AbuDerbyDave

The thing is, how we fare in the Championship (should we get there) doesn’t depend solely on Warne.
It will require Clowes, Pearce, Hale, Thomas, Warne and all the other key people at the club working well to get things right.
The common denominator between teams that go up and prosper and teams that fall flat is not style of play. It’s how the club operates, the resources they have to be able to improve, and how they work strategically to achieve that.
Many think Warne will be the weak link moving forward, but if he has a team of good football people around him and the backing of the board, maybe collectively we’ll be stronger and more switched on than people assume.
 
 

’m a Derby County Supporter.
I go to games to support the club.
I’m proud,positive,passionate,honest, humble,enjoy singing songs that create a positive atmosphere to encourage our team and staff to perform.I don’t slag off Derby County Football Club,the club I love. 🐏🤍🖤

Cledara Abbey Stadium: KO- 15.00
We’re on a mini-run, aren’t we, but despite having our fate firmly back in our hands, the pressure to perform remains; two wins from our last two and we’re back in the sunlit uplands of the Championship; a loss, or even a draw and potentially the pendulum swings again.
It’ll be interesting to see whether we might see one or two back in full training this week, but it’s hard to view the win against Orient as anything other than one of our most complete performances this season and this despite being far from clinical in front of goal. Will the confidence garnered see us approach the game with the same positive approach? One hopes so! Another slip up when seemingly set to turn the screw and inevitably, PW’s management will be under fire. A win and we head back to Pride Park with only Carlisle standing between us and our first promotion since 2007.
Our Opponents:
The club was founded in 1912 as Abbey United, and took the name Cambridge United in 1951. They played in local amateur leagues before joining the Southern League after finishing as runners-up of the Eastern Counties League in 1957–58. Under Bill Leivers's stewardship they were crowned Southern League Premier Division champions in 1968–69 and 1969–70, which helped to secure their election into the Football League in 1970. 

Recent Form & Key Players:
Off the back off two absolute kickings from Reading, 4-0, then a 6-0 hammering from Lincoln, Cambridge were held 1-1 by Northampton before closing out March with a 2-0 loss away to Bolton. April has seen them draw at home to Charlton and lose by the odd goal to Blackpool, before showing better form in defeating Wigan 3-1 at home.
Top of the scoring charts sits Gassan Ahadme with 11, with Fejiri Okenabirhie next best with 9. Ellis Kachunga is next best having netted 6 times in 34 starts. Sully Kalkai tops the assists list with from Jack Lankester and George Thomas with 4 and 3 assists respectively.
Rams Match Squad:
Hard to get away from the 11 that started against Orient, given the resounding nature of the win and the style in which it was achieved. A buoyant Paul Warne confirmed in the post-match presser that everyone came through unscathed and it was interesting to hear him saying that we had more energy coming off a shorter break than was the case at Wycombe, where he felt we lacked energy, despite the 8 day break.
The injury picture remains murky and it’ll be interesting to see whether Gayle and Bird might be fit enough to make the matchday squad. I’ll not bother with my selected 11, as I always get it horribly wrong and the gaffer seems to be doing a decent job matching squads to opponents without our guidance. Instead, here’s the top of the table as it stands:

Don't forget to keep an eye on @Caerphilly Ram's injury updates thread across the week, for any snippets on player's likely return dates. I'll append anything I see to this htread as best I can in any case.
The Promotion Picture:
Some key fixtures tomorrow night, none more so than Bolton’s home game against Shrewsbury, whom we know to be a strong and obdurate side, though one lacking the Trotter’s class edge. I’d expect Bolton to take the points, but should Shrews grab an early lead, it could make for rather tougher game.
Oxford, fresh off the back of their 5 goal hammering of Posh play hosts to Lincoln City, whose charge towards the play-offs has faltered a little in most recently. It ought to be a tightly contested affair and to be honest, I’d not be surprised by any result.
The aforementioned Posh have what appears to be a routine task against lowly Fleetwood, but what will be the aftermath of their humbling at the hands of Oxford on Saturday. Might they have a hangover?
Perhaps the best tie of the round features champions-elect Portsmouth hosting Barnsley. A point will surely suffice for Pompey, but I expect them to win and win well en route to a thoroughly well-deserved title win. They’ve been excellent this season and this despite being one of the few clubs with comparable injury concerns to our beloved Rams. It'll be good to see them back where they belong after some very difficult years of their own.
Of the weekend ties, the most interesting involve Peterborough, who have a tricky away game at Bristol and Bolton host Port Vale. It seems odds on we will be going into the final week needing to beat Carlisle to be absolutely certain of promotion and I doubt too many Rams fans will be counting their chickens early! 
Final Thoughts:
A brief digression is in order to congratulate Eiran Cashin and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, both of whom made the EFL League 1 Team of the Year. Bit miffed that Curtis Nelson was overlooked to partner Cash at CB, as for me, he’s been top of the pops for us, but I doubt he’ll mind too much if we win come Saturday.
A last word as always to all Derby fans travelling to the game, safe journey to and fro, Rams and Ramettes and hopefully plenty of good stuff to chatter about on your way home. Honestly, I think our away support has been as good as any in the entire EFL this season and they’ll hopefully be rewarded with another complete and controlled performance as we ourselves edge closer to that vital 2nd place finish.
COYR
BE MORE B4
 

