that.
The verdict
I expect a Ross County win, and I would not be surprised if it came by more than a single goal. Their form is stronger, they are at home, and the shared results suggest a real gap between the sides rather than a quirk of the fixture list.
Two things would change my mind. If County's last two outings turn out to be the start of a dip rather than a breather, the margin narrows. And if Peterhead can take the defensive solidity they showed against Cove and Alloa on the road for the first time in this run, August's 1-0 is a reminder that a tight afternoon is possible. On what has happened so far, neither looks the likelier story.