rsmini

This is why I liked Nigel Clough despite whatever criticism (legitimate or not) he receives on here. He came in & rebooted the Academy at a time when we had so few prospects emerging and that took a few years.  He often would ask a player to fill in at another position (make an attacker deputize at full back) as part of their football education so that they gained an understanding of that role, and it might make them realize their overall responsibility to the team & how they often dovetail together since football is also about units and partnerships.
Lionel Pickering (2003), at the opening of Moor Farm, famously envisaged it as producing a steady stream of Academy graduates into the first team ( a team built on them).
I think we are beginning to see that fruition, but it has often come against a chaotic background of two takeovers (2008) & (2022), perhaps a turnover  of staff, so you wonder how much this has impacted upon it. I do think though, we now have an owner (& manager, as well as any future management) who will buy into it as a resource.

Benjamin Bloom on you tube is very interesting, he loves the EFL and says the promotion run in League one is the best in the 3 leagues. After Saturdays game he is still predicting Derby to win the race for one of the top two spots 
 

I confess I was nervous before the game. They had been on a good run, had a tight defence and, bar the shouting our equals in the ranking stakes. Then you know they have skilled bruisers in attack, Cash injured and Curtis not match sharp. It was going to be tough. A real test.
I was wrong. By dint of 100% effort and faultless concentration we walked it. Oh yes they gave us a game and one slip could have cost us but we didn’t slip, or if we did they weren’t good enough to capitalise or we had the fire to put it right. It was a very entertaining game of footy. A brief period of head tennis in the second half and some nervy moments but we were a well oiled machine. 
 
I like Warne Ball. Pacy wide men crossing the ball, A raider for a 10 in Knighty. String pullers like Bird and Connor and gutsy defenders.
As for them, Big front man looked scary but never cleared his carburettors because we stopped him and their 10 who was a real worker, ran his goodies off all game. Their 15 was a diving, tugging mardy thug. They had (past tense ) a tight defence .. why ? Barks and NML had their wing backs on toast. They looked cumbersome to me. 
 
We played as a team, the spirit and camaraderie is there for all to see. We earned those points big time.
And then there’s that man Knight. Pure 24 ct Gold. If you could launch a battery company that had Knight Power, Tesla and Duracell would be out of business in the blink of an eye. 
 
COYR
 

If Mr Clowes trusts him then that’s good enough for me.

Some good thoughts in the OP. My table (with bold for the changes):
Mac1
Lampard
Mac2
Rowett
Wassall
Clough
Clement
Rooney
Rosenior
Cocu
Pearson
 
I detest mucking about at the back for its own sake. I hate ponderous football. I don't like creating a mentality in which a player's first thought is backwards. I hate it when midfielders come back into defence to collect the ball off defenders, when they should be further up the pitch.
I love attacking at pace. I love players taking the initiative with a quick freekick or throw-in keeping opponents off guard. I like clever attacking set pieces. I want players to do everything to score a goal, to want to shoot and drive forward. I love to see élan all over the pitch, players playing with a smile on their face, a whirlwind of fast movement with both players and ball. A team should have at least as many attack-minded players on the field as defensive-minded players. Their first thought should be forwards. They try things and take risks to score a goal. I like pressing your opponents high as a team and winning the ball back in the dangerous part of the pitch. I like to see variety, continually wrong-footing opponents by sometimes running with the ball, sometimes passing it, going long or playing short, attacking down the wings and through the centre - always having options.
Is that too much to ask? 

I read somewhere recently that Man City are the Harlem Globetrotters of football, all they have to do is turn it on and they can destroy anybody 

Apropos of nothing, but does anybody think the (over) analysis of football and footballers is taking a lot of joy out of the game? In particular, when a new signing comes in and armchair experts and statisticians  have already decided how good he is, where he will play, how many goals he’ll score, how many ‘key passes’ he’ll make, where on the pitch he will spend most of his time and his overall value to the team. I find it really tiresome. Am I alone in that?
I welcome any signing. Can’t wait to see them play and then I’ll judge them after that (not using stats or heat maps, but using my eyes and nearly 50 years of watching football).  

Can I suggest a visit to The Hub Box by the harbour for a beer and a burger. Well worth it ??

So as I was leaving the public toilets at Falmouth Harbour, wearing my Derby County shirt, I was asked “Have they been sold, then?”
It was a Rams fan from Heanor! Small world, eh? Apparently he hadn’t found out last nights news!
A bit remote, is Cornwall!

At the start of the administration process, many moons ago … The land owners of Moor Farm, a local family believed to be the owners of Locko Park. Said that the long lease on the land with DCFC was not a problem and they were happy to continue with it. 
 
Why all of a sudden does this appear to have changed and where has this rumour/information come from?

At the start of the administration process, many moons ago … The land owners of Moor Farm, a local family believed to be the owners of Locko Park. Said that the long lease on the land with DCFC was not a problem and they were happy to continue with it. 
 
Why all of a sudden does this appear to have changed and where has this rumour/information come from?

At the start of the administration process, many moons ago … The land owners of Moor Farm, a local family believed to be the owners of Locko Park. Said that the long lease on the land with DCFC was not a problem and they were happy to continue with it. 
 
Why all of a sudden does this appear to have changed and where has this rumour/information come from?

Sorry, I have to take issue with your point no.2, I can’t remember Newcastle ever playing in a European Cup Semi Final ?

DC is the man who has stepped up to save Derby County, providing a short term loan to the club and taking the ground from MM's hands. Let's forget about MA now, he had his chance...
 

That is a great listen, thanks.
Some interesting takeaways including Appleby setting up a player representation agency (so being able to sell Derby directly to some decent players) & a commercial marketing division that as you mention has had involvement with Barcelona, Man Utd & Spurs. I also didn't realise the depth of his sports experience - being involved with Detroit Pistons in the late 80s will have been an incredible experience. That was a team that won two NBA Championships & directly denied Michael Jordan & his legendary Chicago Bulls team an NBA title until the early 90s.
I'm particularly encouraged by his previous experience with Derby though - he presided over a period starting with the 11 point season & ending in McClaren's first full season in 14/15 when the side should have been promoted back to the Prem. There were mistakes made, not least the money spent in 07/08 by Jewell to try & claim some respectability but the approach thereafter was spot on. GSE appointed a manager who by his own admission was a slow builder & stuck with him despite some dreadful runs (Appleby mentions the 17 defeats in 22 games run in 2010/11). That patience was rewarded with a squad that by 13/14 was ready to launch a promotion assault.
I also seem to recall GSE attempting to influence the culture of the league by proposing FFP (how ironic) & Tom Glick was certainly very prominent as a voice amongst Championship clubs. I wouldn't be surprised to see Appleby take a similar role, looking to advise the EFL on how to better leverage its product from a TV rights/commerciality point of view and even from a parachute payment renegotiation perspective. Appleby's humility, obvious hard work & knowledge would also repair Derby's reputation amongst our peers in the EFL - something which in a club dominated EFL, needs to happen.
He would be an excellent choice as new Derby owner. I look forward to seeing what the next few days bring in terms of developments.