After the anti-climax of the late cancellation of the Rams vs. Forest match, Derby County prepared for their next Championship game at the New Den, Millwall.

Some fans were critical of the decision taken to cancel the Trees’ game, whilst the club maintained that consideration for fans and safety would always be paramount.

Messrs Glick and Clough stressed that fans were the first consideration in decisions, though that doesn’t really square every time, given that the Rams’ other East Midlands’ ‘derby’ game vs. Leicester City has been rearranged - for the benefit of television subscribers - to a Thursday evening (February 23rd).

Safety concerns nowadays will usually dictate postponement decisions but it was mightily frustrating for Derby fans to see (for instance) Manchester fans travel to London and Chesterfield fans travel to Cumbria to fulfil their fixtures last weekend.

The rearrangement of the Derby-Forest match to Tuesday, 13th March also means that Derby will have an extremely congested fixture list in March and April, with 8 Championship games in March and 6 in April.

That’s virtually a third of the season in the space of about 9 weeks - so with the thin playing resources available, the Rams will pray that fitness and form are maintained to the end of the season. This fixture rush indicates poor planning by the authorities in the earlier part of season.

I received a taped season-ticket renewal “rah-rah call” from Shaun Barker on Thursday, just as the club announced on the official website that 2012-13 season tickets would go up by 10%.

Mr Glick said that the ‘slight increase’ was necessary but that the club had held the ‘early-bird’ renewal tariff at the same price for seven years. A 10% increase, at three or four times the rate of inflation, doesn’t actually seem like a ‘slight increase’ to me; in terms of annual inflation, the increase wipes out much of the price-freeze that GSE have granted during their tenure.

Fans will have until mid-April to mull over their renewal intentions. Some will have the ‘gambler’s blues’ in balancing their value-for-money budget considerations and entertainment expectations. The club looks on target to record some on-field progress at long last - but it is also a long way to the end of the season and the heavy fixture schedule still stands in front of Clough and his men.

A top-six finish is promised by Mr Glick and fans will have varying thoughts on whether the club has delivered its other promise of beefing up a poor squad with experienced, proven players. That claim is debatable to say the least; however it is dressed up, the squad still lacks a good midfield anchor-man, a creative ‘flair’ player and a natural goalscorer.

It probably isn’t worth holding your breath waiting for the arrival of such ‘marquee’ signings during next summer; Derby has only paid large fees for competent defenders recently, by way of ensuring at least that Championship status is retained. Stability is the maxim, tangible success is a bonus; unwanted players have gone, wages have been cut down as per the primary objective.

Whatever ambitious noises are made by the club regarding a tilt at the Premier League, it would require an altogether different fiscal mentality if Derby gained promotion. A dwindling number of fans believe that GSE really have the impetus and financial motivation to deliver that objective.

In their own words, the owners want “a stable club that they can have fun with” - so it’s your guess how that equates with supporter expectations of regaining and retaining top-flight status. A safe distance from the bottom three appears eminently more palatable to the owners these days than a top-two finish with the large outlay and risk that would entail.

GSE no longer seem willing to gamble - or is that speculate - in order to deliver Derby County to the top tier. Real money would have to be committed in that eventuality, though the rewards are potentially massive in comparison to the trickle of income received as a Championship club.

The Academy ‘production line’ now churns out good results and in the light of upcoming Financial Fair Play regulations, one cannot see past the early promotion of protégés from Darren Wassall’s youth development programmes.

We may expect the judicious addition of some experienced newcomers and loan-ins; availability to a strict budget is how Clough’s recruitment is conducted.

The loan system will continue to help player and parent club at least as much as DCFC in adding temporary resources to the Derby County squad, by assisting a player’s fitness and form whilst on loan.

Even if that contributes to a successful period of results for Derby, it doesn’t build an integrated, permanent squad of players for DCFC.

The Rams, along with myriad other clubs, might soon need to reappraise their playing squads to cope without the regular use of an ‘emergency loan’ system, if the game’s governing body has its way. FIFA may rule to do away with the loan system in its present form from season 2013-14.

The removal of that facility would make life more difficult for clubs in the Championship and below. Future regulations could then favour those clubs being relegated from the Premier League that will receive the best part of £50m apiece in ‘parachute payments’ over three years with which to fund and rebuild their squads and compete for a rapid return to the top flight.

Sunderland rookie Ryan Noble’s second rather inconsequential loan spell with Derby County might end soon. Manager Nigel Clough may have his injury casualties Tyson, Davies and Robinson to call on at last, so could let Noble return to Sunderland rather than extending the loan.

Noble was only ‘casualty cover’ it seems, whilst Derby’s strike force was under treatment once more. The manager seems relaxed about the level of his resources at this time, so no major developments are anticipated once the ‘loan window’ opens in a few days’ time.

Ex-Ram and man-mountain Darren Moore severed his links with Burton Albion after a successful but injury-plagued stint at the Pirelli Stadium. Right after that, ex-Ram Chris Riggott, who had to abort his 2012 comeback with Derby County through new injury setbacks, joined the Brewers until the end of this season. RamZone wishes both players the very best in furthering their careers.

Rams’ juniors Will Hughes and Mason Bennett completed their successful England Under-17 duties with further appearances in the Algarve Tournament, which England won following a 2-1 victory over France.

At senior level, English football and the unloved Football Association have yet more serious matters to consider, after team boss Fabio Capello severed his links this week.

The storm over the pending John Terry ‘racism’ case and the FA’s subsequent removal of the Chelsea defender from his national team captaincy led to Capello’s ‘amicable’ departure. The search for a new England manager is therefore on in earnest, with just 4 months until the national team participate in the 2012 European Championships.

