Wistaston Ram

I got home earlier than expected from parents home. Checked for tickets in home fans at 5.15 and I'm here now!

Cracking view of the carpark. No buses parked tonight hopefully.

Cracking view of the carpark. No buses parked tonight hopefully.

Cracking view of the carpark. No buses parked tonight hopefully.

Just arrived in Oxford , off for a few beers , good luck to the lads tonight , safe trip for fellow Rams who are travelling , COYR

1Wildsmith 6
24Nyambe 7.5
35Nelson 8.5
6Cashin 8.0
3Forsyth 7.5
2Wilson 7.5
22Fornah 6.0
8Bird 7.5
4Hourihane 7.5
5Bradley 6.5
20Elder 6.0
7Barkhuizen 7.0
19Sibley 6.0
11Méndez-Laing 6.5
9Collins 7.0

Back home after a very satisfying performance, just lacking the goals we deserved.  Sat with the home fans who were very impressed with how we played, less so with Wigan who were a shadow of the team who played at Pride Park. Looking forward to Oxford and nothing to fear if we can reproduce the performance, desire and hard work of today.

Honestly, almost from the first minute, it never felt like a game we could lose, despite the wasted chances and a scoreline that suggests a close match-up. The fact is, we absolutely battered this lot. For nigh on 70 minutes, they were chasing ghosts and some of our football was as slick as I've seen since Mac1. Our work off the ball was excellent too, by far the best I've seen under Warne, with a bristling Conor Hourihane at the heart of it. I think we've got the old man fit at last and we're a better side for it. Some consistency now please skipper! As much as anything, that off the ball work the lads were putting in today is what gets the coaches purring. That and clean sheets.
So where do we stand? On this kind of form, where we're beating teams quite comfortably, even in games where we are not playing at our best, I reckon we are a prime candidate for the autos. Our defence seems impregnable, bar occasional brainfarts (we are in L1 after all*) and we remain a tad goal-shy on occasions*, but we are now starting to exercise real control in games. Critically, I think there's still gears left in this side and in fitness terms, the value of a full pre-season this year is clear to see. Some kudos to Warne on that score, at very least. Some are only just now finding their legs (see Hourihane), whilst NML can now run flat out for 70 to 80 minutes, when last season he was gassing out before halftime. We may not have the searing pace of youth that some sides boast, but we'll run harder for longer than most in this division and I genuinely believe think we'll finish as strongly as we have done in a very long time. Like butcher's dogs, this lot.
A last thought would be around the transfer window. My mindset has changed on this in recent weeks, mainly because the lads are stepping up and filling what I'd considered to be gaps. I no longer think of this window as 'critical', though I obviously agree that a couple of decent signings might further strengthen our chances, hopefully without disrupting what appears to be a well settled squad. Wanting a statement win against Oxford to take us into that window might perhaps be greed on my part, but I can see us doing, it at which point Derby County become the fox in the henhouse with everyone else just hens. Honestly, that's how I see it right now. Few will want to play us, that's for sure and that will present some new challenges, I concede, but taking a pragmatic view, that's quite a luxurious 'problem' to have. I can't say I've watched a lot of the other teams in and around the top, but on what I have actually seen, there's no side we should fear. Quite the opposite.
A swift closing doff of the cap to Curtis Nelson. It seems a case of, Curtis is dead, long live Curtis, as we've lost one warrior to father time, but found another in his stead. He and Ryan Nyambe are our best signings in feckin years and just look at how they've got Eiran playing. £3 million? Brighton can feck right off! Somehow, old man Fozzy keeps running through the pain and that back 4 is a collective monster right now. Frankly, if anyone gets us promoted, it'll be those lads.
COYR
 
 
 

And Derby County U21s to win the EFL Trophy

Back home after a very satisfying performance, just lacking the goals we deserved.  Sat with the home fans who were very impressed with how we played, less so with Wigan who were a shadow of the team who played at Pride Park. Looking forward to Oxford and nothing to fear if we can reproduce the performance, desire and hard work of today.

Back home after a very satisfying performance, just lacking the goals we deserved.  Sat with the home fans who were very impressed with how we played, less so with Wigan who were a shadow of the team who played at Pride Park. Looking forward to Oxford and nothing to fear if we can reproduce the performance, desire and hard work of today.

Back home after a very satisfying performance, just lacking the goals we deserved.  Sat with the home fans who were very impressed with how we played, less so with Wigan who were a shadow of the team who played at Pride Park. Looking forward to Oxford and nothing to fear if we can reproduce the performance, desire and hard work of today.

See you at Wigan on Boxing Day. 

Last time I predicted a run of three games, I was castigated for saying that I would be happy with a point from Stevenage (might have been useful in hindsight), so to spare me the wrath of 'the spirit of the 70s champions' I'll say nine points (although I would be happy with a point from Oxford!)

4 of us leaving shortly to go and support the U18s at Old Trafford tonight, want to wish the lads luck and make us proud , a tie with Swindon awaits the winners COYR

I think both players are available as the cut off point for five bookings was last week?

She's fine she told them to f*** off 😂😂

Agreed, like any ref she may have made a couple of contentious calls but mostly she suffered from a home crowd unhappy that she rightly booked a number of Derby players early doors. So many supporters don’t know the rules re making an injured player leave the field…if they are injured because of a tackle that warrants a caution then they do not have to go off! She was getting loads of criticism for this when she was right!

I think both players are available as the cut off point for five bookings was last week?

I think both players are available as the cut off point for five bookings was last week?

I think both players are available as the cut off point for five bookings was last week?

I was actually grateful that one of the locals came outside his house and told me. I did a drive round and saw the new signs up. They were up as you entered the area from London Rod but each individual road didn’t have any specific signs. Looks like he saved me £60.
 
I saw one car afterwards on the street (where at the end of it is a little car park and people often park on the grass verges) with a ticket on but it could have been from today or an older one.
 
Evening games are OK after six.
 

I think both players are available as the cut off point for five bookings was last week?

Im not having a pop or looking for an argument .. cos have had enough of that for one night 
but just asking u genuinely, u say she was poor 
but the nml one was as sure as day yellow, the CH one was also the same .. aka overran it and launched recklessly into the challenge and the sibley one was sibley being his usual reckless self.. so no complaints on her there.
birds obviously was too
the collins / their fella one probably could have avoided yellows but lets be honest anytime players do that at any level its always “here a yellow each, now feck off” 
so its the pen, which tom barks has already said in interview “wardy got caught the wrong side and clipped him” and the nml where the defender played the ball and caught him on the follow through which shaun barker and rams tv didnt think it was either
i dont think she did a lot wrong tbh,  our players though … good grief
I didnt think we warranted more than a point but goes without saying gutted to not have walked away with more 
But onwards and upwards 

Rubbish.
She got every major call right.
Warne had no arguments with the bookings or penalty.
She could have been tougher on their time wasting and general shithousery, but every booking was correct, as was the penalty.Hourihane could have had a red.