Is it just me, or does anybody else have no idea what any of this means? 

I was hoping it might be "goodbye".

Really enjoy reading a thesis of why 1 person is right and the rest of the fanbase isn’t 😂

I’m not a statistician, I’ve no interest in whatever any of that means. Although it looks to be something to do with the chances we created against the top sides last season, so if anything your collection of numbers is backing up my “misguided opinion” that THIS season, as in the 2023/24 League One season, we have had more success (you know….actual results in football matches) against the other “top” sides in this league.
Derby County, the club I support, are second in the league in the current season. With a very realistic chance of sustaining that league position and winning automatic promotion to the championship 2 years after the club almost went bust. If you’d rather pour over random statistics to belittle that at every opportunity then that’s your choice but I’ll be quite content with the results we’ve achieved thus far and the ride towards possible promotion….cause for me that’s what football is about. 

Adams Park Stadium
Wednesday, April 10th – Kick-Off: 19.45
Still a full week to go before another match to savour, this time against a club who can sensibly lay claim to having the greatest car park in all of football. So, what is there to say about L1’s perennial not-so-nearly men? Well, they have a fantastic chairman don’t they! Who else would be magnanimous enough to name their ground after our legendary midfield destroyer, Ebou? More to the point, how did he even know Ebou was coming to Derby? Clever chap, I suppose, which is probably why he now owns more ambulances than the NHS. As for Wycombe the town, well some brief research shows that Wycombe is notable only for being surrounded by places that are not dumps. Also, for weighing its mayors to see whether they have been getting rich on the public pound. Oh, The Cornetto Trilogy too, for any Hot Fuzz fans out there.
Moving onto Wycombe FC, well what can I say?
No, really, what can I say?
Oh, alright then! Their Wiki bio states that Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. Founded in 1887, they entered the Southern League in 1896. Despite being around forever though, they’ve won the square root of feck all and in 137 years, have only managed to accrue around 7,000 supporters. I’m no maths whizz, but by utilising my trusty abacus, I’ve calculated that at their current rate of growth, they will hit Derby levels of support in only 508.86 years. Something to look forward to, then.
Key Threats
Well they are two-fold and to be taken seriously; firstly, there’s the threat of legal action and secondly, there’s a very real possibility that they’ll attempt to hoof half our team into the stands. Fortunately for us, we’ve already paid them out, so they’re now feasting on the bones of other clubs in financial strife. Also, their stands are tiny and their team is rubbish, so if any Wycombe player does attempt to half-volley Liam Thomson into the North Stand, he’ll probably miss it altogether.
On the pitch, after a seriously deep dive, the only threats I’ve come up with are Luke Leahy who has amassed 8 goals and 6 assists this season from @40 starts, Dale Taylor with 5 and Joseph Low with 4. I was going to visit their forum to try to discern some interesting insider titbits for you lot; team strategy, injuries, pie quality and the like, but I immediately realised I’d rather eat my own vomit, so I didn’t bother. Feel free to have a gander yourselves though.
The Team
I think we’ll likely see the same starting 11, or very close to it. Fortunately, we now have the aforementioned Ebou Adams, so when they kick us, he’ll kick them back. Several times each, probably. That said, I think if we play our own game and don’t get sucked into Wycombe’s peculiar brand of anti-football, we may well win and win well.
And sadly, that’s all folks, as the pub beckons and in truth, I’d not really counted on us getting past both Blackpool and Pompey and have nothing else prepared. A final note though, for away supporters looking for things to do before and after the game, might I recommend a trip to Henley, Marlow or Windsor instead?
COYR
BE MORE B4

