Old Sawley Popside

RIP John R. Taken far too early 

I remember Roy Mac's debut at Millmoor, only a kid but he was the best player on the pitch by a country mile! Everybody knew that we were seeing a future international and it confirmed what was beginning to emerge, the Rams were finally going somewhere. The beast was awakening! 

I remember standing on the open end at Selhurst Park and hearing that we had signed Roy.   Most did not know who he was.  We soon did! 

Roy McFarland; Kevin Hector and Willie Carlin.

Roy McFarland; Kevin Hector and Willie Carlin.

The drunken match report is back.
What a day. 
Seeing the people I haven’t seen for a long, long time at the pub. The people I’ve gone all over the country with. To Grimsby, to Preston, to god knows where.
Yes, it’s embarrassing that we had to survive on the final day. But I don’t care. I’ve celebrated us pulling something out of the bag on the final day.
I’ve created a memory that I’ll cherish forever.
I love football. I love Derby County.
Up the bloody Rams.

Perhaps. But also some very valid criticism. He needs to reach consistency now. That was his best performance ever for us. Repaid the fee and faith that WR has shown in him. No longer do I doubt his passion after post-match emotion so come on Waggers we need that week in and week out. 

For me its taken me this long to post. I've struggled like most of us probably, with knowing what even to think. All I distill it down to is we've stayed up and we go again in the same division. In terms of today, Waghorn turned up when we needed him and for me that says a lot. He's had criticism, a lot of it right, but he cared today and he wanted it and when we look back on this rollercoaster, he is a big reason we stayed up. COYR.

Wow! Just wow! What a game! What a day! What an emotional rollercoaster! Forget the reasons why we’ve been in this mad scramble to survive today, the reason we are football fans is for days like today. The inquest recriminations questions about how we move forward can be saved for another day.
The defence (well Craig Forsyth) forgot how to defend today but the team bailed him out and he was massively greatful to his big mate waggy at the end. Foz is part of this club and has been an outstanding servant, he had a beast as Eric Steele said but he’s an honest experienced pro and we need him around going forward.
A common question has been does this team have the heart and the bottle. My word they had it in spades today. They fronted up. Waggy, question his ability all you want but he’s a good honest pro. Lawrence- performed again and was key today. Kaz did what he could. Roberts at last showed his quality and Joz was also good when he came on. 
 
So much emotion after the game from the players who care, and from Rooney who cares. In the emotion today id back him 100% going forward and take everything back. That’s why we should just all enjoy today and then tomorrow our rational thoughts can return (Rooney isn’t the right man) and the inquest can start.
Rooney is right though when he says the club need to start planning tonight and sort out the off field stuff, because next season will be around very quickly and we cannot afford to start on the backfoot again.

Has Alonso been in touch yet to tap you up for a loan? 

Applaud every single fan that went to support the players today, they clearly appreciated it and as supporters that is our role in all this madness.
It’s easy to get behind the team when we’re winning, not so easy to do when you’re in the form we’ve been in.
I don’t care what other club fans say or try to claim it was, you were an absolute credit to this club today and I’m proud to say I’m a Ram.

On the celebration when teams stay up do they look stony eyed, have a quick hand up in recognition of the fans celebration and go home beating themselves up for being awful all season? I think most of the time people are jumping up and down, on their knees crying with relief/joy and releasing their emotions. I am utterly drained after experiencing it as a fan and watching it let alone what playing in a game like that feels like. 

I totally get that we've not been good enough and this applies to both players and staff throughout the season. I'm probably also thought of as one of the more negative people on this forum but today I'm not sure how anyone cannot just feel pure relief and joy that we've avoided the trap door. Yes, tomorrow we can dissect where it's all gone wrong and my gut tells me this is probably a stay of execution rather than anything else and yes I still firmly believe we need a complete clear out. But today, we've avoided something that would have been catastrophic for the club, by hook and by crook we've survived in this division and tonight we've surely got to let everything else go and just revel in that. 

Nope, get rid ASAP 
Mel/ Erik or whoever owns the club next season needs to find out where Chris Wilder lives and go and camp in his garden until he agrees manage us 

I would like a drop of stability off the pitch and a consistent plan on it. None of this (attempting to) adapt to whoever’s style of play, an emergence of our own identity. 
And Bristol City to get relegated, had a look on one of their forums tonight and boy, do some of them dislike us ? 

Hard to put into words in a way, but I'd like it to feel like my club again.

A first team built around Bielik, Jozwiak, Lawrence, Shinnie, Byrne and Buchanan with a squad built around Festy, Sibley, Knight, Bird, Roos, CKR. 
 
Competing in every match with far fewer capitulations. 
 
A pattern or style of play that we become better and better at as the season progresses. 
 
Fans back in the stadium. 

One thing I will say about foz Is he’s been written off so many times yet comes back to prove people wrong.
Might have been part of the collective blame for the Zamora goal at Wembley but he was outstanding in 13/14.
14/15 - also very good until his first ACL
15/16 - missed the season 
16/17 - Came back and was outstanding from the off until his second ACL under Pearson very early season.
17/18 - His worst season by some distance. Painful to watch. Had turning circle of a tank. So obvious he was thinking about his knee in everything he did. I thought he was finished
18/19 - Max Lowe started season and Lamps signed Malone for £3m. Fozzy displaced him to be number 1 left back - looked back to his very best until his third ACL!  Desperate luck.
19/20 - Did ok when he came back under Cocu 
20/21 - Again solid for most part but some very bad games in the run in, no more than today 
He’s not on a big contract. He’s a good solid honest pro. We definitely need to keep him IMO. Hope we can keep Buchanan, he is definitely first choice but Foz is a more than able deputy. The only survivor from Clough and a snip at £150k. Also inspired from Nige to turn him from a left midfielder to a left back 
 

That 97 minutes summed up my life as a Derby fan.
Despair, elation, more despair, more elation, anger, joy, stress, frustration, relief, ecstasy, absolute scenes on my sofa....FaceTime call from me son in Singapore, dozens of  WhatsApp chats, 
Onwards and upwards, come on you great big beautiful Rams
???
 

Both Wycombe & Rotherham should be very proud of their fight, left nothing out there & maximised the talent they have. Ainsworth & Warne definitely deserve the chance to try & replicate success at larger clubs.

Hats off to Roberts. Great goal. The man who most wanted to win today was Martin Waghorn. Hit the post with himself, rattled the whole goal frame. MOTM.

This is the time to rejoice. Waghorn knighted by Mel. Taking Fozzy off saved the day 

If ever 90 minutes encapsulated the unending trauma of being a Derby fan, that was it. 
 
Thought Waghorn was a giant today, and hope Forsyth gets nowhere near a shirt again. 
 
And just because the season has concluded I don’t expect the trauma to end either. 

Well lads time to start getting ready for war to stay in the champership your going to have to fight tomorrow and give it everything you have more if we going to win the battle against relegation and you need to sit in a dark and your selfs fired up and when walk out of the tunnel you need wear that shirt with pride and will to hold colours of black and white shirts and what they mean to this great city of Derby.

pretty sure he has only scored one header, and he certainly offers no movement

I've just seen the BBC article about the online racist abuse directed towards CKR. Someone needs to take these people to task and stop pussy footing around the matter and the culprits given a significant custodial sentence rather than a suspended one with 150 hours of community service. Really it a vile disease which needs to be eradicated.