DavesaRam

We might find out if JJ is more than a bit part player if he’s given more than bit parts to play. I am presuming that Paul Warne is easing JJ back up to full fitness gently, and not simply being Paul Warne because the lad is only young.

Not really. I hate unfairness, and have felt the same way about the other players I mentioned and said so. Some have benefitted from moves away, but others have not. It may be they had reached their limits, but fir some being constantly discouraged and thwarted can do their heads in - Lee Holmes, from what? 15 - 20 years ago is a case in point. He had enormous potential but was never realised. In a poor side that struggled to score when Holmes was brought on the game would be transformed, and suddenly chances would come. His reward? Dropped to the bench, or played out of position. It went on time after time after time and he eventually moved on out on loan to Walsall and Preston, both in lower leagues at the time I believe. But he never made it higher up. All the time there were players not producing the goods who kept getting picked regardless. Same old, same old. What if ………………. ?

The hardest thing for me would be the "What If's". I agree Sibley doesn't appear to have fulfilled his potential, but what if he'd been given as many chances in his best position as Hourihane? Or as many chances as Collins? Or as many chances as Tom Lawrence, because this isn't the first season we have wasted someone's potential whilst giving opportunity without limit to someone who wastes it for themselves? We messed about with Christ Martin during his last spell with us, and Georgi Kinkladze, and Will Hughes, and Lee Holmes, from the dim and distant past, or even Weimmann from not that long ago. We have form! As Mad Amster says it would probably be best for Sibley to move on and find a club that do know how to utilize his abilities. He won't be the first. Bird again doesn't appear to be pulling up tree stumps every match, but part of that problem is that he is on a different plane to most of of the squad. One wonders what could happen if JJ actually gets a run in the side, because he looks as though he may already be living in the same plane as Max?

Although Bennett got loads and loads of chances in his best, well favoured position. (His best position us out of this club!)

He also struggled because of the urge to get the ball into the channels instead of playing football.

So which player was it who had about our only attempt on goal in the first half?

It is the inconsistency that is the consistent problem with refereeing. I could accept all the yellow cards if she had been even handed, but I will protest Sibley’s, who’s shot at goal was inconsequential because a Wycombe player had already done a kuck-away without punishment, and they did 3 more before Vikes finally got a card - which shouldn’t have been his first. He dived in the area and did a Haaland at her when she turned his claim down, which should have been a card for simulation, and another for dissent. He also should have had a yellow for kicking Bradley in the face. The penalty was a good call, as was ours bring turned down for NML. But the one where JJ was clattered off the pitch at the edge of the 6 yard box and the free kick given to Wycombe was a poor call, as was ignoring Bird being thrown to the floor in the area. I hadn’t seen the foul on Cashin that Mad Amster pointed out. She also missed a defender jumping into the back of JJ where his knees hit JJ’s shoulder blades. I have said that we drooped the points because of poor play and poor tactics, because the ref effectively neutering our midfield would have mattered if we’d used them in the middle of the pitch. But we didn’t.

We played the ball through the middle of the pitch as well as getting the ball out wide. On Saturday getting the ball out to the channels seemed to be the only option.

The penalty on Mendez-Laing wasn’t given because the ball had already gone away from him. But you could have asked about the foul on John-Jules which was given the other way, or when Max Bird was wrestled to the floor. Both clear and obvious fouls in the penalty area.

The hoof upfield is because that is what they had been told to do - by-pass midfield and cross into the area to our centre forward his is out on the wing but will be along shortly. 🙄

He would fill that void if we actually used the midfield from the half-way line forwards. But we didn’t yesterday. When we approached the half-way line the ball was sent sharp left or right or into the channels. Just about every time. So all Thommo would do us twist his head one way or the other as it by-passes him yet again.

No, yesterday wasn’t the system that gave us a long winning run, it was the one from before that which earned us naff all for mist of the season so far. I hope its a one-off or he’s gone to start getting flack like he got after Stevenage and Crewe.

I’ve only been watching Derby for 50 years, so I too don’t know much about football But I do know that the changes midway through the second half simply invited Wycombe onto us, and the defence looked all over the place, as if they didn’t know what they were suppose to be doing. They ought to be used to it by now because Warne always messes with our back line regardless of whether we are winning or not.

