Ross County co-manager Steven Ferguson insists the Staggies were always planning to play today’s Premiership fixture against Livingston despite their squad being hit by a norovirus outbreak.
County were forced to cancel training on Thursday after 10 players reported sick, leaving only eight who were fit to train.
The outbreak prompted fears the Staggies could request a postponement of today’s fixture, however Ferguson insists the Staggies are content to play the game after a number of players reported an improvement in their condition yesterday.
Ferguson confirmed the Staggies did not seek a postponement at any stage, and he said: “There’s been a slight improvement and the game will go ahead. We’re still struggling, but we’ve never asked for the game to be called off. I’d like to make that clear.
“We just said we would monitor the situation. We knew, if it worsened, we would have a problem and we would have had to have another look at it.
“It hasn’t worsened, it’s got marginally better, although we’re still short and still have a good number of boys who stayed away from the football club yesterday.
“That was what we expected. We were always preparing to play the game.”
Although a number of players remain unwell, Ferguson is encouraged by the options at his disposal for the trip to West Lothian.
He added: “The good thing is a lot of the players who were showing quite severe symptoms on Thursday are better. There were no new cases yesterday on top of the 10 we were dealing with on Thursday.
“The boys who got it first are feeling a lot better, although there are guys who picked it up later in the week that are still struggling.
“We’re still managing the situation, really. The medical staff deserve huge credit for quickly getting on top of the situation and nipping it in the bud.
“I’m hopeful we’ll be absolutely fine for the match, but obviously we’re going to have a lot of changes and we’re going to have to get a shape based on the players we’ve got.”
Midfielder Iain Vigurs could come into contention after playing 90 minutes of the reserves’ 1-1 draw with Hamilton Accies on Tuesday, following a three-month absence with a foot injury.
Although Vigurs initially struggled with the virus, he is among the players to have shown a marked improvement, with Ferguson adding: “Iain’s not fit, but he’s coming back and if he’s feeling a bit better after the illness than somebody else, he’ll possibly come into our thoughts.
“We will have some young kids involved, but they might not start the game. They will probably be on the bench.”
