Chad Blogpost 3

http://www.chad.co.uk/sport/derby-county/andy-buckley-taylor-s-derby-county-blog-the-missing-ingredients-1-5447972 click the above link for the latest Blogpost for the Mansfield Chad.

Watford 2-1 Derby

Derby arrived at Vicarage road with more injury problems. Freeman is out for 3-4 weeks and rather than play rookie defenders Valentin Gjokaj and Jamie Hanson, Nigel Clough named Ben Davies at Right Back after he did a good job covering when called upon to on Tuesday night.

Jake Buxton returned from I jury, but wasn't risked as a starter and loanee Chris Martin was named amongst the Derby substitutes.

Watford had the better of the first half and despite squandering a few early chances they always looked dangerous whilst in the Rams penalty area.

Vydra put the Hornets ahead in the 35th minute through Vydra and Abdi also went close a few minutes later.

The introduction of Chris Martin at Half time in place of Conor Sammon did give Derby a better balanced attack. Mason Bennett also seemed to thrive in an attacking role down the right.

Derby were far better in the second half, but Watford extended their lead after an Abdi corner found Ekstrand who delivered from twelve yards and yet againDerby's defence showed the frailties from set plays.

Derby there on were the better side for the remainder of the game and pulled a goal back after Keogh was fouled in the box and Jamie Ward converting the resulting penalty after 73 minutes.

Despite upping the pace, Derby were to return home from Vicarage Round pointless.

Next up is Crystal Palace at home on Friday.


Derby County: Legzdins; Davies, Keogh, Brayford, Hoganson (Buxton 46); Coutts, Hendrick, Bryson, Jacobs (Martin 46); Ward, Sammon (Bennett 72). Subs Not Used: Fielding, Gjokaj, Doyle, Hanson.

Watford: Almunia (Bond 45), Doyley, Vydra (Deeney 87 ), Abdi, Cassetti, Nosworthy, Geijo (Hogg 75), Battocchio, Chalobah, Ekstrand. Subs Not Used: Yeates, Forsyth, Murray, Forestieri.

Man of the match - Vydra

Attendance: 14,425 (929 Visiting Supporters).

When Shackleton took the Biscuits

The latest Chad blog is now online.

http://www.chad.co.uk/sport/derby-county/andy-buckley-taylor-s-derby-county-blog-when-shackleton-took-the-biscuits-1-5423219

Derby 1-1 Bolton

Another frustrating night for the Rams saw them again have to share the spoils with a visiting side.

Manager Nigel Clough already with defensive injuries hitting the squad, saw Keiron Freeman injured in the 22nd minute after a foul by David Ngog. The young right back struggled on for a few minutes before being replaced by Ben Davies.

Bolton did actually have the first real shot of the game when Ngog shot from twenty yards, but Legzdins comfortably saved.

The Game as usual saw Derby dominate possession without having the quality in the final third of the field to take advantage of it. Sammon although drawing a blank again, did on a couple of occasions catch a defender in play and rob them of the ball.

The first half looked liked remaining goalless until in the second minute of added time, when Spearing's free kick hit the net via a slight deflection off Keogh.

Such a disappointing end to the half as it was Derby who had the better play and chances up to that point.

It was Derby who were quicker out of the blocks in the second half, but try as they might, they had trouble breaking through the Bolton defence. Sammon and later on Robinson both saw decent attempts foiled by Bogdan.

It was in the 82nd minute that Jacobs hit a cross for Ward to head in his tenth goal of the season and put the Rams on level terms.

Derby piled on the pressure in search of a winner, but the game remained level to end another frustrating match.

Derby go on the road to Watford on Saturday. Not an easy task with a full squad and now made even more difficult by the increasing number of players on the injury list. Freeman is expected to be out for 3-4 weeks.


Derby County: Legzdins; Freeman (Davies 29), Keogh, Brayford, Hoganson; Coutts (Robinson 74), Hendrick, Bryson, Jacobs; Sammon, Ward. Subs Not Used: Fielding, Bennett, Hanson, Doyle, Gjokaj.

Bolton Wanderers: Bogdan; Mears, Knight, Dawson, Ricketts; Spearing, Pratley, Chung-Yong, Eagles (M. Davies 85) ; Ngog (K. Davies 65), C Davies (Sordell 74). Subs Not Used: Lonergan, Holden, Wheater, De Ridder.

Man of the match - John Brayford

Attendance: 22,145 (774 Visiting Supporters).

Derby 0-0 Wolves

An uneventful, dire boring game that must go down as one of the worst at Pride Park this season ended in stalemate between the Rams and Wolves.

