DavesaRam

OH WHAT A NIGHT! 
I got up at 3.15 yesterday morning for work, and arrived home at 12.30 am this morning. Cream crackered but the best spend of energy ever! And Vale's idea of away fans catering meant that I didn't eat till 11.30 pm, a food gap of 10 hours! I got some ale in, though! And no, I wasn't driving for this match!
Th match itself was frenetic for most of the time, partly because we tend to high-press more than we used to, and Port Vale were up for it, almost as though it was a cup final! There have been loads of comments about how poorly we played, but bottom line is that we had to adapt to playing on a cabbage patch - hence the propensity for the long ball game. Someone spoke about the degrading pitch, but whether that was because it was degrading to play on, or steadily getting worse as the match wore on they didn't say. It was both! So some of the poor finishing, and poor passing was because of the terra firma being so bobbly. And some was because we didn't have a good night.
But the match I was watching Vale were quick and having a go, but didn't create that many  chances until they had scored. By contrast Derby looked threatening, and early on were the ones creating the opportunities. In the end Warne thought our tactics were the best way to go, and he has done well on that score, particularly recently. And having 18 (?) shots with 5 on target in an away match is pretty darned good, don't you think?
Davis was excellent in the first half, and NML is consistently playing well. But stand out to me was Barkhuisen. Like NML on Saturday he had his full back on toast - several times the full back simply whacked the ball into touch when there was no-one near him, he was so rattled. So when Dobbin came on, it was Open Sesame! The full back was not only either useless or knackered, he was a beaten man. Quite rightly Dobbin was given man of the match, because he ended up with 3 shots on goal, and created 3 chances, in only a very short space of time.
It did seem as though it was going to be one of those nights where no matter what we did, the ball simply wasn't going to go in. But the persistence was amazing, and paid of - testament yet again to Paul Warne's fitness regime - we kept motoring on despite having had a draining match on Saturday while Vale had their feet up. And as ever the ref played his part. He booked a Vale player very early on, but that was it. We got 5 minutes of good ref, then it was back to normal. Yet again, all Vale had to do was gently sit down and it was a free kick, while being free to simply run at a Derby player with both arms forwards and push the Ram out of the way without censure. Smith went down holding his face in our area when there was no-one within 2 or 3 yards of him - thankfully the ref let Vale down on that one. And after we went a goal down, Barkhuisen was all-in-wrestled away from a through the ball , and when Didsy went to pick the loose ball up he was hacked down right on the edge of the box, but nothing was given for either. Terrible refereeing, and we only ended up winning because Vale obviously didn't pay the ref as much as they did for the match at Pride Park, allegedly.
The away end was deafening all night, apart from when we were "Sssssshhhhhh"ing at the Vale librarians! And to see the whole team celbrating at our end for the second goal was brilliant. IT was very, very special.
Unlike the burger van outside, although it did serve some very tasty looking items - none of this "Do you want onions or cheese on it? There you go", but properly assembled pieces of art. But like many Rams, we baled out in order to get to out seats for kick off, nipping out at half time instead, only to get to the front of the queue to find that he had run out of food! Massive starvation feelings, but perhaps he had planned it well to run out with only a dozen or so left in the queue. H no doubt made a killing, especially at £7 a go, but surely he would have know that it was an away-end sell out. If he had more than just himself serving, and brought more food to begin with he could have made 30 - 50% more sales. What a missed opportunity. We walked past the chippy in a side street near the ground on the way in because of the queue, and it was closed when we came out. A chippy closed before 10 pm? Good grief!
So we finally got home at 12.30pm, still absolutely buzzing, still floating on air, and for the second match in a row I was leaping around like a madman for the goals! I haven't done that for years, but simply can't help myself! Something very special is happening.
Its a great time to be a Ram!

There's no way their fans are saying the referee was awful for them! He literally gave them everything! The amount of fouls he didn't give to us yet any time we went near them he gave a foul? 

Haven't the club already been punished enough, with relegation, demolition of the academy and restrictions on spending regardless of income? Remember DC is a new owner with no connections to those who committed the offences.
The ban on spending money on transfer fees has no merit whatsoever regarding the future stability of the club, it can only be detrimental, if anything.

Just got home, I'm hoarse, got sore knees from too much bouncing and ringing in my ears from the absolute bonkers noise in the away end.
It's nights like these that David Clowes has given us back when they were so nearly taken away from us.
As for arguing about budgets and squad values, tonight of all nights!  There's only one thing you need to know - the togetherness of owner, squad, fans - it is priceless. 
 

The signs are good when in an away match we are having 16 shots, 8 of which were on target, and our fans think it was poor!

Only good thing to come out of port vale is …. 3 points to the Rams

I hope Rick Parry doesn't see this, he'll have a meltdown

It's not so much sour grapes as not knowing the subject. They are basing their opinions on what the media have told them, and the media haven't given us a nice ride for a few years. It is a bit like real life, where people base their opinions on what the telly or the Daily Mail says which is nothing like the truth. Hence Bolton fans thinking we have loads of cash and can go and buy anyone we want.

I doubt your coat will cover the entire pitch but every little helps ?

