Andrew3000

Any Smiths fans in Derby ranks? I always find myself singing: 'He was a sweet and tender Hourihane.'
 

Hi Rams fans,
Have been following your forum for a wee while and thought I'd stick my nose in.
Registering took a while but I got there in the end, so.
To quote Neil Young, 'Tonight's The Night'. I guess tonight's game isn't pivotal, but things might be a little clearer..
Last night's results didn't help either of our clubs, in the end it's in our own hands.
Main reason for joining Rams board is the family split that exists....I am Pompey, my son is Derby., He and I have had
little contact due to past ructions between his mum and I...Last time I saw him he was a part time Celtic fan. (He was
born in Scotland, where I lived and was married for some 20 years. I took him to see a couple of Pompey games but
he wasn't impressed, took him to my school where I was a goalie...unimpressed. It was only when my ex remarried that
the Rams bug seemed to bite. Dunno if picture will show on this thread.
Tonight will be interesting, even if it's a dull game. A draw would suit us fine and I have to say that our final games fill
me with some dread. We had a 'blip' earlier in the season and recovered. This time, any blip will not be recoverable.
I have followed Pompey for over 55 years (youngsters refuse to believe me when I tell them we have an innate ability
to mess up just as we're about to cross finishing line. (I guess this is what attracted me to Hearts when in Edinburgh,
very similar ground, fan base and fatal flaws!) How you can beat us....classified I'm afraid but we have some very obvious 
weaknesses you can exploit. Don't go into game looking for a point, teams that have done well at Fratton have come out
and taken game to us.
Why are we top of the league? Many fans mutter 'They're nothing special..have seen much better' These fans are often right.
Many of our performances have been sub-optimal BUT the one aspect that has run through most games is a newfound
belief that, even if we o 0-2 down, the situation is recoverable. Games last 95 minutes or so these days...we manage to keep
believing the situation is retrievable. It's this that has sent us to the top...plus a pretty stingy defence, a creative midfield
and strikers who, on their day can tear any League One side to shreds. Last game against Wycombe their left back wanted
to go off suffering from 'twisted blood'. (Gag borrowed from Man Utd, George Best joke.) On their day, Kamara and Yengi,
supported by Bishop and Saydee are a real handful.
Lat night's results went pretty much according to form but previous games have shown all the maths and super computers
in the world simply cannot predict what will actually happen.
I hope you guys go up....Derby are a 'proper' club, part of the game's history BUT...so are we. Nobody has a divine right to be
'top of the tree'.....Anyone else remember the hushed tones from tv pundits when the mighty Man Utd were relegated?
It was as if there had been a death in the family.
Treat both success and failure as imposters....keep supporting your club. Good luck to all Rams making the journey down..
I see a few travelled down over the weekend and have already sampled some of our local beers.
All the best Rams...., Nick 
 
 

A couple of weeks away from his next injury!

1Wildsmith 7
2Wilson 7 Buffalo girls go round the outside!
35Nelson 8 
6Cashin 8
17Sibley 6.5 Great effort, great crossing, great shot. Unsurprisingly, doesn't have the positional sense needed.
23Ward 7
10Waghorn 6
32Adams  8 .5 Foot like a traction engine. Thriker!
12Smith 6.5 Tidy.
4Hourihane 6
27Blackett-Taylor 6.5 slow,slow, quick, quick slow.
16Thompson Quick feet, kept ball well.
11Méndez-Laing 7
22Fornah 6 
14Washington 6 I was upset at his lack of pressing, but it was clearly an instruction from the manager/coaches.
Collins 6.5  Tenacious,  wardrobey.

