1977 Ram Raider

Don't worry ill stick another tenner on a Bolton win. Done it for their last two matches and they haven't won. I'm quid's out.

Don't worry ill stick another tenner on a Bolton win. Done it for their last two matches and they haven't won. I'm quid's out.

Don't worry ill stick another tenner on a Bolton win. Done it for their last two matches and they haven't won. I'm quid's out.

Good point. No plan B! 
Whereas Warne has a Plan A, B and C. We sometimes see all three in the same match. 😂
Just an aside, Warne wasn't at the Supporters Club event last night because he'd gone to watch Cambridge at Bristol Rovers. Even at this late stage of the season, he's leaving no stone unturned in his quest to get us up. He works as hard as he expects from the players. 

Don't worry ill stick another tenner on a Bolton win. Done it for their last two matches and they haven't won. I'm quid's out.

Don't worry ill stick another tenner on a Bolton win. Done it for their last two matches and they haven't won. I'm quid's out.

Promotion rivals?

Exactly Tamworth.
Cast your mind back to the Frank season. We lost to the Dirties three times and only beat them once (away).

Exactly Tamworth.
Cast your mind back to the Frank season. We lost to the Dirties three times and only beat them once (away).

Exactly Tamworth.
Cast your mind back to the Frank season. We lost to the Dirties three times and only beat them once (away).

Cledara Abbey Stadium: KO- 15.00
We’re on a mini-run, aren’t we, but despite having our fate firmly back in our hands, the pressure to perform remains; two wins from our last two and we’re back in the sunlit uplands of the Championship; a loss, or even a draw and potentially the pendulum swings again.
It’ll be interesting to see whether we might see one or two back in full training this week, but it’s hard to view the win against Orient as anything other than one of our most complete performances this season and this despite being far from clinical in front of goal. Will the confidence garnered see us approach the game with the same positive approach? One hopes so! Another slip up when seemingly set to turn the screw and inevitably, PW’s management will be under fire. A win and we head back to Pride Park with only Carlisle standing between us and our first promotion since 2007.
Our Opponents:
The club was founded in 1912 as Abbey United, and took the name Cambridge United in 1951. They played in local amateur leagues before joining the Southern League after finishing as runners-up of the Eastern Counties League in 1957–58. Under Bill Leivers's stewardship they were crowned Southern League Premier Division champions in 1968–69 and 1969–70, which helped to secure their election into the Football League in 1970. 

Recent Form & Key Players:
Off the back off two absolute kickings from Reading, 4-0, then a 6-0 hammering from Lincoln, Cambridge were held 1-1 by Northampton before closing out March with a 2-0 loss away to Bolton. April has seen them draw at home to Charlton and lose by the odd goal to Blackpool, before showing better form in defeating Wigan 3-1 at home.
Top of the scoring charts sits Gassan Ahadme with 11, with Fejiri Okenabirhie next best with 9. Ellis Kachunga is next best having netted 6 times in 34 starts. Sully Kalkai tops the assists list with from Jack Lankester and George Thomas with 4 and 3 assists respectively.
Rams Match Squad:
Hard to get away from the 11 that started against Orient, given the resounding nature of the win and the style in which it was achieved. A buoyant Paul Warne confirmed in the post-match presser that everyone came through unscathed and it was interesting to hear him saying that we had more energy coming off a shorter break than was the case at Wycombe, where he felt we lacked energy, despite the 8 day break.
The injury picture remains murky and it’ll be interesting to see whether Gayle and Bird might be fit enough to make the matchday squad. I’ll not bother with my selected 11, as I always get it horribly wrong and the gaffer seems to be doing a decent job matching squads to opponents without our guidance. Instead, here’s the top of the table as it stands:

Don't forget to keep an eye on @Caerphilly Ram's injury updates thread across the week, for any snippets on player's likely return dates. I'll append anything I see to this htread as best I can in any case.
The Promotion Picture:
Some key fixtures tomorrow night, none more so than Bolton’s home game against Shrewsbury, whom we know to be a strong and obdurate side, though one lacking the Trotter’s class edge. I’d expect Bolton to take the points, but should Shrews grab an early lead, it could make for rather tougher game.
Oxford, fresh off the back of their 5 goal hammering of Posh play hosts to Lincoln City, whose charge towards the play-offs has faltered a little in most recently. It ought to be a tightly contested affair and to be honest, I’d not be surprised by any result.
The aforementioned Posh have what appears to be a routine task against lowly Fleetwood, but what will be the aftermath of their humbling at the hands of Oxford on Saturday. Might they have a hangover?
Perhaps the best tie of the round features champions-elect Portsmouth hosting Barnsley. A point will surely suffice for Pompey, but I expect them to win and win well en route to a thoroughly well-deserved title win. They’ve been excellent this season and this despite being one of the few clubs with comparable injury concerns to our beloved Rams. It'll be good to see them back where they belong after some very difficult years of their own.
Of the weekend ties, the most interesting involve Peterborough, who have a tricky away game at Bristol and Bolton host Port Vale. It seems odds on we will be going into the final week needing to beat Carlisle to be absolutely certain of promotion and I doubt too many Rams fans will be counting their chickens early! 
Final Thoughts:
A brief digression is in order to congratulate Eiran Cashin and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, both of whom made the EFL League 1 Team of the Year. Bit miffed that Curtis Nelson was overlooked to partner Cash at CB, as for me, he’s been top of the pops for us, but I doubt he’ll mind too much if we win come Saturday.
A last word as always to all Derby fans travelling to the game, safe journey to and fro, Rams and Ramettes and hopefully plenty of good stuff to chatter about on your way home. Honestly, I think our away support has been as good as any in the entire EFL this season and they’ll hopefully be rewarded with another complete and controlled performance as we ourselves edge closer to that vital 2nd place finish.
COYR
BE MORE B4
 

