Football Season Guide

What looked to be a supremely impressive season for Ross County fizzed out as they finished in sixth-place last term. County had promised so much with their dazzling early-season displays, and looked a certainty for Europe when they were as high as third before Christmas, but a poor showing post-split cost them their chances of European football. No matter, they obtained their primary goal of securing a top-six place, and that has given them something to build upon. County are no longer recognised as a small club in with the big boys, they are a legitimate threat to the European positions, and manager Jim McIntyre has made some big signings to show their intent early on. Kenny van der Weg, Christopher Routis, and James McEverley have all been brought in to bolster their defensive ranks and ensure that the cheap goals they lost towards the end of last season don't spring up again at the start of this one. It's been a shaky start for the new defence however, with County losing games to Raith Rovers and Alloa Athletic in the League Cup, shipping four goals in the process and subsequently bowing out of the competition they won just four months ago. McIntyre will be hoping that's just a side-effect of the new defence settling in together. One key area that has taken a blow however is the centre of midfield, and McIntyre will have to find a quick replacement for the outgoing Jackson Irvine, who signed for Burton Albion and takes his dynamism with him. With Stewart Murdoch also out the door to Dundee United, County look too light in the middle of the park. It's an area McIntyre will no doubt act upon, but there is certainly still work to be done if County want to maintain the positive image they've created of the club in the last couple of years.