LeedsCityRam

Wildsmith 7.5 - didn't have much to do but he did was very good. Much more authoritative than early season

Cashin 7.5 - good display with his usual class on the ball & reading of the game

Davies 6.5 - generally good but could have done better with a couple of first half headers in their box & made one almighty slip that Cashin managed to mop up

Chester 7 - solid as ever. Liked how he & Davies worked in tandem to deal with their left side threat second half (one engages & other mops up)

Hourihane 7 - most prominent in first half with his passing & delivery enabling us to get on top of Cambridge. Did miss one big opportunity early in second half

Knight 7 - his energy in the centre another reason why we dominated the game. Touch bit heavy on couple of occasions

Mendez Laing 7 - good shift at wing back although lost some of his marauding threat in final 3rd

Bird 9 MOM - superb all day. Clearly been told to step up the pitch & it suited him. Won the ball higher up the pitch & consequently had us playing in their half more often than not. Great assist for Collins' 2nd goal

Dobbin 6.5 - worked hard pressing their back line but still not quite clicking going forward yet

Collins 8.5 - excellent display. Two good finishes but also impressed with his hold up play & pressing. Textbook CF performance away from home

Barkhuizen 7 - like NML, a good shift at wing back but quality from wide a bit variable

Sibley & Forsyth 6 - both solid

Osula 7 - looked an absolute handful & may have had a penalty if he'd gone down after one mazy run

Good result & good performance but today just shows how fine the margins in football can be. A minute before the break, Collins chases the ball down & pressures the CB into airkicking the ball before slotting the ball home. Two months ago at the Valley - same time in the game & with the score at 0-0, Collins muscles the defender out of the way for a very similar chance but hits the post. We of course went on to be mugged 0-1.

That said, I was impressed with how proactive we were today & two players in particular stood out in that regard. James Collins is the obvious first one - his hold up play was very good & he looked much more assertive in that final 3rd. Two good finishes too & I fully expect him to kick on given how Warne tends to set his teams up. The biggest change though was Max Bird - thought he was superb today & stepping up the pitch suited him & the team massively. Rarely see him moving with the ball but he did that on a few occasions, his defensive work enabled us to win the ball higher up the pitch & his great range of passing enabled us to cut Cambridge open - most notably for Collins' 2nd.

We also got more bodies into the box (something I had been critical of previously) & was also pleased to hear a comment from Warne post match about abandoning triangles/intricate build up from wide when looking to get the ball into the box & instead looking to trust the wide man & get bodies into the box. Have to say Cambridge were very ordinary indeed but would accept that we imposed ourselves on them from the first whistle.

p.s. loving the new Osula song ? - look forward to singing that at Accrington. Well done to all that travelled - dominated the noise today ?

Ghost of John Beck 1 Derby 0

9 hours ago, ram59 said:

I wouldn't say that they were comfortably relegated both times.

in 2019 they were 4 points from safety and in 2021 they were only 2 points from safety, despite having to play up to 4 games per week due to covid postponements.

He's actually relegated Rotherham 3 times. First season in 2016/17, he took over at end of November & they went down with 23 points - one of the worst ever points totals in the second tier. They had been in the Championship the preceding 2 seasons.

Whilst they were 'closer' to safety in 18/19 & 20/21, their points totals of 40 & 42 points were very low by the usual threshold to escape safety...for example Leicester & Peterborough have been relegated with 50 points. In 20/21, their relegation fight was probably flattered by just how bad Derby were in 4th bottom (1 point in last 7 games under Rooney) but they managed to finish below Wycombe even, a team playing their first ever season in the second tier.

His record whilst managing Rotherham across those 3 seasons in the Championship reads P120 W23 D29 L68. Win rate of 19% & 3 separate seasons to adapt. I'd say he's been very fortunate to have Rotherham's chairman stick by him.

European Cup 1st Round 2nd leg – Wednesday 27th September 1972 & Zeljeznicar v Derby in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia

The Rams had won the first leg at the Baseball Ground 2-0 but had to defend that lead in front of 50,000 in the Kosevo Stadium in Sarajevo. Despite being welcomed onto the pitch with rockets from the crowd, Derby silenced the home support with 2 early goals from Hinton & O’Hare to put the tie beyond Zeljeznicar’s reach & book their place in the next round. Match report below;

Programme for the match from the Kosevo Stadium – for those of you who wondered what Derby County was in Bosnian, its ‘Derbi Kaunti’. You’re welcome ?

