Carl Sagan

Hadn't realized he'd gone back there. Hilarious! Though (google is my friend) I see it was only as a temporary replacement for Mowbray, and won't be continued anyway.

My take is I never bet on us, because no amount of money would be as good as whatever we've won. I do place insurance bets sometimes, but never to the point where I would want those bets to come in. So I had £20 on Bolton at 100/1 on the last day - it seemed crazy odds (which was an important factor) and £2000 would have been a little compensation for having to settle for a place in the playoffs. But I wouldn't have bet £100 on it as £10,000 becomes quite serious money and I might have quite liked the thought of getting that. And I realize what constitutes "serious money" is personal and very different for every poster. So, for me, it cost me £2000 to win automatic promotion, and that's a price I was very happy to pay.

Let Buchanan and Bielik rot in League One. Clearly not beneath them after all. And we clearly need better.

Agree with much of this. But I think Collins has proved his worth and deserves a contract and will contribute, albeit probably not spectacularly. Great if we can move any/all of those four under contract players "Elder, Bradley, Fornah, Washington" on, but it will be tough and that shows why it's important not to be too hasty when dishing out new contracts.

I find it useful to subscribe to the New York Times for work, which is only £25 a year. And unexpectedly came with access to the Athletic. This was an intro annual offer, but when it came up for renewal I was leaving, so they gave the same deal again.

For half of last season, Dan Kemp was the best player in League Two - at Swindon, scoring 17 goals from midfield and making more. Then MK Dons hauled him back from his loan there, to see out the end of his contract for them. IIRC he has a good pedigree in the West Ham academy. I think he'd be well worth a look as an out of contract attacking midfielder with a load of ability and something to prove. Edit: and obviously we should buy Macaulay Langstaff from Notts.

I've not followed the Championship so didn't know this rule. From 7 to 9 does favour teams with bigger squads, and is a new challenge for the manager. Hopefully it opens a clearer route for more academy players to show what they can do. Twenty players on the teamsheet!

I wish I shared your confidence that he'll be around the first team. I expect Warne will be keen to loan him out to League Two. I think that's the development path Warne has talked about before.

Let go: Hourihane Barks Smith (borderline) Waghorn Gayle Fozzy (borderline) Loach Sell/loan if we can to remove them: Washington (I don't want us to get the Rotherham band back together. Signing him was a poor decision) Bradley (very poor footballer) Elder (always injured) Fornah (seemingly not good enough) Offer new deals: Collins (a surprise, but he has earnt his chance) Sibley (hate Warne's attitude to him, and disregard. Half hopes he moves to the Prem and becomes a star elsewhere, but to get money for him, we have to offer a deal. If he signs it, I still believe he's our attacking midfielder to build the team around.) Thompson Wildsmith Other: Only if there's a pay as you play deal, offer TJJ a contract. Only if he can be bought cheaply, bring Adams back. Like him, but at a level above there are better players.

Has this become a finance thread rather than a Warne thread? I would definitely have fired Warne earlier in the season. And said so at the time. Obviously he is Clowes's man and the recent statement from Clowes makes clear they are going forward together long term. DC sees much more of what happens around the club than me. From a far distance as a fan, I would still have considered replacing Warne now, with a proven Championship manager like Cooper or an exciting up-and-coming coach like Skubala, so they would be the ones directing the spending over the summer. But it's very clear that's not going to happen. What Warne has done well is the even keel, the acceptance that you win and lose games, but instilling in the team the understanding of the consistency and desire and togetherness that is required for a promotion campaign. We had the best defence in the league and the best goal difference. Hopefully we can build on that, but good midfielders and then forwards (the players we need) are expensive. We have to find value in the transfer market - the Adams signing is perhaps a glimmer of hope that recruitment is improving, even if one swallow doesn't make a summer - see CBT. What I hope and expect Clowes is doing is preparing the succession plan, a bit like how clubs such as Brighton always have someone to step in when their manager is poached. Whether Warne is eventually poached (hopefully as it would mean we're doing well) or sacked, then Clowes needs to already have ten coaches in mind he thinks he could persuade to come, and who would take us to the next level. Maybe Cooper and Skubala would be on that list.

Thanks, Roger Moore!

What an utterly fantastic list. And a brilliant reading effort. And including Cosmos! I've just published a lovely new book from the current incumbent of Carl Sagan's office, if anyone wants a gentle and inspiring space fix: Alien Earths by Lisa Kaltenegger It's currently Book of the Week on Radio 4, offering a free abridged audio version! https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001ypyp

I'm surprised by the downbeat nature of this thread so far. Football is so much about momentum, and we currently have it. It will be interesting to see who stays and who goes, and then who comes in. But the point of the playoffs was to maintain interest in the division for a much longer period, and tease many more clubs and their fans as the season nears its close. I'd like us to challenge for the playoffs for most of the season. Maybe a 5-15 range of final position, and a points total between 60-80. What Warne has done is given the players more backbone and a proper understanding of the consistency required to compete.

