North East Ram

You don’t see Derby and trophies in the same sentence very often! 

You don’t see Derby and trophies in the same sentence very often! 

You don’t see Derby and trophies in the same sentence very often! 

You don’t see Derby and trophies in the same sentence very often! 

You don’t see Derby and trophies in the same sentence very often! 

Met Roy Mac a couple of times. Amiable easy going, throroughly nice guy. Mrs Jono was bantering with a stall holder in the market hall a few years back and said that when she was a gal she snogged Roy Mac .. the stall holders wife said .. so did everyone else ???

Love this. To echo others sentiments, im amazed, jealous ?, proud, happy from all the hard work and generousity that you and our legends have put in.
Too young to have witnessed the 70s but still a joy to read and see the pics.
So much to respond to...
the King sits in the south stand - amazing!
i met Todd a few years ago up here in the north east  - he was a gent and very friendly. Signed a few bits for too which was great.
Looking forward to the next revelation!
Be good!

The Zan fish trailer is gathering dust at the minute

Why dont we the fans organise an annual dinner and invite these legends along - to celebrate them and the special place they will always have in our hearts?
Im sure a suitably lavish location could be found and I for one would gladly pay for a ticket plus an extra supplement to ensure our legends are celebrated year in year out while they are still with us.

This is the one that started, when I found out that it didn’t matter how big a name they were they are all just normal guys, even this man, invited me and my old man into his home, and made us laugh, also had a very serious side to him.
he was the one that got the whole thing going, put a team together and took on the footballing world, outspoken, a maverick but a great footballing brain, a genius, his like will never be seen again in football.
we were lucky enough to have him as our manager and to many he is still the face of Derby County as synonymous with the club as the snorting Ram or the BBG !
the one and only Mr Clough !

No rich, number 8 was oh Bobby bobby !

That’s the first part done, will do some more when I get a minute !

Hector seems to be the enigma of them all. Wonder why. 
How many 100s of goals. He should have a statue.
 

Hector seems to be the enigma of them all. Wonder why. 
How many 100s of goals. He should have a statue.
 

Absolutely brilliant. The best post I've ever read on here. I know in those days, European travel was far more adventurous than today but that's an amazing story and so vividly described. I know Croatia and Dubrovnik fairly well and will be visiting Mostar next year. l've read a lot about the 90s civil war and was in Croatia during a ceasefire in 95 but didn't know that about the pitch in Mostar. Sad and disturbing times for sure across the whole Balkans. 
Love that area of the world and especially enjoyed the time we had Igor and Ace at Derby. Also hope to be in Split too next summer and will be wearing a Rams top to see if the locals recognise it.
Did you travel alone? Must have been some train / bus journey. Wasn't it still communist back then? I'm sure borders must have been tricky. Sounds like pin badges could solve any diplomatic concern though!
btw - I bought the away programme for my dad a few years back for a bday or Xmas. A proper 8 page Stasi style list of results and players names!

I’ve got that on the next shelf down but haven’t got round to reading it yet !
I got the john Lydon one signed, he said to me “ you are a big **** aren’t you ! (I’m am 6’4”) it was an obvious statement but it made me feel quite happy !?

To be fair, ours were all brand new, placed in boxes at strategic points in every stand so it was made easy for us - best organisation of any flag planting I've been to.  
I expect the staff all wanted to get on with it and get home. They'll all be there until gone midnight tonight. 

Absolutely brilliant. The best post I've ever read on here. I know in those days, European travel was far more adventurous than today but that's an amazing story and so vividly described. I know Croatia and Dubrovnik fairly well and will be visiting Mostar next year. l've read a lot about the 90s civil war and was in Croatia during a ceasefire in 95 but didn't know that about the pitch in Mostar. Sad and disturbing times for sure across the whole Balkans. 
Love that area of the world and especially enjoyed the time we had Igor and Ace at Derby. Also hope to be in Split too next summer and will be wearing a Rams top to see if the locals recognise it.
Did you travel alone? Must have been some train / bus journey. Wasn't it still communist back then? I'm sure borders must have been tricky. Sounds like pin badges could solve any diplomatic concern though!
btw - I bought the away programme for my dad a few years back for a bday or Xmas. A proper 8 page Stasi style list of results and players names!

Absolutely brilliant. The best post I've ever read on here. I know in those days, European travel was far more adventurous than today but that's an amazing story and so vividly described. I know Croatia and Dubrovnik fairly well and will be visiting Mostar next year. l've read a lot about the 90s civil war and was in Croatia during a ceasefire in 95 but didn't know that about the pitch in Mostar. Sad and disturbing times for sure across the whole Balkans. 
Love that area of the world and especially enjoyed the time we had Igor and Ace at Derby. Also hope to be in Split too next summer and will be wearing a Rams top to see if the locals recognise it.
Did you travel alone? Must have been some train / bus journey. Wasn't it still communist back then? I'm sure borders must have been tricky. Sounds like pin badges could solve any diplomatic concern though!
btw - I bought the away programme for my dad a few years back for a bday or Xmas. A proper 8 page Stasi style list of results and players names!