Full round up of results from the rest of the 1st round matches – all the big guns got through including Juventus, who beat Marseille comfortably despite trailing from the first leg. There was also something of a furore in Greece where the referee called a penalty shoot out victory for CSKA Sofia one penalty too early, necessitating a replayed match which Panathinaikos lost anyway;

The draw for the Second Round saw the introduction of reigning back to back European Champions Ajax to the competition. Even more exciting was Derby being drawn against Benfica – the 1961 & 1962 European Champions (runners up in 1963, 1965 & 1968), with the legendary Eusebio still in their ranks. First leg was to be played at the Baseball Ground on 25th October;

14 minutes ago, Andicis said:

Rotherham have by far the smallest budget in the Championship and are presently sitting in 8th. He was unlucky to get relegated the season we escaped. Could have easily survived. 

Luton were 3 points off relegation their first season back in the Championship. Surviving the first year counts for everything, but is often decided by a bit of luck. Blackpool did well. That being said, let's not pretend that most clubs that come up have amazing success at staying up. The circumstances are a mitigating factor, if we are being reasonable. 

Rosenior has not shown evidence of being a success, I'm sorry but I just can't accept that. He's done okay. We have a lot of good players at this level and are sitting just outside the playoffs. The football is a bit slow and toothless. We haven't ever really gotten going, we just have been saved by moments of quality from good players. The Arthur Cox comparison is completely unfounded. 

 

Disagree with pretty much all that. I think you're focusing too much on short term success v long term trends - no way would Rotherham finish 8th this season, it's a short-term promotion bounce. As to your other points, Luton not only stayed up that first season but then went onto claim a top 6 spot in following season. Rotherham were not unfortunate the season they went down - they had about 4/5 games in hand that March/April & demonstrated so little quality, they absolutely deserved to go. I watched most of their last fixtures (many were on Sky) & they were incapable of winning a game at the same time we could only scrape 1 point from our last 7 games.

And the Arthur Cox comparison is very relevant as it demonstrates that slow starts do not translate into a final league position - it was in this division & it was with this club in a very similar state. Which negates your point about Rosenior not showing evidence of being a success.

20 minutes ago, Andicis said:

He hasn't ever had a competitive squad or budget. Even at League One level, his budget and squad wasn't brilliant. He did well to get them promoted three times. He has good pedigree in League One. 

What evidence was there that Rosenior would be a success? His football was neat and tidy, but ultimately slow and a bit toothless. Slightly Cocu, in my opinion. 

Blackpool & Luton had similar budgets to Rotherham but both not only stayed up comfortably but also played much better football. I don't accept Warne's failure to adapt to the Championship as inevitable.

Re Rosenior - like I've argued, 9 games is an incredibly harsh basis on which to judge a manager but the evidence on that small sample does show him to be a success. We are 7th with 14 points - on par/ahead of most fans' expectations at start of the season & better at this stage than both of Arthur Cox's seasons in the old Division 3. He got us promoted in the second season - would Rosenior have done the same? We'll never know.

Very, very disappointed. Rosenior was exactly the type of manager I wanted at Derby...progressive, bright, levelheaded & wanted to play the game the right way.

I cannot accept that 7th place, only outside the playoffs on goal difference is a disappointing position to be after 9 games & would love to hear the rationale for Rosenior not being given the chance to manage until Christmas at least. Performances have largely been good (with the only real exception of Lincoln) & only poor finishing has prevented us from being 4th/5th - that would surely have improved as the team became more familiar with each other.

It was also apparent that the players bought into Rosenior. He was directly responsible for bringing some of our more impressive names to the club & the squad adapted very quickly to his style of play. I'm really not sure what more he could have done & to be offered a coaching demotion after that is really disrespectful. He wasn't a caretaker manager & I'd be amazed if he stayed.

As for Paul Warne, have to smile at some of the optimism from those who automatically equate any change as progress. If you thought Rowett was tough to watch, just wait until you've seen a few weeks of Warne's direct & basic style. His teams are frankly anti-football - hit into the channels, horrible agricultural midfielders better without the ball than with it & an obsession with set pieces. Irrespective of Rotherham's resources, it is a conscious decision to set teams up to play in that style & I would think it naive to hope Warne is going to play better football given Derby's greater resources - especially galling given the patient style we have employed to date. It smacks of another Clement-Pearson-McClaren-Rowett swing in philosophy.

