Derby County Versus Wolverhampton Wanderers U21 - Match Day Thread ( EFL Trophy )

[Anag Ram]

Call me old fashioned but I was just quite pleased we won.

[jono]

1 hour ago, whiteroseram said:

Few random, not joined up thoughts 

Nice to see Vickers out the obviously

Brown looked to be dropping too deep for his strengths, not sure if it was the role he was being asked to do (suited Weston more) or whether it's a learning curve for him. Will still benifit him

Weston looked interesting, he'll be a sub often enough now I reckon 

Confidence for Collo, talk about the level of opposition but that 3rd is beating anyone and the quality of the cross and header for the 2nd would score against league 1 sides, which brings me to... 

Kane Wilson going forward was doing what he and Ward were brought in to do in that RB slot,big part of how PW wanted to play and hasn't been able to. That's interesting because Ryan Nyambe has arguably been our most consistent player this season but plays it differently. If you're going to play Wilson /ward to get those crosses in you have to play Collo... Some interesting selection choices going forward

Minutes for Elder, I was excited by his signing so that's brilliant news

Sonny getting a horrible error out at the right time 

Good to get some more of the U21s playing along side senior lads, even if it's against another U21s 

Win is a win 

And that’s the thing the anti PW brigade conveniently miss. If we steer clear of injuries I get the feeling that a developing Wilson and a fit Ward might just see us being a lot more effective in front of goal when Warne ball might suddenly become a lot more attractive.

[admira]

10 goals scored in a week, really enjoyed watching that. Don't care who the opposition are, always happy when we win.

[Comrade 86]

28 minutes ago, Anag Ram said:

Call me old fashioned but I was just quite pleased we won.

I think most were mate, or as pleased as one is ever allowed to be on this forum these days without wizened heads informing us we have to downgrade assessments because (insert some vague waffle here). We could have won 6 or 7 nil with the chances created and their goal being one of the only worthwhile attacks they had and going wide in any case, before Cash's touch.  They were poor but we absolutely battered them and that with 8 academy products involved across the game. I mean seriously, what's not to like?

Maybe we'll be back down to earth on Saturday. There's no doubt that Barnsley will provide a far sterner examination of any progress made than the Wolves nippers did last night, but why can't folk be allowed to enjoy the good times without the all the sneery cynicism? A lot of us didn't want Warne in the first place, yet have to listen to some of those who rammed him down our throats prattle on about why it's actually us who got it wrong. Selective memories or what!  

COYR

[Srg]

1 hour ago, Archied said:

Yet brown was poor , not knocking the lad but the screams to play him ahead of Collins should be a bit quieter now🤷🏻‍♂️

Because we’ve played him with a second string? Hardly. Nobody has claimed he’s the second coming of anything, just we deserve to find out. 

[RoyMac5]

6 minutes ago, Srg said:

Because we’ve played him with a second string? Hardly. Nobody has claimed he’s the second coming of anything, just we deserve to find out. 

Might have been better to see him leading the line, can't say he saw a lot of the ball so difficult to tell tbh.

[Archied]

15 minutes ago, Srg said:

Because we’ve played him with a second string? Hardly. Nobody has claimed he’s the second coming of anything, just we deserve to find out. 

Yes But there’s a time and a place coupled with first team players needing minutes and or comming back from injury and you can’t say there’s not been a clamour from some for Collins to be outed with brown the better option , hopefully the lad is a good prospect and I certainly won’t dismiss him on one game but the coaches at first team and u 21 level must be trusted to bring the lad along 🤷🏻‍♂️

[MadAmster]

2 hours ago, Mucker1884 said:

If Carlsberg did an “All time greatest headed goals at pride Park Stadium” highlights reel, that header from Collins following that inch perfect cross would probably go down as one of the greatest headed goals ever scored at Pride Park Stadium since 1847!  
 

… or something. 
 

👀

Best ever DCFC headed goal has to be Ronnie Webster's again Citeh. Ball crossed from the left to him as he steamed up from his right back position, must have run getting on 50 yards, by Alan Hinton and he directed it beautifully into the bottom left hand corner. 

 

Edited November 9, 2023 by MadAmster

[BathRam72]

2 hours ago, Mucker1884 said:

If Carlsberg did an “All time greatest headed goals at pride Park Stadium” highlights reel, that header from Collins following that inch perfect cross would probably go down as one of the greatest headed goals ever scored at Pride Park Stadium since 1847!  
 

… or something. 
 

👀

There was me thinking Pride Park has only been around for 26 years or so!!!  You learn something new every day.

[MadAmster]

A day of surprises. More changes than I expected, especially considering the EFL rules for selection for the Trophy.

Brown never really got into the game. He's a better player than he showed last night but got no decent ball

Wilson took 25 minutes to get the better of their left back but was brilliant after that

Collo started poorly, his first 4 involvements were committing 2 fouls and being caught offside twice. After that he played well and got the hattrick. Also Barks' MOTM. Not mine though.

Young Weston replaced Brown at HT and was a revelation. All action, getting stuck in, an assist and a goal.

My favourite player on the day was Fapetu. You wouldn't think he was making his senior debut. That cheeky 50 yard attempt shows he has great vision to go with his skill and work rate. Gets stuck into the oppo as well. We might see him and Weston on the bench in one or both of the next 2 games.

[Ghost of Clough]

7 hours ago, 1of4 said:

After having our academy ripped apart during administration. The young players we now have at our academy looked much better tonight than those playing for Wolverhampton.