1Wildsmith 7.5 - Solid performance from Joe. He'll never be the best distributor of a ball, but he's a more than able stopper. I hope he's not already elsewhere in his mind and will consider re-signing should we go up.
2Wilson 7.5 - Kane is re-finding his form after a small lull and looked close to peak again. Love how he can always fashion time on the ball and he was disciplined when out of possession.
35Nelson 8.0 - Such an important player for us and yet again, he and Cash did (just about) enough to ensure a clean sheet and 3 points. I think he's a better player in a back four, though he's not exactly shabby in a 3 either!
6Cashin 8.5 - Excellent again from Fozzy'z natural heir as Mr Derby. Work ethic, determination, defensive ability, the lad's got the lot and he needs to be tested at a higher level. He's better than L1 standard by some way IMO.
17Sibley 7.0 - Another disciplined performance and there was obviously a gameplan to allow him to get forward at every opportunity. Folk, myself included, can argue he's better higher up the pitch, but right now we need him at LB and he's doing just fine.
23Ward 7.0 - Quieter than of late, but a decent outing all the same. Between him and Sibbo (and Conor off the bench), we have some serious set-piece options. Small wonder Collo has hurried back!
10Waghorn 6.5 - Median plus .5 for the win
32Adams 8.5 - Is this guy even human? had around 10 starts and has been my MOTM for at least 6 of them. Well make that 7 now, as one again he was everywhere and the mid-air volley off the outside of his right boot for the game-winner was straight out of the top drawer. First signing of the new season please Mr Clowes! 
12Smith 8.0 - Been touting him for a few weeks now and I think he's repaying the faith in spades. He's a lad with more technical ability than I'd figured, he works hard, but is a calming influence and he's a very good passer of a ball. He has surely nailed down the starting post next to Adams in CM now, hasn't he?
4Hourihane 6.5 - Did ok when he came on - Median plus .5 for the win
27Blackett-Taylor 7.5 - Looks to be relaxing a little and finding some confidence and I've noted that RBs do tend to stand off him a bit. he has some tricks and looks pretty sharp over the ground too. He needs a goal to get him properly up and running, but this was another improved showing.
16Thompson 6.5 - Early season the lad looked super sharp, but injury and lack of game time have not helped his cause and he's not really kicked on as a consequence. He's not the biggest, but he's a scrapper and he has way more technical ability than we are seeing currently, of that I feel certain, but it's hard to know whether he'll stay if he's not going to be afforded gametime. I really hope he does.
11Méndez-Laing 7.0 - Nate has been a bit shy of his admittedly lofty standards in recent games, though not always in his favoured role, admittedly. Always works like a Trojan though and with Collo returning to the fold, we just might see a return to the more destructive and fearsome NML we have regularly seen earlier this season. When we were first linked and he ended up at Cardiff, I was gutted, but the wait was worth it. Top lad and top player.
22Fornah 6.5 - Did ok when he came on - Median plus .5 for the win
14Washington 6.5 Needs to play alongside Collo, not instead of him, I think. I do think he can score goals at this level, but he perhaps understandably, still looks a yard or two off it, though I've a hunch he'll chip in with a critical goal or two before season end.
9Collins 7.5 - Cometh the hour... Honestly, I think Collo is probably an alien as no human recovers from a nasty injury like that as quickly as he has. Gayle initially helped us paper over the cracks, but when he got injured too, I feared the worst. I need not have! Looked c lose to his bristling and annoying best yesterday and with him basically battering CBs, others should find time and space. Welcome back Jimmy lad, it's great to have you in the side again.
WarneWatch - I think he's been pretty shrewd recently. It can't have been easy and while other teams have players out too, not a whole a starting 11 like we did briefly. He'll be delighted to see Collo back and with others now firmly on the mend too, he can once again start to set up sides to play his way. I thought we were quite reactive against Blackpool, which is not ideal as they are no mugs, but I thought that we were the better side and value for the win. I find it strange that folk are still whining about the performance, given the catalogue of injuries, but I find myself past caring now. Those that go to most games seem pretty happy and that's always been a decent indicator that things are going quite well. A decent team selection, a controlled performance and a clean sheet, we'll need to be much better against Pompey, but we'll hopefully have a healthier and sharper squad, if only marginally and I don't think we should be fearing them. Well done then to PW, the coaches and the lads on another step towards a return to the Championship.

At times like this there only one thing for it ,,, channel your inner George formbey,,,,
turned out nice again 🤷🏻‍♂️😀
say more tomorrow,im just too happy tonight 

Those new eco balloons aren’t very good are they

She will be found out at championship level🤷🏻‍♂️

Maybe Barks and Hammy bundled him in the car after Tuesday game?