Well DavesaRam is back. The ref was absolutely terrible today, with a load of contentious decisions. But she isn't the reason we threw two points way. The players have to hold their hands up, because they were far too ponderous in their play. But that in part may be because Paul Warne regressed us to "Whack it wide and cross it". Why on earth would he do that? Just about every time we got the ball, the only thing on our minds was to get it into the channels and sling crosses in - all match long. I think we mustered one shot from the central area of the pitch in the first half. So after all the flack he got after the Stevenage and Crewe games, it seemed he had listened to the criticisms and changed how we played, and we go on a long winning run. So why go back to a system that hadn't worked all season so far, for us? Is that why Sibley, and to a lesser degree, Bird were ineffective? Sibley had to keep wandering over to almost the wing back position to get a chance of being given the ball. So the fact that we hardly created any clear chances all match long is actually no surprise. All Wycombe had to do was deal with an endless supply of hopeless crosses into their box. And our goal was a scruffy tap-in, rather than a goal created by good play. Sadly, a number of people re happy with the yellow cards we were given, but seemed oblivious to the Wycombe players dropping down like they been snipered, and then rolling around like they were in an operating theatre without any anaesthetic. It was obvious that they were trying to get our players booked. I would have thought the the ref in doing her homework on the teams she was in charge of should know that this sort of skullduggery was a normal Wycombe skillset, but was taken in by it almost every time. Also, Wycombe players blatantly kicked the ball away 3 or 4 times before Vokes got booked for it, with one of those times before Sibley got his Christmas card. There was also the upending of Wilson, which was a clear card, but despite playing the advantage for us, then didn't book the offender afterwards. Perhaps she used the advantage to hide from her responsibilities. She certainly ducked them with Lyle Taylor, who spent the entire match not playing football. Every time he challenged for the ball, he either went for the man, or tried for the free-kick. On around 40 minutes he was comprehensively beaten by Cashin, so he fell to the floor holding his face, which is simulation, which is a yellow card. But not for Rebecca Welch. She ducked the foul on Wilson, which ended up with Collins getting his yellow card, but that was his own fault. Yes the Wycombe con man was feigning injury, but it was none of Collins business, so he should have stayed away, but Wycombe had done a job on him and he lost his temper. Ignoring the trip on NML, which was probably a good call, but JJ getting clattered in the box was either a penalty, or a corner, but she flunked out of that one, as she did when Bird was wrestled to the floor - that is two blatant penalties turned down, so it isn't only Warne who has reverted to type. She also ignored jumping straight into the back of JJ out on the touchline, with his knees hitting JJ's shoulder blades, so it wasn't a simple "coming together", it was yet another yellow card avoided. My son and I were starting to consider trying our hand at the rush to get away tickets in the New Year, but if we are going to play like this again, is it worth it? We proved for most of the season that "wing it and whack it" doesn't work, and we have proved in recent games that playing football does work. So why go back to what doesn't work? It's your call, Paul Warne.

Yes. It is going to be available as part of a boxed set of two Bobble hats, with the other one being the original "snowflakes" Bobble hat that he wore just after arriving here, and which never made it to the shop window until about June the following year.

I may have this completely wrong, but I think I read somewhere that Paul Simon was sat on Friargate Station when he wrote "Homeward Bound".

My son got one of them as well. It was a great gesture! I thought it was for a certain number of matches attended, as opposed to all of them, although I could be wrong, of course. It has been known - in 1972 I believe.

Nah. Gibson, like the EFL, had us in his cross-hairs and was waiting for his chance. He kicked off about our stadium sale, conveniently forgetting that he had done similar with the Riverside stadium, only it wasn’t the actual stadium, it was a load if debt that the club had run up that he sold to one if his companies. He was no different than Mel in that respect, but used a much more dodgy solution than a straight stadium sale. And his claim that our “cheating” (you know - that rule we broke that didn’t actually exist) cost Middlesbrough promotion was even more vacuous than the ambulance chaser’s claim. The main reason they weren’t promoted was them losing 7 of their last ten matches. He claimed his solicitor wasn’t available, deferring the hearings into the next season, and had a hand in the debate as to whether our alleged “debts” were football or non-football related, dumping us on the wring side of the transfer window, the prime reason we lost Phil Jagielka, and that sealed our fate. Then dial into the equation that suing another EFL club was against EFL rules - yes he actually broke a real rule, not a figment of the imagination applied retrospectively to get their own back. He allegedly has connections in high places, including Downing Street, making him someone who shouldn't be crossed. But apart from that he is a thoroughly decent chap.

Steady on young man. That’s not allowed. I know he is an ambulance chaser, but Gibson is in a different league.

Hold Derby’s beer!

It would need to be a big mountain or there won’t be room for us all. Then we’d get a sever dose of “not in my back mountain top”!

The main shift has been Paul Warne realising that endlessly crossing balls into orbit doesn’t work. Whether he and his team have observed and made the right conclusions, or whether they have listened to the criticism which was hurled at them doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that we have seen changes happen, and we are beginning to see the type of football we should be seeing, and it works. Of course it could be that the change has happened because players who have been unavailable to us are now back in the fold, but fact is the ball keeps coming into the possession of the midfielders, we are starting to play st ground level and we are getting people into the penalty more than we used to. Things are starting to look good!

Yes. We need to realise we aren’t the Derby County of 22/23, or of 21/22, or of 20/21 et al. We are a different team, we are a different squad so we aren’t any of the teams that fell away in February and March, so it ain’t going to happen. And if I poke my eyes out I’ll be a blind-faither!

Actually it is refreshing that Collins is getting in areas to have the chance to miss - earlier in the season he was either never there, late, or on the wrong side of the defender and never got near the cross. A second factor is the crosses are a whole lot better and are eithe3r on the ground or at a head-able height instead of scorching the cloud cover. He will be amongst the goals again pretty soon if we keep on with this improvement!

I would suggest it was “for no apparent reason”, knowing how Collins “puts himself about”. I noticed in the second half another Orient player took a swing at him and put him out of the move. It was seen by the ref who played the advantage, but didn’t follow it up. What puzzles me is why, with the overhead camera view, ie the normal view available why Rams TV only showed the lower angle, which was far from clear, which even gave rise to the idea that a foot had been left in or put into Collins after the foul. Incidentally the lower angle view on the highlights video is much clearer. Does this mean that there were two or more separate feeds?