The Thistle Archive

Alex Schalk's late penalty extended Partick Thistle run of Premiership games without a win to 11 games. Scott Fox had been replaced with Aaron McCarey after his blunder against Rangers and the Irish goalkeeper was beaten by a low Blair Spittal drive. The goal had come after 23 minutes against the run of play, with summer signing Davis Keillor-Dunn impressing. Thistle looked to have managed the game excellently until Schalk equalised after winning the penalty himself. It was a deserved point that ended County's run of three straight league defeats. The consolation for Thistle was avoiding a ninth straight defeat and moving off the bottom of the table, although they remain three behind their hosts.

County came flying out of the traps with Keillor-Dunn at the centre of most of it. The 19-year-old was making his first start for County and wasted no time in making an impression, testing Tomas Cerny with a shot in the first minute. There then followed a couple of chances from team-mate Craig Curran before Keillor-Dunn was at the fore again. His header was cleared off the line by Danny Devine and then had a shot deflected wide. Spittal had an early shot for Thistle turned wide by McCarey, but better was to come from the former Dundee United midfielder for the travelling fans to savour. Against the run of play, he burst through the County defence before calmly firing past the goalkeeper to put Thistle into what was a surprise lead given the balance of play. County tried to hit back and it was Keillor-Dunn again pulling the strings. This time, he supplied a dangerous cross into the box and there was Thomas Mikkelsen, but the Danish striker went with his foot when a header may have been the better option and the chance was gone.

Into the second-half, a big chance for Mikkelsen, but this time he was denied by a sensational blocking challenge by Devine. Devine had his own chance as he fired a shot wide of the post. The defender claimed he had his shirt pulled in the box, but referee John Beaton gave a shake of the head. Substitute Schalk fired in a low shot that was well saved by Ryan Scully - who had replaced the injured Cerny in the home goal. A great move from County down the left almost fashioned an equaliser. Keillor-Dunn played the ball into the path of Sean Kelly and Schalk failed to connect with a cross when a touch would have almost certainly secured a goal. However, Schalk would get his chance. The Dutch striker felled in the box and a penalty given by the referee. Up stepped Schalk himself to fire past Scully into the bottom left corner with real confidence to level the scores. Ross Draper almost scored a winner for County. His header was arrowing into the top corner, but Scully produced a stunning save to keep it all square.

Ross County manager Jim McIntyre:

I think, on the balance of chances, we created, we definitely had the more threatening chances to go on and score more goals, but unfortunately we couldn't go on and take them. I thought we started the game really well. I was pleased with the way we started. We asked the boys for a fast start. I thought both wide players were causing problems for Thistle. They score from a breakaway throw, which is really frustrating and we switch off and we get done. That just puts that seed of doubt in your minds when you have lost the last three matches. Credit to the players, they stuck at it. We told them to keep believing at half-time and it would come. To a man in the second half, they were excellent. We had to deal with enforced injuries as well, but I thought every substitute that came on really played their part as well.

Partick Thistle manager Alan Archibald:

I thought we had the better chances first-half. I thought we dealt with the onslaught in the first 10 or 15 minutes. We knew that was coming. Once we dealt with that, it opened up a bit and I thought we looked really dangerous on the counter-attack and picked some great areas up. Delighted with the performance. Obviously we were penned in in the second-half, but I thought we rode the storm actually and dealt with their two strikers up to that point - and then we don't deal with an aimless ball into the box. That's the positive - we got a point and we're not sitting on zero points so that's a big positive, but it feels like a defeat because we were leading for so long.

bbc.com

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