Pompey fan here, back for a brief visit.. Well done today, a convincing win for you. 
Hopefully our draw at Bolton did you a massive favour. 
Good luck lads, see you all at fratton next season 

A remake of this shirt and this man would go down a treat

If Puma are next seasons shirt supllier, a remake of this would be epic

We’re all on here moaning about a point at Wycombe. We are still second in the league.
What would B4 be saying right now?
My guess is come on guys, let’s get behind the team on Saturday and get Pride Park rocking.
Portsmouth will beat Bolton and we’ll be four points ahead again.

What is a flag? Does he mean flange? 😂

Tribal notions aside, had they not been so vocal about us being cheats, I'd might have had some sympathy.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Actually, WTF am I talking about. I really wouldn't. 

If this is the level we are setting for exciting announcements, they I am delighted to inform you all that I will be starting work today in approximately 33 minutes from now (08.27am).
Thank you.

The EFL have been taken over by a mystery person going by the name ap04 and at an Extraordinary General Meeting it has been decided that the 2023/24 league table will now be decided on xG rather than points accumulated.

They docked us too many points previously and we're due some back?

Adams Park Stadium
Wednesday, April 10th – Kick-Off: 19.45
Still a full week to go before another match to savour, this time against a club who can sensibly lay claim to having the greatest car park in all of football. So, what is there to say about L1’s perennial not-so-nearly men? Well, they have a fantastic chairman don’t they! Who else would be magnanimous enough to name their ground after our legendary midfield destroyer, Ebou? More to the point, how did he even know Ebou was coming to Derby? Clever chap, I suppose, which is probably why he now owns more ambulances than the NHS. As for Wycombe the town, well some brief research shows that Wycombe is notable only for being surrounded by places that are not dumps. Also, for weighing its mayors to see whether they have been getting rich on the public pound. Oh, The Cornetto Trilogy too, for any Hot Fuzz fans out there.
Moving onto Wycombe FC, well what can I say?
No, really, what can I say?
Oh, alright then! Their Wiki bio states that Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. Founded in 1887, they entered the Southern League in 1896. Despite being around forever though, they’ve won the square root of feck all and in 137 years, have only managed to accrue around 7,000 supporters. I’m no maths whizz, but by utilising my trusty abacus, I’ve calculated that at their current rate of growth, they will hit Derby levels of support in only 508.86 years. Something to look forward to, then.
Key Threats
Well they are two-fold and to be taken seriously; firstly, there’s the threat of legal action and secondly, there’s a very real possibility that they’ll attempt to hoof half our team into the stands. Fortunately for us, we’ve already paid them out, so they’re now feasting on the bones of other clubs in financial strife. Also, their stands are tiny and their team is rubbish, so if any Wycombe player does attempt to half-volley Liam Thomson into the North Stand, he’ll probably miss it altogether.
On the pitch, after a seriously deep dive, the only threats I’ve come up with are Luke Leahy who has amassed 8 goals and 6 assists this season from @40 starts, Dale Taylor with 5 and Joseph Low with 4. I was going to visit their forum to try to discern some interesting insider titbits for you lot; team strategy, injuries, pie quality and the like, but I immediately realised I’d rather eat my own vomit, so I didn’t bother. Feel free to have a gander yourselves though.
The Team
I think we’ll likely see the same starting 11, or very close to it. Fortunately, we now have the aforementioned Ebou Adams, so when they kick us, he’ll kick them back. Several times each, probably. That said, I think if we play our own game and don’t get sucked into Wycombe’s peculiar brand of anti-football, we may well win and win well.
And sadly, that’s all folks, as the pub beckons and in truth, I’d not really counted on us getting past both Blackpool and Pompey and have nothing else prepared. A final note though, for away supporters looking for things to do before and after the game, might I recommend a trip to Henley, Marlow or Windsor instead?
COYR
BE MORE B4

1Wildsmith 5.5
2Wilson 6
35Nelson 6
6Cashin 6
17Sibley 5.5
23Ward 8
16Thompson 6
12Smith 7
4Hourihane 5
32Adams 7.5
27Blackett-Taylor 7.5
14Washington 5.5
11Méndez-Laing 6.5
9Collins 6
10Waghorn 5

Our first game in “the 11-point season” was a 2-2 draw against Pompey.  I remember leaving the ground thinking “that was pretty good, I think we’ll do alright this season”.