Some may also point to Warne's promotion record but below is his full record since taking charge of Rotherham in 2016/17 - nothing in here that indicates he has the pedigree to make Derby successful from a long term perspective;

21 hours ago, SamUltraRam said:

I thought i'd show a comparison to our promotion season from this division in 1985/86 for a bit of fun. I'll try to do it game by game if there's any interest to read it.

Game number 9 was a 2 - 0 away win at Cardiff City & took us to 13 points - so we're ahead of that. Attendance was just 3,435 at Ninian Park

We'd just beaten Div 1 Leicester City 2 - 0 in the 1st leg of the Milk Cup

It appears that you could only name 1 substitute then as well which surprised me

Starting lineup:

Goalkeeper Mark Wallington

Right back Charlie Palmer

Central defender Rob Hindmarch

Central Defender Ross Maclaren

Left back Steve Buckley

Midfielder Steve McClaren

Winger/Midfielder Gary Micklewhite

Midfielder Geraint Williams

Forward Trevor Christie

Forward Bobby Davison

Winger/Midfielder Jeff Chandler

Substitutions: Paul Blades for Steve McClaren

 

Great idea Sam, look forward to the updates ?

As a couple of others have mentioned though, our current season is more reflective of 84/85 so I'll keep benchmarking us against that. Interesting that we're also ahead of our promotion season in 85/86 in terms of points...should give some posters some proper context to measure their high standards against.

14 minutes ago, Ellafella said:

50 days since the season kicked off. How has it been for you? Better than expected? Worse than expected? Has LR found his best XI yet? What if any changes would you like to see? At what point will we score our first away goal? 
From this point where do you see us finish? Top 2? Play-off spot? Top 10? Lower? 

Better than expected especially given how quickly a squad was thrown together & Rosenior being a novice manager...two key factors that seem to be conveniently ignored by some.

I did think we'd start slowly, look very disjointed & probably be just outside the top 10 until around Christmas. Aside from Lincoln on Tuesday, we've played well in spells in all our league games which is a credit to Rosenior & his staff. Getting a batch of new players to settle quickly & get results is very difficult...see also Forest, Notts

Not unreasonably Rosenior will not know his best XI as a) we're 9 league games in & b) some of our players still arent matchfit or haven't been available throughout the season (Chester/McGoldrick/Dobbin/Korey Smith). In terms of changes, I'm reluctantly coming to the conclusion Bird & Hourihane can't play together but dont necessarily think Knight is the silver bullet. I've been pleased that we've started to mix up our restarts instead of passing it out every time. Predictability is never a good trait.

The away goal stat is increasingly being used by those not happy with Rosenior...I would add we have been very unlucky not to score & win away yet, Charlton in particular springs to mind. It will turn for us though as we are creating chances. Worth reminding all that Arthur Cox's away record in the first part of 84/85 was appalling, it does take time to get that fluidity on the road as a new side. 

From here on in I'd like to think we can finish 5th/6th & secure a playoff spot. Top 2 is probably out of reach given the foundations clubs like Ipswich, Plymouth Portsmouth have built over last 2/3 years.

2 hours ago, DCFC1388 said:

No this isnt a thread about someone who has passed away.

What is this new song that is attempted to be sung to the words of spirit in the sky? What are the actual words? Can we have a new song sheet handed out please ?

There's a small band in the top left of the South Stand who are always singing & they were the lads booming this one out for about 10 mins of the second half. Couldn't make out the words from the East Stand but a couple of lads on Twitter have confirmed the lyrics since - definitely needs including in our main song roster. Great tune, great lyrics & other than Man Utd using it to sing about George Best a few years back, don't know anyone else who is singing that tune (happy to be corrected)

If you hear it, jump on it ??

Derby 1 Parasites 1. FRGS Mendez-Laing

Not at all surprised to see folk irate about last night's display but confused why this automatically translates into a definitive judgement on Rosenior. We are 8 games into the season & this is the first truly poor display - even then, we were largely undone by a joke early penalty & a referee who bent over backwards to accommodate Lincoln's agricultural defending.

There are also plenty of gripes about the style of play. From what I saw last night we were either a) passing slowly across the backline/in front of their back 7 or b) launching the ball high or wide. The players need to be braver in possession, the tempo needs to be much higher, the quality needs to improve - far too many misplaced passes & heavy touches. I believe that's exactly what Rosenior will be telling them & he will have them practising it until they get it right. I can't believe people didn't expect nights like last night - did those wanting change expect us to just turn up & steamroller everyone in this division?!