On the train back to London reading this thread and getting weird looks because it's so emotional. And I'm so sorry he's not here to share it with us and say "I told you". He kept the faith when many of us doubted. Be more B4! 🐏🐏🐏🐏

"Prepare yourselves for the worst, and hopefully enjoy the best"

Summer window: Curtis Nelson 8 Callum Elder 4 Joe Ward 6 Sonny Bradley 5 Josh Vickers 5 Kane Wilson 7 Martyn Waghorn 6 Conor Washington 5 Tyrese Fornah 4 Elliot Embleton 1 Ryan Nyambe 8 Tyreece John-Jules 6 Winter: Ebou Adams 9 Dwight Gayle 8 Corey Blackett-Taylor 5 Max Bird* 6 *I've included Max, as I feel it was crucial we had him to the end of the season. Extensions: Nathaniel Mendez-Laing 8 Eiran Cashin 10 Jake Rooney 6

I'm embarrassed to be in League One and can see where you're coming from. But given the league tried to drive us out of existence, and almost succeeded, if we do return to the Championship I will celebrate it. And hope we can right on through to the top tier.

As we approach the Carlisle game, I wonder what Warne will say to the players? I'm reminded of this fantastic pre-match speech to his Rotherham team. This is the best of Paul Warne. Expect we'll see it on Saturday:

After 45 games it all comes down to this. Us or Bolton? The Rams the red hot favourites, with the best defence in the division playing the team bottom and long-since relegated. And needing only a draw. You can see why the bookies have us 1000/1 on but as a Derby fan I'm still nervous and feel it's going to be a long week. Thrilled to be there. Will be thinking of Daniel who I never met, but who I exchanged posts with on this forum, and whose calls to arms I always loved. Will be remembering being at the BBG 49 years earlier to see the Rams lift the First Division title against Carlisle. Am with some of the same friends who came to the Derby Crystal Palace game with me, and we recreated Robbie van der Laan's header with on the pitch afterwards. Will be remembering the time Stephen Pearson scored his goal to send us into delirium at Wembley. Will be thanking David Clowes for saving our club when all seemed lost. Darkest before the dawn. He deserves a fantastic day in which, yet again, and for only the third time in our history, Derby lift themselves out of the third tier after a two-season stint. But we have to do it first. Let's hope the players keep their eyes on the prize, backed all the way by long-suffering fans who do deserve some joy after the last few years. Come on you Rams!

I love that Wildsmith is impervious to embarrassment. Which means he is our best asset in game management. If it's 0-0 on Saturday and we're under the cosh, he will find a way to take the sting out of the game and allow us to regroup. A vital part of the modern game but not anything our keepers have embraced before.

Hope you bring us home @Comrade 86. Not sure I agree with wanting Peterborough to drop points midweek. It seems so unlikely they can catch us, but if they don't win on Tuesday won't they rest their players against Bolton, saving them for the playoffs? A couple of us are treating another mate to hospitality in the Baseball Lounge so shout if you're there too. Might Gayle make the bench? I figured automatic promotion is worth £25 to me, so I've hedged too! Too many times it hasn't worked for us on the final day of the campaign, but let's hope it's different. And well I remember being at the Baseball Ground to see us draw 0-0 with already relegated Carlisle and lift the First Division trophy. It would be kind of fitting to repeat the scoreline, though I'd also like to see Max Bird score in his final game for us.

I agree with Bris and Tyler's logical assessment of Bris's comments. Indeed Warne only got us into this position because he has the best players at his disposal. Before the season began, like many (most?) on the forum I thought we should finish 1st or 2nd given the players we had. Let's hope we finish 2nd. Has he used the players to get the best out of them? I think we've got decent midfielders, but Warne's tactic is not to use them, and to get the ball wide as quickly as possible and then bang in an early cross. It only works at all because we have better players - otherwise it would have been too easy to defend against. But Warne identified it as a way to win matches and we have won a lot of matches. Was it the best way of playing? Is the proof of the pudding always in the eating? Does the end justify the means? Maybe - it has been vital to get up this season, so let's hope it was worth it and we do.

That if you vacuumed over the cord you'd get electrocuted. That if you swallowed apple pips an apple tree would grow inside your tummy. That Derby would continue to always be the best team in the country.

You're right I'm just shifting the goalposts. As has been said many times, the only way to make VAR work is to have it on the big screen while officials discuss the decision with the fans listening to the conversation. If they're not even prepared to do that, we're much better off ditching it.

Not convinced they stopped the action at the right millisecond or that they were correct drawing them from the defender's foot when other ball-playing parts of his body looked closer to goal. Very cruel. The system cannot be accurate so should there be some sort of margin of error?