Nigel Clough was unable to ring in a Left Back in on loan to cover for Gareth Roberts who started a three game suspension following his red card at Hull. Michael Hoganson got the call up to deputise for Roberts and put in a fine performance on his full debut.

With Mark O'Brien and Jake Buxton both ruled out, John Brayford was moved in the middle of the defence with Keiron Freeman starting at Right Back.

Visiting manager Dean Saunders received a great welcome from Rams fans who still talk about his days when he led the Derby attack. Spanish midfielder Inigo Idiakez was also welcomed as a special guest for the day.

Right from kick off to the final whistle the game lacked attacking plays and excitement. Despite Ward and Sammon working hard the Derby attack just couldn't crack the Wolves defence.
the visitors produced very little too apart from an effort by O'Hara that Legzdins had no trouble dealing with.

The few positives from the game was the form of youngsters Hoganson and Freeman, plus Sammon again putting in a real shift up front.

Bolton visit Pride Park in Tuesday and should provide a more threatening attack. Derby will have to be on their toes in order to get something out of the game.

Derby County: Legzdins; Freeman, Keogh, Brayford, Hoganson; Coutts, Hendrick, Hughes (Jacobs 63), Bryson; Ward, Sammon. Subs Not Used: Fielding, Doyle, Robinson, Davies, Bennett, Gjokaj.

Wolverhampton Wanderers: Ikeme; Foley, Batth, Gorkss, Ward; Doyle (Ebanks-Blake 70), Edwards (Peszko 89), Henry, O’Hara (Davis 74); Sigurdason, Sako. Subs Not Used: De Vries, Berra, Doherty, Cassidy.

Man of the match - Keiron Freeman

Attendance - 23,036, no away attendance given.

Chad Blog

http://www.chad.co.uk/sport/derby-county/andy-buckley-taylor-s-derby-county-blog-plan-for-the-future-not-just-today-1-5411563

My first blog post for the Mansfield Chad.

Welcome Back Dean!

Tomorrow we welcome Dean Saunders and his Wolves side to Pride Park.

Dean was a formidable striker during his playing days. Starting at Swansea, including a loan spell at Cardiff, he moved on to Brighton and the Oxford.

It was whilst at Oxford that he really came to the attention of the bigger clubs. He moved to Derby in a million pound move that left Mark Lawrenson so incensed that he quit as Oxfords manager.

Whilst at Derby he was part of a successful strike partnership with Paul Goddard. Never failing to deliver, Saunders was a great striker who always had you on the edge of your seat.

Liverpool were the club Dean joined following Derby's relegation and he went on to Aston Villa, Galatasaray, Nottingham Forest, Sheffield United, Benfica and Bradford.

He cut his managerial teeth at Wrexham and then moved on to Doncaster before arriving at Molineux.

I'm sure Rams fans will give Dean a great reception tomorrow.

Future Blogs!

From this week my blogs will be appearing on the Mansfield Chad website.

Links to each blogpost will be posted on here.

There will however, be separate blogposts on this site.

Hull 2-1 Derby

A very dull affair on a cold miserable night in Hull saw Derby again return home without a point on their travels.

Playing with only one recognised centre half, The Rams held out for the first half without conceding a goal. The play was dull, uneventful and extremely boring. Neither goalkeeper were tested in the opening forty five minutes either.

A plus for the Rams was Jeff Hendrick, again looking the part in midfield. The return to form of the Irish youngster has been recognised by not only Derby, but also by Premier League scouts who are reported to be watching him.

Hull didn't need to wait long after the restart to open the scoring. A Brady cross found substitute Gedo who made no mistake in finding the net with his first touch of the game.

A 1-0 snoozefest looked likely until Jamie Ward hit his ninth goal of the season after 84 minutes. Hendrick provided the ball for Ward to level things up.

Fans have every right to hope that their team can hold on to a result so late in the game, but yet again Derby blew it! With three minutes remaining on the clock, Elmohamady headed in a Brady corner from six yards.

Not a great performance, a draw may have been a fair result, Derby have time and time again blown points in the dying minutes of a game.

The defence looks very suspect at Left Back with Gareth Roberts not recapturing the form of last season and the club are struggling to find a good partner for Richard Keogh in the middle. Buxton and O'Brien have struggled with injuries and Nigel Clough doesn't appear to be ready to introduce Valentin Gorkaj to the first team.

A home fixture with Wolves on Saturday is next on the agenda.

Derby County: Legzdins; Freeman (Robinson 80), Keogh, Brayford, Roberts; Coutts (Buxton 85), Hendrick, Hughes, Bryson; Sammon (Jacobs 73), Ward. Subs not used: Fielding, Hoganson, Davies, Gjokaj.