Hi, Pompey supporter with our take on lasts nights game. I think the weather made the game less of a spectacular affair but the players, from both teams, put on a really good display. I thought Derby adapted to the conditions better than Pompey where the conditions negated the effectiveness of our wingers Lane and, especially, Kamara. I suppose you could say the same for Blackett-Taylor & Mendez-Lang, both players I would have liked Pompey to have signed. I think Derby quite possibly had the greater attacking threat on the counter in the first half whereas ours was a little laboured due to not being able to adapt to the conditions. I read with interest of the disagreement with your managers choice of the tactics in the second half. However, without a wonder goal he may well have got it right. Closing players down in those conditions was risky as slipping on the surface could let players in. Portsmouth usually play a closing down game but not so much last night. I think overall a draw was a fair result last night which probably benefits us more than your lot. 
I think the controversial situations were fairly evenly spread out. There was a handball leading up to our equaliser and I think VAR might have ruled out our first goal. Handling the ball by the keeper is a sending off offence normally but I think the ref got it right by allowing for the conditions. I don't think it was a 'nailed on penalty' because I think our player was looking to go down anyway, but on another day it could be given.
I thought it was a proper game of football from two famous old clubs. It was good to see the ground full with a decent away following that made themselves heard, which is normally difficult at Fratton Park. The game, allowing for the conditions, was a good advert for League One where both teams look ready for the Championship. 

Your worth more you’d only do 30p’s worth of damage 

Your worth more you’d only do 30p’s worth of damage 

GF has decided to go for a run. 'I can't bloody think with you screaming at the telly every 5 seconds' she says, before theatrically flouncing towards the door.
'Will you be gone long dear?' I respond. 

Didn’t think cider was supposed to have bits in it 😬 Btw my dad would find this funny. He was said he was tempted to sprinkle a bit of B4 in the sugar bowl in Pride Park’s away changing room last week 😂

So happy to hear that. He got so much flack from so many places. .. think of the names he was called and the gibes that were circulating. None of his supporters said he was a genius but his detractors didn’t see the footballer he is and the sheer graft he brings along with his positional sense and instinct. Sure Gayle is a better striker but Collo is right now a 100% RAM 

Got B4’s ashes with me (and a can of dark fruits). Husband is getting worried about the potential clean up 😂 There’s no way B4 would be missing this match 

Yes as long as they don’t ask me to play.😂

Match Thread: vs Portsmouth (a)
Tuesday, April 2nd, Kick-Off – 8.00pm
Head to Head:
Two grand old clubs who first met way back in 1902 in the FA Cup, a game that resulted in a rather unsatisfactory 0-0 bore draw. The replay at saw us winning the replay 6-3 which doubtless gave the early Rams faithful a little more to cheer. Since then, there’s not been a deal between the two sides, with Derby edging the charts with 42 wins to Pompey’s 35.
Games won: 42
Games drawn: 23
Games lost: 35
The Status Quo:
Well, it’s looking good right now my fellow rams. Likewise for Pompey, who do look near to uncatchable now, though there doubtless remain some happy clappers like yours truly who will still be hoping Portsmouth slip up and what better place for them to begin their demise than in front of their own fans on Tuesday evening? That said, Portsmouth have arguably been THE most consistent side in the division, steadily accumulating wins after a minor, mid-season wobble. It’s fair to say that while they’ve continued their good form, our post-Xmas wobble saw us fall back a little, though if we look at the last half dozen games, we’ve actually outpointed them, indeed only Lincoln, who seem to lay waste to every team they meet right now, can claim to be in better form than our own beloved Rams.

The Key Threats:
There’s little doubt that Cody Bishop is their main striking threat with 16 goals and 2 assists to his name this season, but Pompey can boast other threats, none less than Paddy Lane who has netted 11 times this season, also weighing in with 6 assists. Abu Kamara and Marlon pack have 8 assists a piece, so it’s fair to say that Pompey have multiple attacking threats and they promise to provide us with our toughest game of the season and one in which Nelson and Cashin will need to be absolutely on their A-game if we are to leave with Fratton Park with anything to show for the game.
Team News:
Like most, I was delighted to see Collo return to the fold so swiftly and he looked pretty damn sharp to be honest. Perhaps the ‘rest’ has actually done him well! This is critical as for me, Wash and Waggy look some way off their peak and I suppose, given their lack of games this year, that’s easy to understand.
I was also delighted to see Korey Smith start and for me, he has to stay in the starting 11. He’s not entirely dissimilar to Hourihane, but his mobility gives us more stability, though that said, we did again leave gaps between the press and our back line against Blackpool and if we do so again against Pompey, we might find ourselves in some bother.
With a considerable injury list still hampering his efforts, Warne will again need to marshal his troops carefully and I’d expect a cagey performance from both sides where moments of quality will likely settle the game, rather than one side establishing outright dominance. I’ll drop another update on injuries etc, on this thread nearer the game, but I’d be looking at something similar to what we saw yesterday, with a couple of tweaks:
Firstly, I’ve assumed Elder is once more broken and that we’ll therefore need to use Sibbo in the LB role again. I’d have preferred him starting higher up the pitch, but we have so many missing that it’s a case of needs must. In so much, the back 4 pick themselves.
I’ve kept the same midfield as last week, with Smith again taking the starting role and Conor set to figure later in the game. Adams remains on fire and simply has to start every match now. The only other tweak I’d use would be to play Wash in behind Collo, assuming Jimmy is able to manage 60 minutes at this point in his return. That gives us something like the line-up below, but I do expect this to change, as I very seldom guess Warne’s selection correctly and I’m also hopeful we’ll have one or two more to pick from. CBT, now with some minutes under his belt, appears to be finding some good form and despite our injury situation, we'll have some interesting bench options all the same and perhaps he might even earn a start?


