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Traps laid but weaknesses to exploit - words, photos and video breakdown of Staggies

They don’t tinker with much. And, even after a pretty awful Scottish Cup result at the weekend, it’s difficult to imagine Ross County boss Don Cowie throwing all of his best-laid plans into the nearest bin.

The Staggies welcome Hibs to the Highlands on Saturday and, to state the obvious, Dingwall is nobody’s idea of an ideal destination for a January day out. It’s certainly a venue that has offered little in the way of joy to those of a Hibees persuasion in recent seasons.

As David Gray’s men pursue their first away win over County since 2022, then, what should away fans expect to see, apart from the inside of their snoods? Well, Cowie’s team are not without some fairly obvious issues.

Ranked dead last in goals scored per game, they’re also second bottom of the Scottish Premiership pile when it comes to goals conceded per match; a rate of almost two per game must be a concern to all involved. And this is a team set up to defend.

Favouring a 3-5-1-1 that occasionally morphs into a 5-3-2/5-4-1 out of possession, County are nobody’s idea of swashbuckling swagger merchants. Nor are they likely to press anyone to the point of exhaustion.

In an attacking sense, they’re all about getting the ball forward and pushing players into supporting positions. Photo 1 shows how they tried to swarm around the ball to get at Celtic in their recent 4-1 home loss to the champions.

Defensively, their fallback position is to be compact and force opponents wide. This means they can be pushed back into an odd-but-effective shape with a back five and a midfield diamond in front (see Photo 2, from the away win over Aberdeen at the start of this month).

A good reference point for this weekend’s game, obviously, is the last meeting between the teams. As you can see from Photo 3, there have been a few personnel changes since last month’s 3-1 win for Hibs at Easter Road – but a lot of the fundamentals remain the same.

Photo 3 - how they lined up last time | Wyscout

On that occasion, County looked to squeeze Hibs into uncomfortable areas out wide – Photo 4 – and prevent their midfielders getting on the ball. It worked, to a degree.

They key this weekend, just as it has been in so many situations of late, will be getting Nectar Triantis on the ball with just enough time and space to pull the trigger. If a bit of forward movement – see Photo 5 – also pulls defenders out of shape and creates space for a runner, all the better.

Give Triantis time room to operate and, as County know to their cost, he’s got the ability to break the lines. Photo 6 shows him doing just that in the lead-up to Hibs scoring against the Staggies.

The snatch-and-grab pursuit of three Scottish Premiership points from the long trek up the A9 and across the Kessock Bridge, then, is built on some familiar basics. Find a way to break down the County block (see Photo 7). Move the ball to move the opposition. Do the hard stuff diligently. And get your playmakers on the ball.

With the pace of Martin Boyle and the prospect of both Kieron Bowie and Mykola Kuharevich bringing something to the attack, this isn’t just a winnable game for Hibs. It’s a contest they SHOULD dominate in all the key areas. Well, that’ll be the plan, anyway.

Revealed: How Hibs can crack the County code - Tactics Zone insight on weekend opponents