Aberdeen 3-0 Ross County (original) (raw)
Aberdeen crushed Ross County with a fine display of attacking football, leaving the Staggies still searching for their first point of the season.
Adam Rooney and David Goodwillie scored first-half goals but a 2-0 lead at the break did not fully reflect the Dons' dominance.
Peter Pawlett netted the third and the home side should have added to their tally later in the game.
Rocco Quinn had County's best chances but his finishing was woeful.
With the Staggies struggling, Dons boss Derek McInnes set his side out to go for the jugular, unleashing two strikers in Goodwillie and Rooney on the Highlanders.
And the Dons were on the front foot straight away, with Niall McGinn having a goal ruled out for offside within the first few minutes.
Seconds later, the hosts sliced through the Staggies back line again. Goodwillie played a cracking pass to McGinn in space on the right and his low delivery was perfect for Rooney, but Darren Barr produced a great challenge to bundle the effort past a post.
Image source, SNS
Image caption,
Adam Rooney meets Niall McGinn's corner to nod the ball past Mark Brown for the opening goal
County should have taken the lead with their first sight of goal but, after Michael Gardyne sent Quinn one-on-one with goalkeeper Jamie Langfield, the Staggies forward got his finish horribly wrong.
If the visiting fans thought that chance would spark a resurgence, their hopes were soon dashed as the Dons took the lead their play deserved.
McGinn's corner was met perfectly by Rooney and his powerful header flew into the net.
Goodwillie then had an effort saved by Brown before the former Dundee United striker doubled the Pittodrie side's lead thanks to some sloppy defending by the Staggies.
The home side won a free kick and the entire County defence switched off as McGinn lofted a ball into the box and Goodwillie ran through unchallenged to nod home.
In the minutes leading up to half time, the Dons picked up a double booking in bizarre circumstances, with Willo Flood and Ryan Jack both being yellow carded after becoming involved in an altercation with each other.
Image source, SNS
Image caption,
Aberdeen's Goodwillie hits a post after rounding County goalkeeper Brown
The Dons started the second half as they did the first and made it 3-0 within minutes of the whistle. Flood broke on the right and his delivery was dummied by Rooney, allowing Pawlett to net with the help of a deflection.
There was a slight worry for home boss McInnes as McGinn went off holding a hamstring, with Jeffrey Monakana on in his place.
Visiting keeper Brown then made a stunning stop to deny Pawlett and Langfield repeated that feat at the other end with a decent save from Quinn's shot, but the County man really should have scored after finding himself in space in the box.
A fourth Dons goal looked certain seconds later when Goodwillie latched on to Monakana's through-ball and rounded Brown, but with the goal at his mercy he somehow hit the post.
The home side's tempo dropped as the clock ticked down but the Staggies were unable to find a consolation goal.
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