MadAmster

5 wins puts us on 93. Posh, Bolton and Barnsley can all reach 95 if they win all their remaining games. Posh and Bolton play each other so they can't both win all games. Win 6 and nobody can reach us. All ifs and buts. Basically, we get as many points as the chasing pack in the remaining games and we are home and dry. Que sera, sera. One game at a time. COYR.

Post match PW said Barks has a calf injury and will be out for a couple of weeks. Ward felt his calf and was brought off as a precautionary measure. Gayle out for several weeks. Wash in the squad to replace Gayle with Waggy starting. In a pre match interview in the Toyota lounge Collo said he was back training. Not ready for Northampton but should be the week after.

As an expat, I occasionally visit Ajax. I no longer visit my local club, where I both played and, later, coached, as they moved from playing on a Sunday to the Saturday and their times coincide with Derby. Used to be that we had the younger juniors play on Saturday and the seniors on Sunday. We lost many a talented young players when they reached 13 as they were from "Nederlands Gereformeerd Kerken" families and for them the Sunday is sacrosanct. They're not allowed to play. 5km down the road was a Saturday club so they moved there. Also social attitudes have changed and the U18s started moving down the road as well to play Saturdays so their play wasn't affected by their Saturday nights out. The club moved to 100% Saturday and the exodus has stopped.

😁

It was a goal as the ref appears to have either missed the contact or decided it wasn't hands. From where I was sat I thought Waggy made contact and I thought it was possibly a hand. The photo seems to show the ball in contact with both arm and hip. Agreeing to disagree is a perfectly sensible way forward on a forum built on opinions. We can probably agree on that 😉 PS - when I stopped playing in 2003, as well as coaching I also refereed having qualified in 1996, finally hanging up my whistle 2 years ago, aged 68

It looks like the ball is actually touching the arm as well as the hip. Going on that premise... the ball touches Waggy's arm, albeit accidentally, and then crosses the line and into the net. No goal.

Under the Laws, if there was any contact at all, no matter how slight, deliberate or accidental, the goal should be disallowed. I'm just glad the ref's error went in our favour. Makes up for the two nailed on penalties we were refused at their place plus the one they got for a foul outside the box... Having been unlucky with a lot of decisions through the season the pendulum seems to be swinging our way. This goal and Yiadom's 2nd yellow 4 days earlier. Swings and roundabouts.

The Laws around the ball touching the hand/arm of an attacker in a move are extremely clear, any contact, deliberate or accidental, whether it affected the outcome or not, is sufficient to disallow the goal so VAR would probably have (more like should have) disallowed the goal which, going on what one of the players said post match in the Toyota lounge, would have been the correct decision. The goal was given. It happens. Sometimes in your favour. Sometimes not. This one went our way (as did Yiadom's 2nd yellow against Reading. That wasn't even a foul, never mind a yellow). We've been on the wrong end of more than enough bad decisions this season, just maybe, the pendulum is swinging our way at the right time... PS - I'm not complaining. It makes up for the 3 refereeing blunders that cost us the win at their place. This time the boot's on the other foot.

1Wildsmith 8.5 2 worldies 35Nelson 8 3Forsyth 9 6Cashin 8.5 23Ward 6.5 2Wilson 8 32Adams 8 4Hourihane 5 16Thompson 7 17Sibley 6.5 20Elder 7 7Barkhuizen 6 10Waghorn 6 25Gayle 6 12Smith 7 11Méndez-Laing 8 ATG

Thoroughly entertained by this one. proper football, not the boring stuff you see in most PL games. Two teams wanting to win. Some good attacking from both sides. Both defences looked good. Wildsmith pulled off 2 worldies. Some interesting MF battles. Good interplay going forward falling down mainly thanks to good defending. Our approach to handling their #19, Maghoma, frightened me. The lad looks mustard, a proper footballer and we gave him the freedom of Pride Park. Fortunately, he was never able to fashion a good shot or set up a team mate. We gave him way too much time and space. We were very happy when he was replaced. Well happy with the win but over the 90, a draw was probably the right result, IMO. Especially considering Waggy's handball for the goal. Ian Evatt is quoted as saying nobody at the stadium could leave thinking Derby deserved the win. I agree. A draw would have been a better reflection. Having said that, what goes around comes around. 2 nailed on penalties at theirs not given plus the one they got was from a Smith foul outside the box