Don't get me wrong, I didn't travel 150 miles on a Tuesday night expecting to see that but think some perspective needed. From a results POV, Rosenior is exactly the same as Arthur Cox was at this stage in 84/85 - played 8, 11 points. Fair to say no-one here would think Cox should have been sacked at that point & similarly, Rosenior is nowhere near that point either.

Imps 0 Derby 0

Following our first title in 1971-72, this season marks the 50th anniversary of Derby’s European Cup debut & the start of 4 very eventful European campaigns up to the end of 1976. Like the 1971-72 season scrapbook last season, I’ll be looking to mark each game 50 years on with match reports, TV footage (if available) & as much info and memorabilia as I can glean. Of course, nothing will beat having been at the games themselves so recollections & memories are most welcome.

To set the scene, Derby’s qualification for the European (Champions) Cup was at a time when only the league winners (and the European Cup holders) qualified for the tournament. At that stage, only one English club had even reached the final, let alone won it – that being Manchester Utd in 1968 under Sir Matt Busby. Therefore Derby were bidding to become only the second English club to be crowned Champions of Europe – no small challenge considering our European debut had been delayed following disqualification from the 1970-71 Fairs Cup for ‘financial irregularities’.

50 years ago today then, we began our 1972-73 European Cup campaign against the Yugoslav champions FK Zeljeznicar at the Baseball Ground. Zeljeznicar were based in Sarajevo in what we now know as Bosnia & like Derby they had also won their maiden title the season before, beating the challenge of illustrious names such as Red Star Belgrade, Dynamo Zagreb, Partizan Belgrade & Hadjuk Split.

Here are the beaming first XI of Zeljeznicar with their suitably austere Communist-era title trophy;

Onto the game - despite the pretty physical opponent, Derby were able to secure a 2-0 advantage going into the second leg in Yugoslavia - goals coming from Roy McFarland & Archie Gemmill either side of half time. Match report below;

John O’Hare closely marked by two Zeljeznicar defenders during the match;

Programme from the match to mark the occasion;

Full round up of results elsewhere in Round 1 – second legs due to be played two weeks later on 27th September;

Shrimps 0 Derby 0

Got my Morecambe & Lincoln tickets but only by constantly refreshing the site after finding to my horror all tickets had been sold just after 10am. Fortunately a couple more turned up a few mins later & I jumped on them. Our away support is pretty rabid at the minute, feel sorry for the poor sods waiting for them to hit general sale.

Up to 3 away trips now, only 2 more to get into an earlier category for next season (sure Hillsborough & Oakwell should be a breeze to get tickets for as a minimum)

E I E I E IO UP THE AWAY TICKETS PREFERENTIAL BUYING WINDOW WE GO

Derby 1 Dexys Midnight Runners 1, FRGS Mendez-Laing 

Just to add another perspective here, its interesting how many Leeds fans I've spoken to who whilst not wanting to be in the Championship as such, do look back fondly to the time when they were winning most of their matches & being (in their heads) the big fish in the division. In the Prem, they are nothing more than cannon fodder & the sheer amount of beatings they took in the spring inevitably erodes that optimism & feel good factor from being top tier. 

My own viewpoint to OP is similar to most on here - I am enjoying the novelty of a new division but only from a short term perspective. The Championship was boring & was sick of playing non-entities like QPR, Reading & Bristol every other week. The standard of play & size of the clubs in League One isn't that different in my eyes and the sheer size of PP crowds & our away support suggests that view is shared by many.

That said, deep down I struggle accepting Derby as a 3rd tier club & want us up as soon as possible - certainly no longer than 2 seasons, which is entirely reasonable given our resources & how long it took Arthur Cox to take us out of the old Division 3. The game is about the glory & I want to see Derby competing for Europe & trophies again one day.

14 hours ago, YouRams said:

In all comps played 8, won 5, drawn 2 lost just 1, LR deserves alot of credit! 

12 hours ago, JuanFloEvraTheCocu'sNesta said:

Deserves the job permanently.

On the basis of what I've seen, I think we need to make his position permanent pretty soon.

Whilst the results have been good, I'm actually more impressed with how quickly he has got this squad operating as a cohesive team unit. All too easy to dismiss how difficult it is to manage that with such a massive influx of new players but we are already playing fluent, attractive stuff. Its clear the players have bought into him as a leader.