The Game:
I don’t think there’s any doubt that both sides have sufficient quality to punish any errors made and I think this will simply come down to which side best executes their game plan and who is most clinical with the chances they fashion. I’m going for a 1-1 draw with Nate to re-find his scoring touch and secure us another vital point. I think with both clubs and sets of fans riding high, it ought to be a great atmosphere though at present, there is some rain forecast. For anyone making a mini-break of it, please see some 'Things To Do' suggestions and links to some decent eateries below, as suggested by TripAdvisor:
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attractions-g186298-Activities-Portsmouth_Hampshire_England.html
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurants-g186298-Portsmouth_Hampshire_England.html
Enjoy the game my fellow Rams fans and safe journey to and fro.
COYR
BE MORE B4

P.G Wodehouse from the directors box.
 
The Rams, dashed onto the verdant stage of Pride Park this fine afternoon, their hearts aflutter with the prospect of securing three points to solidify their automatic promotion berth. Despite their lengthy injury roster, the lineup boasted an air of resplendence that would make even the most stoic of fans tip their hats to the physio team in admiration.
NML, akin to a modern-day Lazarus, had risen from the infirmary to grace the field, while CBT took his place amongst the starting eleven. Memories of Blackpool’s prior triumph in August lingered like the faint aroma of mulligatawny soup in a humble eatery—a dish best left unstirred.
With a collective determination to erase the memory of their lacklustre performance at Northampton, the Rams elevated their game to dizzying heights. Bradley, orchestrating affairs from the stands with the flair of a seasoned conductor, directed the stewards with a whirl of his arms.
Then, in a moment that shall be etched in the annals of footballing lore, Adams seized upon a loose ball at the precipice of the penalty area, unleashing a half-volley of such precision and velocity that it nestled, like a contented dormouse, into the top corner of the net, a goal that clinched victory for the Rams.
But it was then all hands to the pumps with Cashin and Nelson, akin to gladiators of old, forming an impregnable wall alongside the stalwart trio of Wildsmith, Ward, and Sibley. And lo, the Birmingham Buffalo strode the field with a majesty befitting of ancient monarchs.
As the final whistle heralded relief and jubilation in equal measure, Warne, the tactical maestro, engaged in a spirited dance with Ebou at the centre circle—a spectacle reminiscent of the finest ballroom extravaganzas. Let us now set our sights on Tuesday’s encounter with Pompey, dear reader, and may we waltz past them with the grace and finesse of true champions. Up the Rams!

Makes last week's utter meltdown by many seem a trifle overstated.

Thought we deserved to win well done everyone including Warne 👏

Hang it in the Louvre

Fantastic result. Called away so missed the commentary, but so relieved when I checked the final score. Probably lucky not to have to go through the in-game tension with the rest of you. Well done to the lads. We don't have one foot in the Championship, but I'd say maybe a big toe. Lets hope it can cling on. I fully expect the three teams in the hunt below us to win on Monday. Might even put an accumulator insurance bet on it...

Bearing in mind I  missed the Bolton game due to "Other stuff", I've gotta say, I thoroughly enjoyed this afternoon!
The walk in the sunshine to get there.  The queues at the turnstiles at 14:48.  The grit, determination and effort on the pitch.  The atmosphere from all points of the compass stands.  The cracking view of a cracking goal.  The relief at the final whistle.  The post-whistle celebrations on and off the pitch.  Heck, even the drenching from the 5 minute hailstorm on the way home!
No.  It wasn't a classic.  But it was bloody enjoyable, and I think every single one of us deserved that, after last week's all round poor output.
By jove... I do believe we're on our way... To the Championship, we're on our way...

😂 It wasn't "Warne's approach", it was Rotherham's reality. As soon as any of their players wins admirers, they're off.
When has he ever said anything that supports your theory?

Not going to lie, I thought it would take more than 1 game to prove this prediction wrong.