O
 
Travelled overland independently by train, lots of snow around Banya Luka (October), but still arrived in good time at Mostar. Walked from the station to the ground in conversation (in French!) with a German, who recognised the Ram motif on my shoulder bag. Gateman at the ground was after Rams souvenirs when Stuart Webb arrived, we exchanged a few pleasantries, he showed his DCFC credentials and I was allowed in with him!  The team coach arrived shortly after and Alan Hill was struggling with the kit hamper across a pebbled area, so yes, just offered a hand to get it to the visitors dressing room. Most of the players had gone to have a look at the pitch, but David Nish followed us in. He had just moved into our village and had had conversations over the garden gate with my Dad, so that was a useful starting point until Zac arrived with his bit of typical Yorkshire forthright approach!
I bade my adieus, and walked out into the next room which happened to be the club bar, which, needless to say, was full of Bosnians and Serbs. My bag and rucksack singled me out as a Rams fan, and it was only seconds before I was besieged with more requests for Rams souvenirs. I had only two left when their inside forward Vidic, who had played in the first leg at Derby, came and sat down, and he ended up with a copy of the Football League Magazine which came out with the Rams programme.
Whilst waiting in the York Hotel outside the station for the train back home after the first leg, a tall smartly dressed individual wanted the phone, speaking in  reasonable English to the hotel staff, who of course had to get the call for him - in the 1970s it was necessary to wait for calls to be obtained to less popular international locations, in this case Mostar. I assumed that he was possibly the Mostar president or CEO perhaps, so in the bar I motioned to Vidic that I wanted to speak to the "President". He disappeared and duly returned with an ageing gentleman who was in fact the Club President. But the message had got across that we needed an interpreter, and shortly after the guy seen in Derby appeared. I recalled to him that I had seen him at the York, so we were well away! Drinks and food were provided gratis, courtesey of the club / President, and I could leave my rucksack there until after the game. The well dressed guy was the reporter for the local paper, and this was news, as Mostar had beaten one of the Moscow teams (? Spartak?) over two legs in the previous round, unbelievable for a town the size of Burton!
As it built towards kick-off, I made my way out to the Terraces, only to find that I was in the private part of the ground, with only a small three- step terrace which held about 20 people maximum! A programme seller appeared walking round the ground, the very guy who had been manning the gate earlier on. I called to him and rummaged in my shoulder bag for the last souvenir, one of those circular gold and dark blue DERBY COUNTY pin badges with a Ram in the centre - you might have one still, I haven't! I thought that offering it was an appropriate gesture to a guy who had been instrumental in what was turning out to be some totally unexpected "adventure", and he proudly pinned it on, safe in the knowledge that no one else had one!
The Rams of course lost 4-1, and it was almost dark as the firecrackers went of following their third and fourth goal, the latter a penalty against Colin Todd which was clearly ball-to-hand rather than the reverse, which the high profile and even more highly controversial Dutch referee, Charles Corver, duly gave.  (He was handing out photos of himself on the flight into Dubrovnik apparently - some ego!). Stuart Webb was beside himself at this unexpected setback, and on returning home made it clear that Derby would appeal against the firecrackers during the match, so I sent in some camera shots of them to him, and weeks later they were returned after the appeal had been turned down.
So, back to the bar, where the President came to commiserate - and celebrate that lightning did sometimes strike twice. In true English fashion I offered my congratulations, and eventually took my leave of them, reflecting, in spite of my disappointment, that I had witnessed what had been a momentous event in the history of this small club.
This must sound unusual to many of you, but the club is not like an English club. The dressing rooms and bar were part of what we would call a large two story club house, set back some 50 yards from the pitch and behind the goal. The directors / officials watched the games from easy chairs in a first floor "terraced room" with sliding -folding doors, looking out "onto all they surveyed". The 50 yards in between were flower beds with rose trees, neatly trimmed low privet hedges and a pebble path for the players to access the pitch. The opposite end was not spectator accommodation. The side nearest the road was terraced, and provided perhaps 15 steps the length of the ground, and the opposite side had 3 /4  steps of concrete terrace, with a small seated stand at the half way line. Beyond this, the (enclosed) hillside rose quite steeply into the far distance, and would have accommodated the population of the three East Midlands cities with ease.  Little did I know the horrific significance that this welcoming club was to play some 20 years later. During the dissolution of the old Yugoslavia, you may be aware of the subsequent ethic cleansing which took place: the Radavan Karadice saga / era, plus others.
That same pitch was used as a concentration site / camp for those unfortunate enough to be on "the wrong side"......
And no, I had no part at DCFC, I'm just a popside fan who took his chance when it came, this being the third "adventure" that being a Rams fan has brought my way. To me, DCFC has always been a Way of Life.
Thanks for reading - sorry if I bored you.

That would be great - statues the size and quality of Clough & Taylor, from the station / Brunny to the ground. 
Not only are some of our favourite players  greats for Derby but many are in the football league top 100 players.
From Bloomer to the greats of the 20s, 30s, 40s onwards - they've played for us. Shilton, Wright, Deano etc etc. World class players. People like Raitch Carter are known throughout football. 
Never mind Cox and TBE!!
 
 

That's true. As I have been reading this thread tonight I came upon a photo on a heritage site of some Rams players at the opening of a sports shop in Ripley. That also wouldn't happen these days.