Steven Ferguson insists it should come as no surprise that a club of Ross County’s modest size is battling for Premiership survival.
The Staggies showed again on Saturday the grit and character needed to rescue a point in the dying seconds at home to St Johnstone.
In December, they struck late to beat Kilmarnock and came from behind to beat Hibs 2-1 in Dingwall. In November, an 88th minute goal earned a 2-2 draw with Hamilton, while the month before a last-gasp Joe Chalmers finish completed a two-goal comeback at Easter Road.
The struggle for points on the road has been well-documented but despite some outlandish claims about club spending, it is understood the Staggies are operating on a reduced budget from last season in the Championship.
Co-manager Ferguson will not discuss finances but stressed: “We know the position we’re in. There’s no surprise to it. A lot has been made about it and the goals we concede, but it is no different to what we thought it would be.
“I’ve said since the start of the season that this is what it would be like for us in the Premiership. We need to deal with it and make sure we do pick up enough points to stay in the league.
“There’s another tough couple of away games coming up with Aberdeen and Motherwell. We need to prepare the best we can and take the positives out of Saturday – and there was enough for us to work on.
“We need to eradicate and try to learn from mistakes we’re making, to see if we can piece it all together.
“The fact we kept going until the 94th minute against Saints is something we’re proud of. There is always that belief we can get something out of the game.”
Aberdeen, third in the league, have lost just four of 13 games at Pittodrie this season, including twice to Celtic, while beating County home and away.
Ferguson said: “Aberdeen are one of the biggest clubs in the country. We’re going there under no illusions that we’re very much the small fish and we need to make sure we stand up to Aberdeen’s threat and give them something to think about also.”
Coll Donaldson (cheekbone) is likely to miss out.