No it’s now a celestial blanket ,,, he s woven angels instead

We'll be OK. 
Apparently PV use a life size cut out of Robbie Williams as a cover for the pitch. 
Saves salting the stands, too.

it seem s that is the reffing way. I recently had a CPC refresher course for HGV which was taken by an ex-Premier League referee. He hadn't got a clue what he was talking about, despite claiming he has driven HGVs - he clearly hadn't. He was literally making things up as he went along, which is a bit worrying when he is teaching the legal aspects that go with a driving job. And yes, he was incredibly arrogant, and wouldn't accept he was wrong even when we produced his company's own documentation that showed he was talking a load of alimentary surplus. It was just llike he was officiating at a football match!

The difference is on the manager's philosophy. In a recent interview Max Bird said that Warne was encouraging them to paly their natural game, and I think that is the difference. So instead of receiving the ball, then looking up the appropriate section in the Rosenior Method of Football Theory manual, our lads are now doing what comes naturally. Add in the fact that the squad is now fitter than a butcher's dog and i think we have the difference.
It is not as though Warne has turned us into a hoofball team, even though he had us play longer in both our matches against Bolton. Liam's teams were lovely to watch as they skimmed the ball around the first two-thirds of the pitch, but our play is just as nice on the eye, although we have to be more attentive as the play is now so much faster and more decisive, and it's further up the pitch as well.
The difference between the two regimes is incalculable, even though it's the same players! It is very similar to when Steve Maclaren took over from Nigel Clough. IIRC when Steve landed at Pride Park, we went 3 - 0 down in the first half, then he breezed into the changing room and we ended up at 3 - 3, and the season turned around from then on. We went from fear and caution to belief in what we can do, and freedom to do it!

The difference is on the manager's philosophy. In a recent interview Max Bird said that Warne was encouraging them to paly their natural game, and I think that is the difference. So instead of receiving the ball, then looking up the appropriate section in the Rosenior Method of Football Theory manual, our lads are now doing what comes naturally. Add in the fact that the squad is now fitter than a butcher's dog and i think we have the difference.
It is not as though Warne has turned us into a hoofball team, even though he had us play longer in both our matches against Bolton. Liam's teams were lovely to watch as they skimmed the ball around the first two-thirds of the pitch, but our play is just as nice on the eye, although we have to be more attentive as the play is now so much faster and more decisive, and it's further up the pitch as well.
The difference between the two regimes is incalculable, even though it's the same players! It is very similar to when Steve Maclaren took over from Nigel Clough. IIRC when Steve landed at Pride Park, we went 3 - 0 down in the first half, then he breezed into the changing room and we ended up at 3 - 3, and the season turned around from then on. We went from fear and caution to belief in what we can do, and freedom to do it!

(Electrical) jumpers for goal posts...

If you've seen my posts I rate Joe,  I would kept him over Dawson, glad he's doing well

… and don’t have him as our third choice!  ?Perhaps he is our 007 in a Number 1 jersey. His improvement has been immense and I doubt theres a Derby fan who doesn’t rate him very highly now 

We've turned him ?

They don't.......which is why there are so many c*** ups

That's not true. You can still give a red card after an advantage has been played.

We're famous! ?
 

I’d think most linos in the land took an interest in the Japan Germany incident (where almost everyone thought it should have been disallowed) and that as a result a different approach is being taken 
I’m referring to the World Cup not the world war 

The advantage was great tbf. He missed half a dozen fouls though.

Its amazing how after  match we have the choice to talk about all the good stuff, or moan about the poor play, or who has let us down. Today we didn't have that choice. There is absolutely nothing to complain about from a derby point of view. And yes, like many I was worried by the team selection, enforced as it was, but it turned out to be "nay worries", as they say in Scotland.
Roberts is a good option to have at right back, and Curtis was safe enough, in part because of the lack of pace up front from Bolton. I know they have lost a couple of important players up front, but I don't think pace is their game. Their tactics were to lump it to the big man, or into the channels, and it didn't work. An important factor in this was our pressing, which I don't think I have seen as effectively employed before, especially as we kept it up all match. Thank you Jason knight for making it possible, and the new fitness regime!
A couple of times I had to wonder how Bolton managed to be in 5th place because they didn't really perform. The nearest to an attempt on goal in the first half was a cross that bobbled through to Wildsmith, and their only shots on target were at 56  minutes, 73 minutes and the goal, which should have been a goal kick. But they didn't perform because we didn't let them! And we have done that many times this season, particularly since Mr Warne took up residence.
NML had his defender on toast all match long, Max Bird has stepped up a gear, and our longing for him to toughen up was answered in only the 2nd minute when he bullied a Bolton player off the ball near the corner flag. And his pass to set up the second goal was an absolute peach. I've already mentioned Knighty, and it is good to see Hourihane, who was my least favourite  putting himself about with a bit of passion - I don't know what happened, but he has been a different player since he came back from injury. I don't think there is player who can be singled out for playing badly - yet again. And it is getting to what it was like for Mac 1, and indeed the days of Brian Clough and then Dave Mackay, when we didn't wonder if we could win or draw, but how may we were gong to win by!
Today was a great football match, and I went absolutely bonkers berserk for both the goals - something I haven't done for years, because they were two tremendous goals. I was supposed to walk back to the car after the match, but got there without knowing how - almost as though I had floated all the way back! What a feeling!