Stuart Kettlewell hailed Ross County’s travelling support at East Kilbride as one of the best he has ever seen in his time with the Staggies.

A 2-1 win, courtesy of goals from Brian Graham and Kieran Phillips, was watched in person by 300 travelling fans in East Kilbride, who were in good voice throughout the afternoon.

It may not have been free-scoring County’s most fluid display of the season so far, but Kettlewell felt it was a brilliant example of how to “win ugly”.

The club’s supporters responded in kind, backing their team the whole way and being rewarded with three more points for their effort.

“It’s a win that really pleases me, because I thought it would be a difficult test,” Kettlewell told club media.

“We were playing against a team that are so open and expansive, and take a lot of risks, so that requires you to run and have energy and intensity to be successful.

“Off the back of Airdrie and Hamilton, there could have been a bit of fear that if we didn’t get that right, we wouldn’t get our rewards. We weren’t at our best today, but we grafted and ground one out.

“Our task was to get the victory by hook or by crook, because we’re in the business of winning games of football. To do that, we needed to have real unity in our play, and even though we weren’t at our best you could still see that we were glued together as a team.

“There are absolutely no negatives coming away from this one. Sometimes you have to put your body on the line and win ugly, it won’t always be the eye-catching football we have seen so far this season, but you have to meet the demands of the week. The players didn’t let us down, and it was a brilliant three points.

“Everybody knows I’ve been involved in a lot of games as a player and a coach at this club, hundreds upon hundreds, and the fans today were up there for me.

“I was a little surprised, and I shouldn’t be. The travelling supporters were incredible, and when we’ve won 2-1 and done our job, for every one of them to applaud the players off the pitch gives you a nice, warm feeling. I thought they were fantastic today.”

County fans also got their first look at Nick Suman, who made his first start for the Staggies since joining on loan from Aberdeen after Brad Foster suffered a finger injury in training late in the week.

“We were really disappointed for Brad, but Nick latched on to his opportunity,” Kettlewell added.

“We had no hesitation from us at all about throwing him in. We are operating with two really good goalkeepers, and an exceptional prospect in Jayden Reid too.

“We are in a healthy position there, and Nick showed that today. His composure was great, and he made decisions early.

“He made one save up to his left-hand side, and I thought he was a picture of confidence. That helps us, and gives us an assurance as a team.”