europia

Wasn’t Mel going to put a big extension on the East stand at one time ? A Luxury fan-zone would be nice there . Where fans can sit in comfort at a table , eat , drink and have a pre - match chat . DCFC pay almost £1 million a year to rent PP from Clowes , so a bit of income during the Summer would come in handy also .

Pompy are about to experience ‘nearly there’ jitters after so long in the div1/2 wilderness. They realise they are up against Mr ‘done it all before Warne’ who is hitting his stride at the right time, They will be feeling the pressure in front of an expectant capacity crowd. It’s a night all Derby touch turns to gold. The travelling hordes will be heard away in the Channel Islands. Pompy 0 Derby 3 never in doubt!

We need to avoid defeat tomorrow. Bolton have clawed some of that goal difference back, which could be vital come final game.

Is that, their points deduction round two in May (Take That) another 4pts and relegation.

Delap's injury seems to have knocked them back. Losing at home to St Joke on Friday was a blow. They still have a chance, but others seem to be in better form. It'll be interesting to see what the owner does if they fall short, but no-one is very patient these days, certainly not wealthy owners.

With our current injury situation, it brings back thoughts of the season George Burley miraculously had us on the cusp of promotion. I think it was Rasiak and Idiakez who both got injured at that crucial time, and with that our chance of promotion was gone.   
I should say, there are no other similarities 😉 George had us playing some delightful football back then....

According to Dom Dietrich Warne has said Collins will be involved against Blackpool, as will NML but needs further assessment. 
I know how important Friday could be, but I really hope we don’t take risks with NML. It’s not ideal but I’d play him from the bench on Friday, give CBT chance to show what he can do with Ward or Wilson on the other side then only use Nat if needed. 

Agree re Ward and his crosses, if Gayle or Collins were on the pitch, with Waghorn it would need to be 3 great crosses minimum as he's likely to balloon them over the bar....

With our current injury situation, it brings back thoughts of the season George Burley miraculously had us on the cusp of promotion. I think it was Rasiak and Idiakez who both got injured at that crucial time, and with that our chance of promotion was gone.   
I should say, there are no other similarities 😉 George had us playing some delightful football back then....

Yes, Ward has excellent delivery, possibly best in L1. Of course we then need someone to get on the end of the quality balls arriving in the box. Probably wasted on the likes of Waggy.....

With our current injury situation, it brings back thoughts of the season George Burley miraculously had us on the cusp of promotion. I think it was Rasiak and Idiakez who both got injured at that crucial time, and with that our chance of promotion was gone.   
I should say, there are no other similarities 😉 George had us playing some delightful football back then....

With our current injury situation, it brings back thoughts of the season George Burley miraculously had us on the cusp of promotion. I think it was Rasiak and Idiakez who both got injured at that crucial time, and with that our chance of promotion was gone.   
I should say, there are no other similarities 😉 George had us playing some delightful football back then....

With our current injury situation, it brings back thoughts of the season George Burley miraculously had us on the cusp of promotion. I think it was Rasiak and Idiakez who both got injured at that crucial time, and with that our chance of promotion was gone.   
I should say, there are no other similarities 😉 George had us playing some delightful football back then....

I thought Fapetu showed promise. I’d rather have him than have Waghorn lolloping around like a fat angry bee 🐝 
We need a bit more dynamism. Weston is good but might struggle physically. 
It’s a gamble, but then so is playing older strikers who are not fully fit.
 

Sadly, not inconceivable....

After Saturdays disgrace where a win, in my opinion, would have seen us going into the last match in pole position with a Bolton-Peterborough tussle as the other act, a fourth place finish without the necessary game plan to get it over the line like the Billy Davies side.
Paul thinks we should have a really strong side for the playoffs though with players coming back.  He is a card. Just what I wanted to hear 20 mins after that performance.

Huge weekend you say.

It's pretty hard to keep up with the plethora of injuries and the estimates on how long said players will take to return. Suffice to say it's pretty grim reading in any case and I see some are saying Ebou is now out too. If that's the case, then we're bang in the doodoo I'm afraid, as opposed to our current status which I'd describe as mildly decimated. That said, there's a match to be played, so based on what has been confirmed to date, but is equally subject to daily change, I'd go with the following:
A hopefully more mobile and solid looking 4 at the back, let's start from a solid foundation, at least. I'd have Wilson and Elder either side of the two who pick themselves, Cash and Nelson.
Before the Sibley fan club get irate, he still in my starting 11, I'd just push him right up the field to play off / behind Waghorn and look to make hay with Wilson and Ward paired on the right flank.
CBT remains an unknown to me but he looks the only sensible option we have right now to provide some sort of threat on the left. Lord knows I'd love to see the lad step up, as if ever there was a time to make a name for himself, it's now. He does show promise, but we need something rather more tangible come Friday night.
Elsewhere, Smith comes in for Hourihane. We must front up early and I think we'll be more able to do so without sacrificing too much passing ability, with Korey in a 3 and Conor an option later in the game as legs tire.  Waggy completes the line up, but is only marginally favoured over Washington. I might even be tempted to start the latter as I believe he will stretch defences more than a strangely subdued looking Waghorn. Waggy gets the nod by a  cat's whisker.

 
The starters aside, I'll wait to see who we have available and remotely fit, but even just for the psychological lift, it'd be grand to see Collo tamping at the bit in the dugout. Likewise, could young Jake Rooney figure? Robinson and Weston, along with the skipper and Thommo, seem likely candidates for the bench too.
I do think it's all about this game now. Win and with players perhaps returning the following week (or with another week under their belts at least), we could be back on track. Conversely, slide to another defeat and all momentum will be lost. With Pompey sat in wait, that's a fairly grim prospect, least it is for yours truly.
Suffice to say it's a huge weekend for club and fans and on that note, the first time we've actually had something to play for in a few seasons now, something I've overlooked if truth be told, so that's some small silver lining, at least!
COYR

JK? Didn't realise that fella from jamiriquai was involved 

Certainly not hard done by. Just a lame Derby County performance in a game of such importance. The next two games now looking very difficult, based on Saturdays showing. 

1Wildsmith 5
35Nelson 5
5Bradley 4
6Cashin 5
2Wilson 6
32Adams 5
12Smith 4
4Hourihane 4
17Sibley 4
20Elder 6
23Ward 6
10Waghorn 4
16Thompson 5
27Blackett-Taylor 6
11Méndez-Laing 4
14Washington 4

Certainly not hard done by. Just a lame Derby County performance in a game of such importance. The next two games now looking very difficult, based on Saturdays showing. 

My original point was in response to someone who mentioned the foundations seeming to disappear at any given moment. I don't disagree with you that we've been very good in numerous games, but to me they just seem to be one-off games. Our good performance wasn't through a longstanding progression of play style being implemented throughout the season. Everything seems incredibly short term, which is why we lose games like yesterday - because there's no foundational play style to fall back on once the one-off game plan fails. Yes we were unlucky yesterday and could've drawn or won on another day, but the performance wasn't good either. 
 

Once again, travesty is probably the wrong word. It implies we were hard done by which we weren't.

Agree.  He is here on a two year deal.  At the end of the two year, he and DCFC have no obligation to one another. 
I hope he carries on until the end of the season, and decisions from both parties will clearly be made.  It will hardly be on a level with Brian Clough leaving.  More, that's a shame...anyway, who are we replacing him with?...