TheHomunculusLives

2 hours ago, CodnorRam said:

Im 30 and iv never seen any hooliganism. I still live in ripley/codnor area and its always just banter between derby and forest lot as everyones grown up together.

I think it's generally less of an issue with the generations who started following football from the mid 1990s onwards, you've grown up in an era when the hooliganism of the early 70s - early 90s was thankfully largely stamped out. I don't think young men grow up today wanting to have a fight at the football every week in the same way as they did in the past.

2 hours ago, I DONT MIND said:

To call what it was as hooliganism is a little strange in this case, it was more like a mates disagreement over anything close to football rivalry and the drink takes over.

 

Punch up matchday buying each other a drink the next. Don't live too far from you even now but i am a Ripley lad born and bred.

I would hope our goalkeeper and defense would be strong enough at Championship level, our midfield and attack would definitely need upgrading.

I think the 'fighting for your country' mentality adopted by football hooligans is particularly ludicrous, and has done significant damage to England's international reputation. Fighting for your country is something our armed forces do while putting their lives at risk. It has no place in sport.

Elsnik is now a full Slovenian international and has played Champions League football. I think he could definitely done a good job for Derby up to Championship level.

I'm just glad it's mostly a thing of the past now. Hooliganism hasn't done football or society any favours and everyone should be free to enjoy supporting their team without worrying about getting punched in the face.

I always used to find the hooliganism easier to avoid at home games, travelling away was always more risky as if you walked into the wrong pub or down the wrong street as a visiting football supporter, you became a target irrespective of whether you were involved in organised hooliganism or not. I think it was still pretty prevalent in the early 1990s as well as the 1980s.

We never seem to get market value for our players - sounds like we're only going to be talking a few hundred thousand whether he goes in the transfer window or the summer. I don't think Bird will ever be a top class player as he doesn't have any standout attributes, but he's definitely proven Championship quality and worth £2-3 million. 

Is Moloney a left back or a left-sided attacker? I thought he looked pretty good going forward yesterday. 

57 minutes ago, ExiledinDerby said:

Completely agree, most first team managers attend youth cup games due to the prestige of the competition. It’s why all clubs play the players who are eligible regardless of where they are in their development. 
 

What I would add is that of the current u18s only Brown is anywhere close to the first team in league competition the rest are at least the end of next season away. Most of the u21s are at least a season away too. Of them only Robinson, Bardell, Weston and Evans are anywhere close but I don’t expect any of them to be playing in the league much this year either and that’s part of the problem.

Only Evans of those has a deal beyond this season and of the others don’t get games I can’t see them resigning, except maybe Bardell and even Evans will probably be quietly looking for a move if he isn’t anywhere near playing first team minutes after this summer. We have to remember that the players owe the club nothing really, unless they’re fans which I don’t think any outside of Bardell maybe, they have to put their careers first because no path means no career.

Now it may be argued that so what we have others coming up behind but in reality we don’t, at a push maybe Hawkins and Wheeldon who have played at u21s last season and McAndrew and Allen if they keep developing at the rate they are but outside those 4 none of the u18s are close to ready so that means more money needed to fill the first team with “peak players” and more players who could have contributed lost to other clubs. 
 

On the other side of that coin Warne is under pressure to take us up this season and as such for him to gamble on youth is a gamble with his own job and potentially his career. If he doesn’t take us up how many fans would say “that’s ok, give him another year as he has been developing our academy players this season…”?

Probably not many. 

Fapetu? He looked pretty good in the Wolves game, albeit against weak opposition. Ben Radcliffe?

How good is Cruz Allen, as far as we can judge at 16? Is he one of the standout youngsters to be in our academy over the past decade or so?

How is Carlos Richards doing? I thought he was one of our top prospects after he made his first team debut at 16, but I rarely hear him mentioned these days.

Is Wilson going to be Derby's Gareth Bale - starting out as a defender before reinventing themselves as a much better winger?

I've raised this before, but I find it pretty disappointing that a club with a Category A academy that's mid-table in League One doesn't have more homegrown players in the starting team. The Bird/Sibley/Cashin/Thompson generation all came through a while ago now, but personally I would expect a few 18/19 year olds to be more involved too by now, although I appreciate some of the best talent got sold when we were in administration (e.g. Kellyman, Kaide Gordon, Dylan Williams).

I think it's easy to make the assumption that because we have a lot of players who have played at a higher level than League One they are automatically better than players from other clubs who haven't. The reality is we have a fair few players who are past their best or were very average at Championship level, other clubs may have more up and coming or underrated players.

Sibley looked a very exciting prospect when he first broke through, and still scores goals that no-one else in our squad seems capable of in certain games. But overall I have to conclude that if he was as good as some fans here seem to think, he'd have nailed down a starting spot in a League One team by the age of 22. And it's not just Warne who hasn't picked him regularly.

In five years, I expect our club to be in the Premier League. If not, I think we will still be underperforming. Why do I say this?

Brentford, Brighton, Crystal Palace, Wolves, Forest, Fulham, Sheffield United, Burnley, Bournemouth, Luton.

That's half the current Premier League, and not one of those clubs has greater potential than Derby in terms of fanbase, infrastructure etc.

How much longer are we going to accept League One or Championship football when other clubs of similar or lesser potential are in the top division?

There are many posters here much more knowledgeable about the Academy and the players in it than me. But personally I find it really disappointing that we are the biggest club in League One with a Category A academy, yet don't have a single homegrown player under 21 in the the first choice matchday squad. I am not counting Jake Rooney as homegrown, and Bird, Cashin, Sibley are all established players now who emerged several years ago. 

I think we're crying out for a new young player to burst from the academy into the first team and provide some excitement. Warne clearly prefers to pick seasoned, steady professionals rather than gamble on youth, but would be great if there was a prospect so talented at 17/18 they were simply too good not to pick. You'd hope with a Category A academy at League One level we'd have someone capable of breaking through, but perhaps not.

One of the concerns often raised about the current Derby squad is the lack of players with genuine pace, with the possible exception of Mendez Laing.

So who are the fastest players you've seen in a Derby shirt during your years watching The Rams? In recent years, Ebosele is probably the quickest I've seen, going further back, Dean Sturridge was very explosive off the mark. Older fans say Colin Todd was very quick. 

Other than maybe one or two of the remaining homegrown youngsters, I think what we maybe lack is players who could feasibly develop into top end Championship or Premier League standard. We should expect to be very competitive at League One level, but if we go up I think we will need to invest significantly.

I like Warne too, and I do agree a manager needs to care for his players and instill the right culture across the club. But even so, if the team isn't delivering on the pitch, ultimately he isn't the right man for the job. I'm still not convinced he's fully adapted to being at a Derby sized club rather than a Rotherham sized club.

Bird is a very good midfielder at this level, intelligent and knows how to pass a ball. He needs a more physical, athletic player alongside him and Fornah seems to have those attributes. Hourihane a good option to have on the bench to potentially change a game.

I'd optimistically hoped we'd take League One by the scruff of the neck this season and be top two from the start, especially with Ipswich and Sheff Weds promoted and weak clubs coming down from the Championship. While I accept injuries haven't helped, I'm not actually happy with the season so far, although a decent run would see us near the top of the league quite quickly.

4 minutes ago, Curtains said:

I’d say Warne has signed good players wouldn’t you .

We haven’t signed anyone for money on transfer fees 

At this stage, I'm not convinced we're any better this season than we were last. I think Warne has been quite conservative in his signings, we still lack pace in the team and with the exception of Fornah, not sure many of the new players have much potential to improve further.