It seemed typical of the FA’s process that the decision over Terry was taken without the manager being involved in the meeting; Capello then chose to publicly dispute the decision. The FA process seemed poor practice; it’s also a pity that Terry didn’t stand down in any case out of his own dignity, to avoid the very situation that flared up - but then, footballers don’t often think past their own interests.

There are mixed feelings over Fabio’s departure; he had a very good games-to-wins ratio with England but never convinced many fans or pundits, especially after the team’s abominable showing at the last World Cup. I’m in the camp that is looking forward to a Capello-free England!

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp is of course the firm favourite to take over the reins to steer England’s fate in the Euros and beyond. He celebrated his exceptional week, after being cleared of tax fraud and then finding himself the pundit’s choice for England manager by guiding his Tottenham side to a 5-0 win over Newcastle United.

If Harry does take on the England job, it would no doubt initiate a chain reaction of further Premier League managerial shuffling to replace Redknapp at White Hart Lane, alongside the other management ‘ripple effects’.

Derby’s Saturday opponents Millwall put Championship high-fliers Southampton out of the FA Cup this week, despite the Lions’ mediocre showing in the Championship this season. Derby had put on one of their most emphatic displays of the season in vanquishing the Lions 3-0 at Pride Park Stadium in September, a result that kept the Rams in the top three.

That lofty position seems removed from Derby at the moment, with the Championship top six consolidating their positions. Premier-ready clubs like West Ham and Birmingham now figure strongly, alongside the revitalised Southampton and ever-ambitious Cardiff City.

The respective Millwall and Derby managers - Kenny Jackett and Nigel Clough - are currently the longest-serving bosses in the Championship.

After the Cup defeat against Stoke and the loss at Barnsley, Derby hoped to get back into winning ways at the New Den. Millwall had no problems staging the match despite the freezing weather claiming many fixtures in the south-east, and the stadium was bathed in bright winter sunshine.

Ex-Millwall forward Theo Robinson could not take part for Derby on Saturday against the club that he joined and quickly rejected a year ago, as his calf injury was still troubling him.

John Brayford was another casualty with Paul Green deputising; Nathan Tyson started alongside Callum Ball in attack and Ryan Noble was on the subs’ bench. Conor Doyle was preferred on the bench ahead of Ben and Steve Davies and Chris Maguire, for reasons best known to the manager.

The Lions - who had lost their previous three home games without scoring - started the game briskly and had the better of the early play, with the Rams characteristically looking to hold their own and play on the break. Both teams weaved midfield patterns without much end-product.

The Rams wasted several free-kick and corner situations when they did make progress, though Ball shot narrowly wide after a Millwall mix-up. Closer to half-time, Millwall ‘keeper David Forde parried a Jamie Ward shot and Craig Bryson incredibly missed from the rebound from close range.

Tyson was hacked down when he broke free, earning Wright a booking; Shackell and Millwall’s Trotter had collected earlier bookings. The 0-0 interval score reflected the lack of chances, apart from Bryson missing the open goal and squandering Derby’s chance to take the lead.

The second half saw an even game, with chances still at a premium at both ends of the pitch. Millwall built up the greater momentum as the game wore on, and used attacking substitutes to try and force the game.

Nigel Clough put on James Bailey (for Tom Carroll) and then deployed his substitute stopper Jake Buxton in place of sporadically-active striker Nathan Tyson to shore up Derby’s defensive efforts. Away fans had the gambler’s blues on Saturday afternoon, wanting more to show from their team after a long trip to south-east London - but it was (as so often) a case of ‘safety-first’ for Clough.

Why go for a win when a point is in the bag, after all? The entertainment factor is ever more sacrificed for the sake of caution. At least the Rams are edging towards the survival target of 50 points a darn sight earlier this season.

The referee found over 7 minutes of injury time from somewhere but Derby held out to take a 0-0 draw. Again, defenders Shackell and Barker shone for Derby though Bryson will rue his missed easy chance from the best opportunity of the match.

The Rams registered more bookings with three yellow cards - Barker, Shackell and Bryson - than shots on target (2) in a wholly forgettable affair, watched by some 10,000 hardy fans. The Rams seldom hold a flush hand when attacking away from home, but any point gained is worthwhile. It could be said though that a lack of finishing power cost Derby two more available points, and they slipped a place to 13th in the Championship table.

The Rams have a home game with Reading on Tuesday before a trip to promotion-chasing Southampton next Saturday. Reading beat bottom club Coventry City 2-0 on Saturday to maintain their challenge in 7th place, six points ahead of Derby, whilst Southampton disposed of Burnley by the same score to edge closer to leaders West Ham United. Can Derby join the chasing pack?

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RamsWeek 7 in 2011 saw Nigel Clough reflecting that some of his players were still ‘learning the game’ - just as he was learning to manage at Championship level. The PFA were critical of the Derby boss for publicly lambasting his players.

Clough even said that if the Rams were relegated, then the last-minute defeat at Fratton Park would be ‘the first place to look’ after Tomasz Cywka had gifted the ball to Pompey and they swept away to score the winner.

Steve Davies and Ben Pringle were signed up on extensions to their current contracts; Liverpool defender Daniel Ayala joined Derby on loan and ex-Rams’ loanee centre-forward Shefki Kuqi joined Premier League Newcastle United.

Ambitious Leicester City won 2-0 at Derby, scoring goals from loan striker Yakubu and King before half-time. The Foxes held the score through the second half in front of the 26,200 crowd and Derby slipped to 17th in the Championship table. A restive Derby crowd called for ‘Board Out’.

It was clear that Derby must sign some players, improve the team, win some games and most of all, avoid the drop - otherwise, the owners would hear even more vociferous calls for change.

The Rams announced the 2011-12 season-ticket renewal prices, with ‘early-bird’ applicants seeing a price freeze on their tickets.

Photo: Action Images

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