Ramrob

Dear Daniel,
I know you've been doing quite a lot of work up there over the past few weeks, in helping us get to the position we find ourselves in.  I understand if you had a night off when we played Northampton, you were probably too busy having a cuppa with Sir Brian & Reich Carter, but if you can see your way clear to have an unconscious word in each of the lads' ears before they step out onto the pitch at 12:25, to be the bravest, best versions of themselves for the next 90 odd minutes we'll all be eternally grateful.  And if we manage to get what we need, you'll be up there, waving your flange with gusto and cheering them on with the rest of us.
🫶

Never met Daniel but spoke on here and have thought about him a fair bit this week in the build up to this and how out of control with loads of rallying threads he would have been on here this week 😂
I like to think he and the many others who saw the recent deep trough we were in but are now sadly missed will be there doing their bit from above to help get us back up

He would be adamant (not the Prince Charming version) that the Rams are going up. He wouldn’t hear anything to the contrary. He would also look like the a DCFC Michelin man with numerous layers of scraves and flanges. I will be taking one of his scraves with me tomorrow. 
Typing this has made me a bit sad. I would often buy Dan DCFC hats, scraves, hoodies etc for Christmas so he would be warm at matches. His favourite hat I gave him had a leather DCFC badge on the front. My dad told me he couldn’t find it before a match one day and was so upset he thought he had lost. It turned up at home a couple of days later. These memories tug at the heart strings. 
 

If we go up, surely recruitment would have to be considered a success as we will have completed a key objective? Being overly critical of recruitment seems harsh when no club gets every move right.
Warne, Thomas and the club have made mistakes, there’s no denying that. The signings of John Jules and Embleton were always a huge risk and never looked likely to pay off, for example.
But on the whole, they have got plenty right. Adams, Wilson and Nelson have become important first team players and each of them is playing a key role in a promotion push. Gayle and Nyambe have shown their class and surely would have contributed more if not for injuries.
Even signings that have clearly not lived up to expectations have still contributed across the season to a winning team. Ward, Bradley, Waghorn, Washington and Elder have all played a role and contributed to the team earning important results at one time or another.
There are even signings that have disappointed so far - CBT and Fornah - who may benefit from a clean slate in pre season with the hope of there being more to come.

I don't disagree - but if we go up, it would be churlish to deny him the opportunity to manage the club in a higher league, because the alternative is always somebody who is either untried or someone who has failed elsewhere.
There are some on here who would be prepared - nay, willing - to sack him now (or after Saturday, irrespective of the result against Carlisle). The problem with that is threefold:
Compensation required to pay off Warne and the rest of his staff Compensation required to pay off the club whose current manager we subsequently poach The 'new' manager finding that his budget for the next transfer window is missing the amounts paid out due to 1. and 2. above.

Not sure which ones to take…

Cardiff are not looking like the good guys in this. He'd completed the transfer, he was their player, they should pay what they owe.
 

Summer window:
Curtis Nelson.     10/10
Callum Elder.     5/10
Joe Ward.           6/10
Sonny Bradley.    6/10
Josh Vickers.       6/10
Kane Wilson.         7.5/10
Martyn Waghorn.    6/10
Conor Washington.  5.5/10
Tyrese Fornah.        4/10
Elliot Embleton.        NA
Ryan Nyambe.        8/10
Tyreece John-Jules   5/10
Winter:
Ebou Adams.        10/10
Dwight Gayle.        8/10
Corey Blackett-Taylor 6/10
Max Bird*.              7/10
 
 
Obviously Adams and Nelson have been the stand outs, If Gayle stayed fit we’d of been up now and quite comfortable, could of even been looking at winning it in my personal opinion, few on there have been ok just killed by injuries including Wash and Elder, Bradley has shown why he was brought in he’s clearly a leader and loves a fight (little too much) overall they’ve all played a part baring Embleton, Fornah hasn’t done much but did get the assist for the win vs Bristol rovers, not a bad couple windows under restrictions, do think if CBT can get a goal we’d start seeing the best out of him 

Can't help but wonder what kind of rallying cry B4 would have written for the players and us this weekend. It would usually land about now

B4 our hyper-optimist, wish he could have been with us now for the last leg.
But ,hopefully, this weekend we will get the promotion he would have wanted.
Waving a scrave and lifting my flange in his honour when we make it.
COYR!

Me too.  I remember having a couple of pints on the Friday night - OK, a bit more than a couple.  On the Saturday morning I listened back to the Sportscene show while doing my morning dog walk.  When Ed broke, I broke.  I was walking round the village with tears running down my cheeks.  It was the same when I listened to the interview with David Clowes 1 year on.
The thing is, it’s more than the football.  I’ve made new friends through Derby County with the people I sit with.  During COVID, in some ways I missed a couple of beers and the banter as much as I missed the match. If wasn’t for The Rams we would probably never have met, yet here we are 20+ years later.  Sadly, we lost one of our little group earlier this year.  So come on Derby, let’s get this done for those who are here, and our absent friends!!

