Lots of travelling fans arrived early and the Highland town resembled some of our European venues on match days with shirt sleeved tourists bedecked in ‘Well shirts showing off the colours. A fair number sported the new away strip and the splash of blue made a contrast to the predominant claret and amber.
There was a friendly welcome at the ground. Everyone involved with the Staggies seemed delighted to see the arrival of an SPL team and our fans were welcomed by friendly faces. Many words have been written about the new wave of cooperation and respect that has spread through the game in the last few months and if today gave a glimpse of the rest of the season then travelling to away games will be a pleasure.
It was a pity that the game produced no goals. Although the action seemed to swing from end to end there was no clear cut chance for either side. Defences were on top and our hopes were mostly restricted to long range efforts. County’s best opportunities came for set pieces but we withstood the threat from their big players.
This fixture was a banana skin in waiting. An away trip to an unfamiliar pitch to face the team that rompted away with the First Division championship and boasting a 34 game unbeaten run was frought with danger. In that light a point without conceding a goal might not be a bad result.
The downside came with the news that both Humphrey and Daley may have damaged hamstrings. Our opening line up against Panathinaikos may look a little unusual.