ATG 1Wildsmith - 6 Fooled by the deflection off Sibs for their goal and had expected a deeper cross. 35Nelson - 7 The usual rock 5Bradley - 6 Steady enough but gave the ball away in a dangerous position late on. Is there a pattern here? 2Wilson - 7 I don't think he ever knows what he's going to do with the ball so what chance do the opposition have? 6Cashin - 7 Just off his usual standard but still a good performance. 23Ward - 7 A couple of overhit crosses didn't damage his levels of performance. 27Blackett-Taylor - 6 Showed why we got him. Still getting up to speed following his injury(ies?) 32Adams - 7.5 We've been crying out for a Seth/GT type for years. Hopefully we can sign him on a permanent in the summer 4Hourihane - 6 Good free kick for Gayle's opener. Fabricated Yiadom's 2nd yellow. I fear he no longer has the pace. May be better as a late sub to help keep control? 12Smith - 7 Back to his best 17Sibley - 6 Not his best but still a solid game 7Barkhuizen - 8 This what he CAN do. Now needs consistency. 25Gayle -8 I'm another who had doubts due to his age and goal return over the past couple of seasons but I was smart enough to add the caveat that most of us had thought the same of CKR and Didzy. 10Waghorn - 6 Waggy. You know what you get and we did. 11Méndez-Laing - 6 Another not at his best but still a decent performance 3Forsyth - 6. Solid minutes following his injury. LB/LWB or CH, more than competent in all 3 roles. Good to have him back.

Back home after 6 days on the Pedi, so here's my befuddled recollection of proceedings. Not the most entertaining of games but one we deserved to win. Cracking opener from Gayle, very good first touch and gave the keeper no chance with the shot. Good headed equaliser from them but, had the cross not deflected off Sibs' leg chances are they wouldn't have scored as the ball looped straight onto their player's head, without the deflection who knows where it would have gone? Sibs did right to make a block. That first half yellow was correct for the tackle on Gayle, IMO, however there's many a ref who'd have given a red. 2nd half I thought Yiadom was unlucky to get a 2nd yellow and should have stayed on. Hourihane might have got a yellow in that incident for simulation. From my position on the halfway line, the penalty looked exactly that, a penalty. No doubt the keeper fouled him but some with a better view think Gayle handled the ball. I've not seen that but it seems we may have been lucky with that decision.

We did. Never visit this page when away from home, only ever access it form my laptop, so only just read your post Dave. We were in the Neppy and did the Neppy bus return journey. Toyota Lounge and Director's Box for Bolton. Back on the 27th for Carlisle. That'll be Neppy again and the Neppy bus (leaves half an hour before kick off). See you there?

A pupil in year 12 at Brookfield School in Chesterfield is doing an extended project qualification on football finance. As part of this he is doing a survey. I hope some of you will help the lad out. I know his name but, as he's a minor, I won't be publishing it. https://forms.gle/4YngYMcKkEzjBteB6

Done

Very well ta Loughie, Flying in tomorrow morning with my 2, now all growed up, lads till Sunday. 2 games, visit friends and family and having way too much to eat and drink as one does. You are in fine fettle too I trust...

3-1 Bradley

Ay up Loughie, you know "some of the fans" will criticise him even if it does work ...

Did anyone else notice that, in the back to back defeats to Barnsley and Charlton, we played both games without a recognised #9?

Take your pick. Neptune. Royal Telegraph. Merry Widows. Brunswick. Alexandra. Exeter. Peacock.....

Rams v Reading head to head. Won 16, drawn 10, Lost 27. Time to improve that record.

5 yellows match 19 I thought. 10 yellows match 37. I believe Ebou is safe despite 4 yellows in 8 appearances.

Dunt worry, ahn off wommit.

Is it a bit premature to suggest the song for DG might be the chorus from All Dwight Now by Free? All Dwight now baby, it's all Dwight now All Dwight now baby, it's all Dwight now Derby, Derby, Derby it's all Dwight, Dwight Dwight, Dwight

RAMSTV 1Wildsmith - 7 35Nelson - 7.5 5Bradley - 7.5 23Ward - 7 6Cashin - 7.5 4Hourihane - 6.5 32Adams - 7 27Blacket-Taylor - 6 12Smith - 7 17Sibley - 7.5 11Méndez-Laing - 7.5 10Waghorn - 7 16Thompson - 6 25Gayle - 7.5 2Wilson - 6.5 7Barkhuizen - 8