I think Warne is trying to make everyone part of Saturday’s excitement.
Training with ‘the lads’ will boost their spirits and make them feel part of a winning
 We can’t risk having players on the bench who aren’t fully fit. If a forward gets injured after ten minutes would either Gayle or TJJ be able to play 80?
I don’t think so.
Shame, because the two Ws play like, well two Ws.
 

As we approach the Carlisle game, I wonder what Warne will say to the players? I'm reminded of this fantastic pre-match speech to his Rotherham team. This is the best of Paul Warne. Expect we'll see it on Saturday:
 

It'll be bittersweet for me come Saturday.
My lads decided to make a new life for himself, literally on the other side of the earth.
So we'll hopefully be celebrating, but in my mind I'll be thinking it may be the last time we ever stand together at Pride Park, at least for the foreseeable. 
Still, we've had a good run, what better way to sign off than a promotion?

Just one of the YouTube channels in Guatemala that follow everything Mendez Laing does at Derby
 

I am shocked that that compilation doesn't include Ed Dawes' very emotional speech from when we were saved - voice cracking and everything.
For some reason, that's the bit I remember most.

I must be easily pleased, as I'll be celebrating like a mad thing if we clinch promotion on Saturday and right now I couldn't care less about Premier League football.

Zip your fly’s up, that normally helps 

I understand your frustration at wanting to see exciting, flowing football through all areas of the team with midfield dominating and passing through the lines. But I would argue we just haven’t had the players to do this the way you want.
The first point I would make is that you are assuming that at every stage of every game, the players are doing exactly what is asked of them by the management team. I don’t believe this. They don’t encourage players not to pass to each other - they don’t encourage them not to attack the opposition. I have lost count of the number of times in his interviews after the game where he has “criticised” his players for not being braver on the ball and in games. The matches at the end of the season are slightly different as all that matters is gaining 3 points (e.g. Cambridge).
the fact is that our midfield (until Adams arrived) was weak - physically, aggressively and pace wise too. We were bullied off the ball too much, waltzed around by younger, quicker players (Peterborough). We just did not have the right players in there to compete. Before Adams arrival we didn’t have anyone in there who could be aggressive, have any pace or could tackle. Fornah was tried for a while but ran out of steam and made mistakes. At least playing 3 at the back, gives you more potential bodies in midfield with the wingbacks available to help out, but even them, unless it was Forsyth or Nayambe, they we’re not tacklers. Added to this was poor movement off the ball and poor passing. Unfortunately, Hourihane is no longer mobile enough to dominate midfield and we have looked better since he has not been in the side.
Our midfield needs a complete overhaul in the summer. Hopefully we can get Adams in permanently but we need others of similar ilk and also a good playmaker. I think Warne was trying very hard to get the right midfielders in, but it just didn’t happen until Adams arrived.
Finally, I would add that with all the injuries we have had this season (Ward, Elder, Forsyth, Rooney, Bird, Waghorn, Washington, Nyambe, JJ,Embleton,Thompson,Gayle,Barkhuizen), Warne has done a remarkable job in patching us up but still managing to pick up points. Admittedly, not in the exiting way we would all want to see, but there have been some good footballing performances too. Plenty of goals have been scored too (9 more than last year despite losing our talisman McGoldrick). 
All in all, I think we have done pretty well, but I think you are wrong to lay all the Blame on Paul Warne for our less exciting displays - much is down to the players too. I am sure we will recruit well during the summer.

It’s time to change my username. There is only one David round here and it ain’t me.
David
Break that into 2, Day vid
Keep it short, Day
Why not Dave? I hate it.
Hope that explains that.

1st of July.. when the commentary got to that bit, I welled up. Not ashamed of it. Just shows how much a part of me DCFC has been since my first game back in 1961. I don't think I'll be the only one to feel that emotion. 
Always have been, always will be... Derby Till I Die

For those of a nervous disposition regards Saturday………here’s some chill medicine! 👍😁
Review of the match, pinched from the Carlisle forum.
Derby need a point for promotion and this can do funny things to you mentally. However, some pointers which may settle them down somewhat. There is staggering 69 point gap between the sides. They’re +78 ahead of us on goal difference. Home record for Derby, played 22, won 14, drawn 4, lost 4 – scored 39, conceded 18. Two of those home defeats came in August against Wigan and Oxford. They also lost against Peterborough on New Year’s Day and Charlton at the end of February – but since then have won their last five home games.
Last but not least, we have a Derby legend running our team. He has more appearances for the Rams and scored more goals than for any other club. Is he really going to be trying to win this fixture and potentially deny them promotion? Hmm…
Derby’s a decent away day, so those of you lucky enough to be in attendance - please take a second to take it all in, it may be a very long time before we “enjoy” a Saturday afternoon fixture in the sun at ground and club like this again, so make the most of it.

…………..all seems fair comment to me. 👍