Even when we drop from those standards (like yesterday at times), the character is still there to drag a result out the fire. Similar at Mansfield too, a tricky away game against a highly motivated opposition in which we dug in for the win.

Off the field, Rosenior has clearly been instrumental in our recruitment & will have a good contacts book - we've been able to attract players we couldn't have imagined in June would have looked at us twice. He is passionate about developing young players & giving them a chance in the team. And the man himself is an articulate, positive & highly regarded young coach - other clubs will be keeping tabs, as Blackpool did when inviting him to interview in May.

I'm not sure what else we need to see. I'd be looking at offering a two year contract as a minimum.

Most people's MOM from yesterday & continued vindication for Rosenior picking him at RB.

Was apprehensive early on as Clarke-Harris seemed to sit on his wing but no need to worry - Knight comfortably won the overall battle between the two both in the air & on the deck. Linked up very well with Sibley & Dobbin on that right side in both starting attacks & being in a position to cross from wide. And of course his endless stamina enabling him to snuff out attacks down our left side.

As Rosenior said post match, the game is changing. 'Right backs' aren't the Lee Dixons of yore but multi-faceted footballers that can contribute in areas around the pitch. Knight not only scored yesterday but has had two absolute sitters in recent games - I'd argue he is just as able to contribute going forward as if he was sat in centre midfield.

Perhaps worth remembering that Steven Gerrard spent a lot of his first 2/3 seasons playing right back/right wing back for Liverpool - someone most would automatically pigeon hole as a central midfielder. James Milner has also moved between those two roles at times in his career. The transition between modern right back & box to box midfielder isn't that unusual.

Wildsmith 6 - two massive kicking errors that should have been punished. Some sluggish distribution also but solid enough on goaltending duties

Knight 8.5 MOM - very impressive today. Beat Clarke-Harris in the air a few times, composed defensively, plenty of surging runs, linked up well with Sibley & Dobbin. And the goal.

Forsyth 7 - good second half display. Was very advanced & an improvement on Roberts 

Roberts 6 - was OK but not as dynamic as Forysth going forward & got caught out defensively couple of times

Korey Smith 7 - offered impetus in those final minutes. Busy & industrious 

Cashin 7.5 - some good last ditch tackling & saved a certain goal just before their opener

Stearman 7 - generally good & kept their front two quiet but closest to their lad for their goal

Dobbin 6.5 - bit inert first half & reluctant to run at his man. Bit better second half but very influential in our late comeback, great assist

McGoldrick 7.5 - great cameo. Strutted onto the pitch, tried to make things happen & scored the winner

Sibley 7 - played well I thought. Couple of good half chances & always looking to get others in. Tracked his runners & didnt get embroiled in far side melee which saw his tackler booked

Hourihane 6.5 - ordinary quality first half but played his part in quick tempo of last 10 mins that they couldn't live with

Bird 6 - played OK but bit quiet & ineffective second half

Collins 6 - decent display first half & worked hard. Lot of poor touches/misplaced passes second half & good decision to replace him

Barkhuizen 6.5 - one good chance & fouled for the red card

Derby 1 Dead Posh 1, FRGS Barkhuizen

2 hours ago, RoyMac5 said:

I think this is the thing. League 1 is grim (imho) and I want the Club back in the Championship asap, others might think differently. I don't agree with your 'a process of gradual improvement' at all though.

So, yes we are doing well, but we really should be doing much better - that has nothing to do with where we have recently come from. Do I think LR is the manager to do it, dunno. But I now think that if we don't go up this season it will be a failure. Again I'm sure others think differently.

I suspect many will share your ultimate ambition for the season, even if I believe its a likely 2 year project. Its all too easy to remember how hollowed out the club has been...playing & coaching staff and not just the first team. Irrespective of expectations though, couldn't begrudge people making calls on Rosenior towards the back end of the season when we will have a better idea of likely finishing place.

With respect to 'gradual improvement', that refers as much to the inevitable improvement in executing our style as the results. We have a new manager who in turn is a managerial novice with a mostly new squad, getting them to play in a particular way (i.e. not just results driven). Stands to reason that will take time & we will get progressively better at it as season goes on.

37 minutes ago, Alan Ramage 4 EVA said:

Dont think trains run on Boxing Day ?

Yeah, I'm sure that's the case. We played Wigan away on Boxing Day in 2019 & remember there were no trains running at all so we drove over.