Hull City: Stockdale; Elmohamady, Chester, Hobbs, McShane, Brady; Evans (Rosenior 90), Quinn, Meyler; Koren (Gedo 46); Simpson (Proschwitz 46). Subs not used: Jakupovic, Cairney, Olofinjana, Fathi.

Man of the match - Robbie Brady

Attendance: 15,677 (approx 350-400 away fans)

The Plan!

Below is a piece I've done on football club finances. Derby are compared with our near rivals, Nottingham Forest as I originally wrote it for their Garibaldi Gazette Website. Keep an eye on that site as a full article looking at several clubs is currently being written for it.

The blog below is a few weeks old, so excuse the quick edit to include the appointment of Billy Davies as Forest's new manager.

As a fan of Derby for over 43 years, it often riles me that younger fans are complaining that we aren't paying out high fees for players.

Twice we have stared at a real possibility of going out of business due to massive debts! The last time was during the tenure of the trio of Jeremy Keith, Murdo Mackay and Andrew Mackenzie. This trio referred to as 'The Three Amigos' by the fans, bought the club for a pound each.

They were described on their appointment as 'Business Doctors'. Well Doctors are supposed to make things better. This trio accumulated debt after debt! George Burley the then manager worked miracles with no money getting the team into the play-offs. This down to him having a scouting network that came up with free transfers such as Grzegorz Rasiak and Inigo Idiakez.

A season later Burley had, had enough. He left to be replaced by an inexperienced Phil Brown. With no money he struggled. Before he was fired, the squad was reduced to one striker in the shape of veteran Paul Peschisolido. Rasiak had been sold at a giveaway fee during the transfer window.

It was inevitable that the club would either have to be rescued or would once again face oblivion.

The Three Amigos in their wisdom then decided to try and get the now infamous SISU on board in order to retain control of the club. Thankfully former director Peter Gadsby came to the rescue and with a consortium of local business people, applied the kiss of life. Debts were renegotiated and the clubs fans looked forward to a new dawn.

Gadsby and his colleagues appointed Billy Davies as manager and expected to reach the premier league within a few seasons. They did it in one and the rest is history. With little money to spend they were quite frankly a disaster in the top tier.

Billy Davies constantly complained about the lack of funding. He did however manage to waste the cash he was given. £6m for the pair Robert Earnshaw and Claude Davis. Spending I suspect was still over budget as the club still had outstanding debts and the hope of being able to meet the most of these by Premier League prize money from a second season in the top flight had in reality evaporated by Christmas.

Adam Pearson had by then joined the board and sacked Billy Davies before that period. No doubt his outburst on Radio Derby after the Chelsea fixture had put the final nail in his coffin. Davies claimed that he hadn't seen Pearson for six weeks. This was in fact untrue.

Adam Pearson immediately went in search of new investment. Roy Disney a member of one of the worlds most famous film making companies was a name mentioned as a prospective buyer. In the end it was General Sports and Leisure who came up with £50m to buy the club and clear any debts.

After Paul Jewell dabbled in the January transfer window with a few panic buys with a last ditch attempt at survival, the club were relegated.

Jewell squandered a lot of cash and eventually resigned leaving the club with a hefty wage bill and a side not good enough to compete in the top half of the championship.

Nigel Clough was brought in and given his instructions firstly to save the club from relegation, then to stabilise and finally to cut down the playing staff and wage bill.

Despite losses of 7.9m last season, he is actually fulfilling the role he was expected to do.

Had he not shaved £5-7m off the wage bill, the club would be faced with debts similar to those accumulated by previous regimes.

Em only external debt is £15m shown as a mortgage on the ground. The accounts does show another debt of £36m owed by the club to their owners, therefore it's what we regard as a serviceable debt.

More and more players are now graduating from the clubs Academy. Jeff Hendrick, Mark O'Brien, Will Hughes and latterly Mason Bennett have successfully applied their skills whilst on first team duty. Formulating a good youth policy has been vital to the club and there's nothing more satisfying than seeing home grown players make the grade. Hughes has recently been tipped for a big money move to several top sides.

So apart from supplying future players to the first team, transfer receipts received for players that do move on provide valuable income too. Derby as a club seem to be taking the approach of fielding home grown talent and promising young players spotted by club scouts at lower league clubs.

Some fans are untrusting of the board despite their openness of the clubs financial position. Indeed new CEO Sam Rush has recently staged the first of a series of question and answer sessions with fans.

Some fans can't see beyond a promotion being representative of success. After the turmoil of recent years, I am content to take the patient approach. I love my club and never want to stare financial ruin in the eye again.

