IslandExile

Exiled down south, I recently went to a charity match: Saints legends versus IoW legends. 
My son, his two friends and me spoke with Matt Oakley for a good few minutes before the players got changed for the game. He was absolutely brilliant with us, just a really nice, genuine guy. 
I told him that I was gutted when he left Derby - true, I was. He said he never wanted to leave but when Adam Pearson came in as director from Hull, he was forced out, so he joined his mate, Steve Howard, at Leicester.
I asked him what he thought of wee Billy because I was never a fan. But Matt Oakley said that Billy Davies was brilliant for him, really supportive in the dressing room. 
He is now a coach with big Darren Moore at Port Vale. Loving that but agreed with me that the big fellah was poorly treated by both club and fans at Wednesday.
Matt went on to boss the game, MOTM, even with some very good players around him.
One other ex-Ram, who played in the game but for the Isle of Wight team, was none other than Gary Rowett. Again, he had all the time in the world to chat with me and the disabled footballers I was with. Again, I didn't enjoy his time as manager of Derby, but he was great as a player in the Jim Smith era. I have to say though, he was a lovely person with us.

Elon Musk is really not the kind of person I'd want running DCFC. Where he goes, a circus typically follows. I've had enough of high profile people using our club as a vehicle for their own ends. 

Treated myself to a hospitality package a couple of seasons ago. Met and spoke to Roy Mac, Roger Davies and Kevin Wilson. All more than happy to chat and came across as lovely characters.

Saw Curtis on Wembley way before Villa, it took him forever to get to where he was going as he stopped for everyone. What a guy.
Dave Swindlehurst was great with us junior Rams, he might have just been doing his job but it seemed fantastic at the time.

As a kid, I used to sneak into the players lounge at the BBG after games to get some autographs. Chris Powell had all the time in the world for me, every week. Some players made it clear it was a chore (but would still sign), but Chris seemed to genuinely enjoy the interaction.
The only negative interaction I had there was with Middlesbrough player Phil Stamp, who already seemed half cut and got a bit aggy because I wasn't interested in his autograph. Arrogant p****.
Of recent years, I've had really good experiences with Curtis Davies, Ian Taylor and Steven Davies (who, for a professional football, was a complete cheapskate but quite shy). I've not met him, but I've been so impressed with the attitude of Ebou Adams and I get the impression he's just a lovely guy.
 

Too many to mention. Curtis, Knighty, Bird, Cashin, Barker, Roos, Ebou, Bryson, Keogh, Russell, Daryl Powell, Moore
In terms of most down to earth, has to be Jake Buxton.

Exiled down south, I recently went to a charity match: Saints legends versus IoW legends. 
My son, his two friends and me spoke with Matt Oakley for a good few minutes before the players got changed for the game. He was absolutely brilliant with us, just a really nice, genuine guy. 
I told him that I was gutted when he left Derby - true, I was. He said he never wanted to leave but when Adam Pearson came in as director from Hull, he was forced out, so he joined his mate, Steve Howard, at Leicester.
I asked him what he thought of wee Billy because I was never a fan. But Matt Oakley said that Billy Davies was brilliant for him, really supportive in the dressing room. 
He is now a coach with big Darren Moore at Port Vale. Loving that but agreed with me that the big fellah was poorly treated by both club and fans at Wednesday.
Matt went on to boss the game, MOTM, even with some very good players around him.
One other ex-Ram, who played in the game but for the Isle of Wight team, was none other than Gary Rowett. Again, he had all the time in the world to chat with me and the disabled footballers I was with. Again, I didn't enjoy his time as manager of Derby, but he was great as a player in the Jim Smith era. I have to say though, he was a lovely person with us.

Exiled down south, I recently went to a charity match: Saints legends versus IoW legends. 
My son, his two friends and me spoke with Matt Oakley for a good few minutes before the players got changed for the game. He was absolutely brilliant with us, just a really nice, genuine guy. 
I told him that I was gutted when he left Derby - true, I was. He said he never wanted to leave but when Adam Pearson came in as director from Hull, he was forced out, so he joined his mate, Steve Howard, at Leicester.
I asked him what he thought of wee Billy because I was never a fan. But Matt Oakley said that Billy Davies was brilliant for him, really supportive in the dressing room. 
He is now a coach with big Darren Moore at Port Vale. Loving that but agreed with me that the big fellah was poorly treated by both club and fans at Wednesday.
Matt went on to boss the game, MOTM, even with some very good players around him.
One other ex-Ram, who played in the game but for the Isle of Wight team, was none other than Gary Rowett. Again, he had all the time in the world to chat with me and the disabled footballers I was with. Again, I didn't enjoy his time as manager of Derby, but he was great as a player in the Jim Smith era. I have to say though, he was a lovely person with us.

Curtis Davies

Kevin Hector. He was our postman for a few years, and lives/lived in Allestree, about a mile from me. He is a really nice guy, and happy to talk with anybody and everybody. A friend of mine lived just along the road from him, and knows him well. Apparently he lives in Spain, so whether he still has his Allestree house I don't know.
Also Brian Clough! AS I drove along Ferrers Way I had to negotiate a Mercedes SLK just stopped in the middle of the road with the driver's door open. Cloughie used to live in Ferrers Way and had simply stopped his car, got pout and was talking with his former neighbour. My wife met him in the Co-op on one occasion, and he offered to buy my middle son some sweets - he was only about 3 years old, but my wife desisted so it didn't get the las into the habit of getting sweets off strangers! And on another occasion he was stood behind an old dear at the till, in the same Co-op, and she was fiddling about trying to fish a loda of shrapnel out of her purse, and it was taking ages, so he simply paid for her whole load of shopping.
it's the Derby way!

Roy McFarland

Kids are crying now. Thanks! 🙄

Premier League are saying there would be 100 more incorrect decisions per year if VAR was scrapped. 5 per team.
They seem to think this is a strong argument in favour of VAR.
I'd so readily wear one extra incorrect decision every 8 games, to be able to celebrate in the moment a goal gets scored. Awful development.
 

I was hoping for 'one'.

It's not you but the club website info doesn't tally with what is actually the case ie manual uninstall/reinstall needed.
"If you have automatic updates enabled you’ll be able to access the new app immediately, otherwise head to the Apple App Store or Google Play to update or download the official Derby County app today."

I was hoping for 'one'.

I was hoping for 'one'.

I was hoping for 'one'.

I was hoping for 'one'.

I was hoping for 'one'.

I was hoping for 'one'.

I was hoping for 'one'.

"new app, same as the old app..."
It's just an update.

You’re probably right but this latest action feels as if it could be seismically shifting of the game itself, whichever way it goes.
The soul of the game in the sense of relatively equal competition that allowed, for example, us as an East Midland club with a proud and long history to reach the pinnacle of the game in this country and, importantly, stay there for several years, is long gone. Likely never to return. When clubs are owned by countries and extraordinarily wealthy ones at that, with aims of a financial free for all and overturning the status quo, ignoring the rules that don’t suit, then the whole sport had better be wary. Today the PL, tomorrow UEFA, the day after FIFA, or control of their competitions anyway.
If the PL lose then the domination of the wealthy few gets worse and worse; if they win they will not only create the most godforsaken administrative mess as they work out who really won what over the last 10 years (and generate endless other disputes in the process) but they will also have to cede authority in a number of areas to keep the other major players happy; if it’s a PR draw, and all the charges are dropped, then the richest get stronger.
I am so glad I have lived my era, seen my football, seen a game and sport with some reasonable approximation of soul.