Carl Sagan

Indeed we could! Perfect timing. The Collins nearpost header and what remains unfathomable to me, but is the football fashion - no men on the posts at corners to stop soft goals. Why? (yes I know it's about playing offside quickly, but I still think it's daft.) Fozzy swapped for Elder at HT. We need to keep it tighter at the back - they had two very good chances in the first half.

NML scores from open play - the only way we will having just had a clear penalty for handball not given! Nil-one - come on you Rams!

Collins is playing really well. Clever attempted flick from an excellent Wilson cross, but couldn't get enough power on it. John-Jules can't seem to get in the game. He seems to be playing in midfield with NML up alongside Collins! Excellent play from Wilson just now to win a corner (clearly demonstrated on tv), but the ref and lino gave a goalkick. Think Fozzy has started very well, when I wasn't sure if he'd have the legs.

A borderline red card foul on Bird, yet not even a yellow given. Yet another utterly appalling freekick from "set piece expert" Hourihane, lofted gently into the keeper's arms. Could be a frustrating lunchtime.

Understand the selection, as it was an obvious opportunity to go three at the back. Hope NML has the energy. At the start of the thread my team was similar but with more legs, with Sibbo in for a rested Mendez-Laing, and Fornah in for an ineffective Hourihane. Expected Warne would wait for the cup to swap goalies - but Wildsmith needs the challenge. Good to see Fornah at least make the bench. Come on you Rams!

This. Have our recruitment people somehow only just stumbled upon him? Surely they track every young player coming through, and especially those who might have a connection with the club. It would be so amateur now if we pay a fee for him when he went as a free transfer a few months ago.

He lived in Derby for a while after his release. I think I suggested to him he should ask to train at the club to stay fit, and try to impress Cocu. I've wondered if a decision was made that some young lad called Sibley was coming through who was an even better prospect as a left-sided goalscoring midfielder, and there was only a pathway to the first team for one of them? But Timi did seem our best academy player back then and it still rankles that the people who should have known didn't see it.

And we all thought he should be, yet unfathomably Lampard arrived and binned him off (IIRC).

Don't see him as an improvement on Fozzy/Elder. I say old news.

If we're to challenge for the automatic places, with three teams above us, we have to be relentless and average a fair bit over 2 points a game (if we're going to lose to rivals like Peterborough). Really we need to be aiming for and expecting 15 points from these 5 games, which puts us back in the mix. But football is not straightforward and things can go wrong, so we might not manage that tally. However, as @Ghost of Cloughsays, and because of the big gulf in quality he mentions, anything less than 13 points will be a disappointment. It will also likely see us fall a little away from the race for automatics. You cannot ease off in this division or you'll find your rivals are away over the horizon.

Adding this from @Eoghan1884here as it was originally in another thread.

With Nyambe away at the African Cup of Nations, we will again try the switch to three at the back. Given that, we should make our fullbacks wingers, and I think NML should have a well-deserved rest. Wildsmith Nelson Bradley Cashin Wilson Fornah Bird Forsyth Sibley John-Jules Collins Bench: Vickers Ward Elder Hourihane Thompson Barkhuizen NML There's an argument for starting Thompson who I don't think is fit (understandably) instead of Fornah and replacing him when he runs out of gas. I'd like to see John-Jules start, but you can't drop Collins after two goals, so why not try them both together? Sibley brings oh so much more to the set piece table than Hourihane, yet it's what Hourihane is meant to be in the team for. Wildsmith has had two poor games in a row so there is an argument for Vickers, but I would retain the keeper as we're mucking about with the rest of the defence somewhat. If Fozzy hasn't got it in his legs, then Barkhuizen or Elder are good options.

Former West Ham midfielder scoring for fun in League 2, while on loan at Swindon. Has now been recalled by MK Dons. Lots of talk that the reason for this is because we're in for him. Such as:

A genuinely excellent suggestion. I wish I had a route to Rooney to suggest it. Surely he doesn't need the money?

As someone who used to watch The Killers when there were only 50 of us in the audience, I was thrilled to hear we'd started using this. Then I turned up at the ground full of expectation, only to discover it was the weirdest "mashup" of Mr Brightside and Sweet Child of Mine. How to absolutely massacre two great songs. Whoever did that should be ashamed of themselves and never allowed back at Pride Park. I love how you're like someone from an internet message board from twenty years ago, putting "FACT" on your posts as if that makes it true. This was exactly what I was going to suggest. Or the other way around. Two songs connected to Derby. Treasure what is ours.

Max is really skillful, but doesn't impact the game enough. I've always thought the best he can do is to be like Michael Carrick, who was very good at what he did, and a lovely passer, but didn't reach the very highest level because he couldn't shoot or tackle. And that's Max. Today he had a great shooting opportunity, but is not a natural shooter and scuffed it. He ran the entire length of the field with the ball (not helped by Ward's aimless run), but then didn't know what to do with it. He made one tackle in the entire match. He needs to constantly demand the ball - to be our quarterback - but he doesn't get very involved. Today he only touched the ball 33 times. I think it was an error by Warne to try to turn him into a number 10 pre-season, and to keep pushing him forward, when he is never going to score goals. Would be much better off learning to play the holding role better. If he's reading this, I'm sure he knows it too, and I'd urge him to try to dominate the game in future. Shout for the ball and always make himself available. But if we're lucky enough to get a decent bid (anything into 7 figures), right now I don't feel it's worth hanging on to him. Brutal I know. I can understand the arguments for keeping Cashin, and Max should be playing at the same level, but he doesn't seem to be.

From the squad he picked, this was the right half-time option and the best Warne could have done. However... ...this was the problem. Thommo survived his first game on adrenaline, and I understand Warne keeping him in the squad after his goal, but he had no legs today (and that's his main strength). Should have been a game for Fornah. It's clear Hourihane and Bird don't give us nearly enough as a midfield pair - far too one-paced. Absolutely, the anywhere will do approach showed our heads had gone, after too many games in too short a space of time. Very, very poor. Wildsmith did well until the second goal. Cashin was immense, everywhere. Wilson came into the game well. Elder was a good sub on the left and made great blocks. Sibley made a difference in the middle. Great delivery to win the penalty, and he got our only corner by not being afraid to shoot, together with a fantastic block in our box, but sadly they equalized from the corner. Great performance from Collins - he can use his head after all. If John-Jules can play more minutes, he will still win us promotion - just oozes class and a desire to score. We're not the finished article yet, and this was a game too far, with Warne not changing it when he probably should have. But the manager reacted well and decisively through the game - his players let him down. Oh and where was the crowd? So little singing after the first equalizer, when the players really needed a lift.

Now the other lino flags Mendez-Laing off when well onside. How are they so bad at their jobs?

Absolutely this.

The ball going out of play then, six inches in front of the linesman, and him not noticing, shows just how utterly appalling the officiating is in this division. The ref realized it was a bad mistake, hence blowing for the "foul" on Collins.

Very surprised if he has close to a full game in him at this point, building back fitness. I'd have had Fornah at least on the bench, but probably starting.

Would definitely have changed it up for more energy, including bringing Ward in on the right. I think managers underestimate the importance of doing well against your old team. And I think it's a game when Fornah's energy would be valuable - he must be very disappointed to be out of the squad. Let's hope Warne has got it right and we start better than against Oxford. Come on you Rams!

Nice try, but that's the little (toy) Westie won in the grabbing machines on Brighton's pier! I meant the lovely black bear here, that's full of stars...

Quite a space-themed tree. But can you make out the Great Bear?