After a good win, the social media is full of fans praising Nigel Clough and when we lose they are on twitter calling for his head

Now looking across at our neighbours I some fans complaining at the lack of investment by the Al-Hasawi family. First of all, I wish we had some of that. However, they are not going stupid by throwing money around like Leicester or Cardiff.

What will be interesting though is the wage bill down? Players like a Sharp and Cox don't come cheap. Also, again players are coming up for contract renewal. On the one hand, you may want the player as he's a vital part in the push for promotion, but on the other hand is he good enough to make the move up to compete against the games best should promotion be gained.

The club were haemorrhaging millions under the ownership of the late Nigel Doughty, therefore some sort of financial prudence is needed to prevent it happening again. Spending big guarentees nothing but debt. Even if the promised land is reached, you can expect to have a wage bill in the region of £50m and still hover around the relegation zone.

I'm a firm believer that today, evolution is the better option rather than revolution. Sean O'Driscoll was sacrificed for Alex McLeish because the rules of the game plan had changed. Three to five years is a plan, but is an about turn in the middle of the season worth the financial gamble? Swansea are the perfect example of evolution. Portsmouth are the prime example of revolution going badly wrong! In the last couple of weeks McLeish has since left and Reds fans welcome the second coming of Billy Davies.

Perhaps like GSE at Derby, the Hasawi family have realised that under the new Financial Fair Play regulations that the trappings of the Premier League are needed sooner rather than later! Perhaps they have decided that sooner rather than later is the better option. Only those close to the club know the real answer!

There are those who talk about loopholes. They are steadily being closed. Gone is the opportunity for rule bending multi-million pound sponsorships! Sponsorships have to come from a third party and be of marketable rate.

Unless you are 100% confident of promotion within the next two years, it is foolhardy not to prepare.

Despite being a life long Rams fan, I do look forward to the day that both clubs are back in the higher echelons of English Football.

Which approach is the best? Make your own mind up!

A

Sheffield Wednesday 2-2 Derby

For the second time this season, Derby let a two goal lead slip against the Owls!

Nigel Clough was forced to make one change to the side when Mark O'Brien was left with a sore knee after pre-game warm ups. He was replaced by Jake Buxton who was originally named as a sub.

The Rams had the first chance of the game when Jamie Ward forced a save from Kirkland after two minutes.

Derby were the dominant side during the first half, however, yet again they failed to create chances despite having most of the possession.

Jeff Hendrick continued his recent run of good form by opening the scoring after 23 minutes by connecting with a through ball from Jamie Ward.

The lead was doubled after the break when a penalty was awarded after Ward was brought down in the box by Llera. Ward himself converted from the spot.

The visiting Derby fans must have been encountering a feeling of déjà vous when Sheffield Wednesday then four minutes later pulled a goal back through Antonio and minutes later Lera equalised.

Just like the reverse fixture it was the Owls who looked the more likely to snatch a late winner, but again the score remained 2-2.

Yet again Derby letting go of a lead, which has proved to be a big undoing this season. That is why just like last season, the play-offs now seem to be out of reach.



Sheff Wed - Kirkland, L Buxton, Llera, Gardner, Helan (J Johnson 87), Prutton, Coke, Lee (Wickham 33), Pugh, Lita, Antonio. Subs - Bywater, Taylor, McCabe, Semedo, Madine

Derby - Legzdins, Brayford, Keogh, J Buxton, Roberts, Coutts (Davies 74), Bryson, Hughes (Jacobs 88), Hendrick, Ward (Robinson 78), Sammon. Subs - Fielding, Robinson, Gjokaj, Freeman, Hoganson.

Man of the match - Jeff Hendrick.


Attendance - 25,765 (3,649 Away fans)

International Rams

This week saw a number of Rams involved in international games. Below is a comprehensive list of all players from the current squad to have represented their country at some stage.

Frank Fielding - England Under-21 and full squad call up.
Gareth Roberts - Wales
Craig Bryson - Scotland Under-21 and full team
Richard Keogh - Republic of Ireland Under-21 and full team
Paul Coutts - Scotland Under-21
Jeff Hendrick - Republic of Ireland Under-17/19/21 and full team
Jamie Ward - Northern Ireland Under-18/21 and full team
Conor Doyle - USA Under-20/23, Republic of Ireland Under-21
Mark O'Brien - Republic of Ireland Under-19/21
Will Hughes - England Under-17/21
Mason Bennett - England Under-16/17
Theo Robinson - Jamaica full team
Valentin Gjokaj - Albania Under-21
Keiron Freeman - Wales Under-17/19/21
Conor Sammon - Republic of Ireland Under-21/23 and full team

With the exception of Gareth Roberts and Paul Coutts, all players have represented their country whilst at Derby.