I've always had a view that the administration card was played too easily. Weston was an U21 singing, so I won't include him in the academy discussion. Based on year of being a 1st year scholar:
2021
Played last night: Fapetu (CM) and DRobinson (CM, but played CB last night)
Lost during admin: Ryan (CB) to Brighton) and Eze (AM/W)
2022
Played last night: Cox (CB), DBrown (CF), Wheeldon (CF)
Lost during admin: Kellyman (AM/W), Sharpe (RW), Scanlon (AM)
2023
Played last night: Osayande (CB), Allen (CM)
Lost during admin: Kaba (CF)

Out of all of those who have left, only Kellyman would be closer to the first team than DRobinson.
In defence, Ryan would have been about on par with Cox (despite being a year older) and with no change to Osayande's game time in the U18s.
On the wings, there isn't much between Richards, Davidson, and Sharpe.
In midfield, there isn't much between Fapetu is further ahead in his development than Eze, Scanlon, and Allen, with him being the only one playing regularly at U21 level. I would also pick Allen as the one with the most potential.
Upfront, DBrown is the pick of the bunch, with neither Wheeldon nor Kaba playing U21 football on a regular basis.
 

We also lost Williams (2020 intake), who was on the fringes of the first team , as well as Buchanan (2017), Ebosele (2018), and Ebiowei (2021) who all left when their contracts expired. However, none would have been part of the U18/U21 squad at this point in time.

 

1 hour ago, Archied said:

Yet brown was poor , not knocking the lad but the screams to play him ahead of Collins should be a bit quieter now🤷🏻‍♂️

The goal aside, Collins was poor in that first half too as the balance wasn't there. It was no surprise Collins looked better in the 2nd half when paired with someone who naturally plays a bit deeper. It's a sham Brown hasn't had the opportunity in the first team to play with someone other than Collins.

[Taribo]

24 minutes ago, MadAmster said:

Best ever DCFC headed goal has to be Ronnie Webster's again Citeh. Ball crossed from the left to him as he steamed up from his right back position, must have run getting on 50 yards, by Alan Hinton and he directed it beautifully into the bottom left hand corner. 

 

...and of course the greatest headed goal we've ever conceded:

 

I think there were more Derby fans clapping that goal than Sunderland fans

 

 

[Crewton]

You could tell Brown wasn't sure where to make his runs, and where to find space. He'll be disappointed that he wasn't able to get into the game, but I think young players can also learn from playing in unfamiliar roles, because many times in his career he'll have to adapt his natural game in order to get involved when the opposition are successfully isolating him.

[Ghost of Clough]

38 minutes ago, MadAmster said:

A day of surprises. More changes than I expected, especially considering the EFL rules for selection for the Trophy.

Brown never really got into the game. He's a better player than he showed last night but got no decent ball

Wilson took 25 minutes to get the better of their left back but was brilliant after that

Collo started poorly, his first 4 involvements were committing 2 fouls and being caught offside twice. After that he played well and got the hattrick. Also Barks' MOTM. Not mine though.

Young Weston replaced Brown at HT and was a revelation. All action, getting stuck in, an assist and a goal.

My favourite player on the day was Fapetu. You wouldn't think he was making his senior debut. That cheeky 50 yard attempt shows he has great vision to go with his skill and work rate. Gets stuck into the oppo as well. We might see him and Weston on the bench in one or both of the next 2 games.

Playing Elder, Wilson, Sibley and Collins ensured we met the qualifying criteria. The rest of the team could have been made up from a bunch of toddlers and we would have been fine. 

[8Leeds]

I love how occasionally when he’s dribbling Wilson does the “I’m a little teapot” arm motions.

[Old Spalding Ram]

You can only play what’s in front of you and there were some encouraging performances from the youngsters on view last night.  

What I don’t quite get is the comparison of Wolves youngsters to those of Man City from last seasons drubbing.

Bit of an update on that Man City starting eleven :-

Borges (hat trick and destroyed right back Rooney) sold to Ajax £17m

Shea Charles sold to Southampton for £12m

Rico Lewis & Oscar Bobb have both appeared in the Champions League & Premier League

Katongo (Peterborough), Breckin (Wycombe) and Burns (Stevenage) all out on loan to League 1 clubs

They also payed 350k for the 18 year old goalkeeper van Sas.

 

How the other half live……………………...anyway, back to the real world!

[BondJovi]

I listened to Matt Hamshaw's interview after the game. Few things I took from it.

The decision to play the academy players was only made Saturday/Sunday. I am glad they took the opportunity but it doesn't seem like any sense of long term planning was involved, which I find a bit disappointing.

As a first team coaching staff they have been surprised at how quickly the academy seems to have recovered and are much further on than expected.

I know some of us on here have been disappointed and concerned with the lack of chances for our youngsters. Could it be they had no intention of utilising those players to give time for the academy to settle?

Either way, I think last night was a great moment for the whole club. 0bviously the real test is Barnsley and I get the feeling that match is key to Warne and winning back over those who are wavering. Poor performance and result and all this goodwill drifts away again. Win, it feels like everything is slowly turning our way.

[Mucker1884]

1 hour ago, BathRam72 said:

There was me thinking Pride Park has only been around for 26 years or so!!!  You learn something new every day.

Hey!  Quit with the smart Alecness!

If others are getting away with weeks and weeks of "Worst ever, ever, ever... " comments, I'm sure as hell gonna milk the over exaggerations with them!  😉

🐏🍻

[Taribo]

1 hour ago, 8Leeds said:

I love how occasionally when he’s dribbling Wilson does the “I’m a little teapot” arm motions.

You mean the 'Malone'?

[Comrade 86]

1 hour ago, Ghost of Clough said:

Out of all of those who have left, only Kellyman would be closer to the first team than DRobinson.

Thanks for reminding us Ghost. Kids are crying now.