All true, but reading and listening to Blackpool fans has massively encouraged me. They fanny about at the back and if pressed lump it long to no one. Goalie is a good shot stopper but struggles to command on crosses. Their attack has relied on Rhodes and they have one creative threat in Dembele.  Midfield tends towards sideways and backwards possession. Wingbacks not great.  So, of course they have had some good results against top sides and are good enough to capitalise on our mistakes, but I think these are encouraging signs that we can impose ourselves on them. Collo will feature, possibly even NML. 
What have I done by airing this publicly?

All true, but reading and listening to Blackpool fans has massively encouraged me. They fanny about at the back and if pressed lump it long to no one. Goalie is a good shot stopper but struggles to command on crosses. Their attack has relied on Rhodes and they have one creative threat in Dembele.  Midfield tends towards sideways and backwards possession. Wingbacks not great.  So, of course they have had some good results against top sides and are good enough to capitalise on our mistakes, but I think these are encouraging signs that we can impose ourselves on them. Collo will feature, possibly even NML. 
What have I done by airing this publicly?

A little bit of Daniel at Pride Park forever ❤️ Give him a wave when you pass the east stand 🐏

Having advocated for him initially to get games in the cup ties, my ardour cooled a little at the prospect of him being around the 1st team, but surely he has to be in the reckoning now. He's literally the only striker we have fit, match sharp and scoring for fun, albeit at a significantly lower level. I'd be seriously considering getting him back to PP while his confidence is sky high.

Get you a commentator that's excited when his team scores as this guy. Can we sign him for Radio Derby?

Lovely stuff. Good header for the first, lovely run and finish for his second.

I like the fact the commentator keeps calling him Dijon Brown too. He really cuts the mustard.

It's great that he's showing he can stand up to a physical test like the National League and produce the quality that he's been doing for the academy.

Gone from being a beast vs young skinny lads to being a beast in men’s football. Long May it continue. 

I always said he just needed a run of games to adjust to men's football by gaining that sense of "belonging" in men's football. The minimum he should be playing next season is L1, and depending on his pre-season, could even be with our first team in the Championship. Is it 9 goals and 2 assists in 14 games now (half of the games were 10 mins off the bench)? He would be exactly the type of signing we should be looking at signing if we fail to go up, so has to be in with a serious shout next season.

One of their well known members has been keeping a close eye on Sonny Bradley
 
”we’ll be playing 3-5-2 and passing around the back for ages to keep the ball, until of course we’re pressed and then we’ll pass it back to grimmi, who will hoof it upfield hoping to find one of our players, who might just get a break if one of their defenders falls over.”

Weston for the last 20 against tired legs would be my call. Will only work when we are playing on the break but he is much better at avoiding the offside trap than Waggy or Wash! And he can finish.

I'm pretty sure Collins will be on the bench at very least. Why have him on the pitch doing running drills against Northampton? He wasn't in the squad, he could have done running drills privately if it absolutely had to be done on that day, or he could just use the extra week to build up more fitness.
It was almost a show-off to the fans that we have a striker coming back to soften the blow of losing Gayle. I don't see any other reason, when else have we had an "injured" player who wasn't in the squad warming up before a game?
I don't think he will start because it would be too risky to lose him again, but if things aren't going too well at half-time, I think JC may make his return on Good Friday.

When players have been out injured for a long time, they often take a while to start scoring a lot of goals if their going to get to that point at all.
We don't have a lot of time, so will Washington and waghorn just make up the numbers on the pitch without scoring.
Do we have the luxury of waiting for them to start regularly scoring

Carries a great deal of risk given that we are unlikely to beat Portsmouth and we still don't know collins and Washingtons exact return date or how quickly they will be back to scoring.
Bolton has an opportunity to overhaul us.
Portsmouth is a game we could easily lose.
 

Now with Barkhuizen and NML out and Waggy being poor, does this cause a rethink?. Yes Collins is coming back but hes our only true focal point.  Washington and Waggy are not that. Brown could be useful from the bench.