There are possibly more to come! Adam Legzdins for Latvia?

Derby 3-0 Huddersfield

Former Rams player and visiting caretaker boss Mark Lillis saw his Huddersfield side easily swept away by a Derby side intent on stopping a recent run of disappointing results.

This was a game that never really saw the visitors hit top gear and to be quite honest it was a stroll in the park for Derby.

Again dominating possession, The Rams on this occasion made it count. Every player in the team had a good game with the exception of Adam Legzdins and that was because he had so little to do.

It took the Rams twenty minutes to open the scoring. Some nice short passes between Coutts and Brayford saw the latter get a cross in which was met by Bryson who knocked the ball in at the near post.

The lead was doubled ten minutes later when Roberts found Ward on the edge of the box. Ward struck a beauty on the half volley into the top left hand corner.

Chances were few for Huddersfield and their midfield failed to get a grip of the game.

Bryson, Hughes and Hendrick dictated the middle of the park. Hughes looking more like the player fans have got used to after a couple of poor games.

Richard Keogh made absolute sure that three points were guarenteed when he met a Ward free-kick and headed into the bottom corner.

A good display and a welcome three points. Lets hope Derby can keep the momentum going next week with the visit to Sheffield Wednesday.


Derby County: Legzdins; Brayford, Keogh, O’Brien, Roberts (Freeman 87); Coutts, Hendrick, Hughes (Jacobs 89), Bryson; Ward (Robinson 82), Sammon.

Subs Not Used: Fielding, O’Connor, Davies, Doyle.

Huddersfield Town: Smithies; Woods, Gerrard, Clarke (Wallace 46), Hunt; Norwood (Lee 78), Arfield, Danns, Clayton; Novak (Scannell 54), Vaughan.

Subs Not Used: Bennett, Dixon, Gobern, Sinnott.

Man of the Match - Mark O'Brien, commanding display in defences.

Attendance: 21,561 (1654 Visiting Supporters).

Be Careful What You Wish For!

Now that the excitement of the transfer window is over (Well for other teams), it's probably a good time to reflect on those who continue criticise our owners and manager.

I hold up my hands and confess that I too have in the past have engaged mouth before brain, but when thinking about it over time realise I was totally wrong.

During the summer our neighbours across Brian Clough Way were rescued by the Al-Hasawi family. The so called billionaires promised to bring back the glory days to the club. Fans were optimistic about big spending, promotion and a new dawn.

Yesterday we saw one of the biggest farces ever conducted by an owner of our rivals. The non arrival of Chris Burke, Michael Kightly and Stephen Ward was a mere sideshow to the biggest failing of the clubs owners.

George Boyd was set to move to Crystal Palace, but Forest put in a better bid and the player travelled to Nottingham to complete his medical and sign. Medical passed apart from an issue with his eyesight not being perfect. Minor problem one would think. Boyd has impressed at Peterborough for years so surely this wouldn't be an issue. How wrong could you be. Mr Al Hasawi pulls out of the deal and Boyd is left without a move as it was too late to switch to Crystal Palace or any other club that wanted him.

The worst part of the whole episode being that Mr Al Hasawi or his man in charge then attempted to get Boyd on loan!

There's been a few strange decisions made buy the club since the takeover and the massive investment promised has amounted to loose change in a world of club owning tycoons.

Nottingham Forest ARE a big club and are respected as such even by fans of our club. They have a history to be proud off and the club I like to see us beat more than anyone. Their owner(s) though have presided over a farcical episode that has made them a laughing stock. I'm not writing this to gloat to Reds fans, on the contrary no true fan of any club deserves this.

East Midlands representation in the top division has been extremely poor over the past fifteen years or so and I for one would like nothing better than to see Derby County, Nottingham Forest and even Leicester City hosting the big guns of football again in the near future.

Right from the word go! A well respected Midlands journalist had concerns over the Al-Hasawi family and has been shot down by many people, was he right?

Returning back to our own club. We have owners who cover all losses, have invested millions to keep our club alive and do not interfere with the manager. I for one am very optimistic that the appointment of Sam Rush will move us into the next phase of taking the club forward.

We have seen the club in desperate trouble financially more than once in it's history and I for one would dread to fear what would have happened had GSE not invested in us. GSE might not meet with approval from fans wanting success much more rapidly, but whilst they're here we are unlikely to go bust.

So those who wish to see them gone may be careful in what they wish for. To our rivals, your owners will have to change the way in which they operate or sell the club to someone who knows how to run a club. You do deserve better and remember you'll still be there long after the Al Hasawi's are a distant memory.