After the excitement of the domestic cup competitions, the Rams had to knuckle down to the business of gaining Championship points from the next two games.

The away game at Birmingham City on Tuesday and the Saturday home fixture with Coventry City provided opportunities for the players to make their improving habits under Nigel Clough productive, in terms of improving the club’s lowly Championship position.

Speculation grew that goalkeeper Roy Carroll would be moved on, after interest was reported from several clubs; the young Swiss-born Serbian striker Aleksandar Prijovic was loaned to Yeovil for a month to gain first-team experience.

Nigel Clough made only one change from the team held by Forest in the FA Cup for the game at St Andrews, Kris Commons replacing Giles Barnes. The Rams lost 1-0 to the Blues - an utterly unnecessary defeat given the share of the game that Derby had and the mediocrity of Birmingham’s performance.

It was an ordinary, forgettable game to be consigned to history as yet another ‘if only’ and ‘almost’ outing in the recent history of Derby County. After starting brightly with Teale figuring prominently, Derby couldn’t break through - even though Blues’ keeper Maik Taylor was called into action several times.

Derby are doing some things better and have improved overall but the final ball was frequently poor and their finishing - until they were a goal down and desperately trying to salvage something from the game - just wasteful, or not forceful enough to beat the alert Taylor.

Brum brightened up after the break, Bouazza realising that Stewart’s defensive covering was as loose as City of London banking regulations. City scored as the game neared the hour mark, with James McFadden and ex-Ram Lee Carsley fighting over the claims to the goal after the Rams failed to clear a corner.

The near-1, 000 travelling support couldn’t believe that Derby had fallen behind; the Rams had obtained so little from the game after enjoying plenty of possession and opportunity.

A paltry 15, 330 saw the game, so Birmingham might well be heading for promotion on around half the gates that Derby County enjoy. A flurry of late attacking saw Commons and Hulse go close for Derby with Blues’ keeper Maik Taylor pulling off good saves and Lee Carsley clearing one off the line. However, the Rams only had themselves to blame for unproductive attacking.

Birmingham City, front-runners all season, have disgruntled supporters among their shockingly low support because Alex McLeish’s brand of prosaic football is hardly riveting. They should worry, but Lord help them should they play like that if promoted! Derby however fell into the bottom three of the table.

I listened to whingeing Brummies on West Mids radio afterwards complaining about the Blues’ performance making me grimace all the more, in that we would almost kill for such a perfunctory three points! Derby had now won only once in 11 League games and had failed to score in the last 4 outings.

Should the Rams progress past Forest to meet Manchester United again, this time in the FA Cup 5th round, then that match will now take place at 4.30 on Sunday, 15th February, another sell-out game has been rearranged with TV income again taking priority over the fans convenience. “Fans First”, indeed!

The home game against Blackpool which was displaced by the F*rest FA Cup replay, is now scheduled for March 17th. The Cardiff City away game, frosted off earlier in January, now takes place on Wednesday 18th February.

Derby desperately needed three points at home to Coventry at the weekend and fans needed something to hang onto after recent poor displays in front of large, expectant attendances. A behind closed-doors friendly against Aston Villa on Wednesday gave Clough further chances to look at options and to assess long-term injured players like Stephen Pearson and Jay McEveley.

The Rams won 2-1 with goals from Seb Hines and Luke Varney. Irish trialist James O’Shea also returned for another try-out. However, the players’ club, Galway United, reported that Derby wouldn’t be signing the Irish Under-21 international, citing finances as the stumbling block. It had been reported that a £300k fee was agreed between the clubs before Christmas.

More accurately, the Rams moved in for another ready-made striker later in the week. Nigel Clough said that although he was impressed with James, Derby needed players that were ready to go into the first team reckoning straight away and the club dismissed the Galway Utd website report.

Fans were gob-smacked on Friday morning when it was disclosed that Giles Barnes had joined Fulham on loan until the end of the season. I’m saddened that we will never get to see Barnes’ potential develop further at Pride Park Stadium but he seemed a ‘nearly’ player due to so many long-term injuries.

To have so much potential and ability but to still be viewed as an unfit ‘impact substitute’ at 20, after 4 years at the club indicates that coaches, physios and not least Giles himself still have much work to do to make him into the star that he has threatened to become. He has to play frequently to develop into a rounded player and become a mature team member. Enjoy yourself in London, Giles.

Clough had declared that “we need good players, people who can score goals and affect things”, and: “Giles is going to be a very important player for us for the rest of the season” but you get the impression that later, Nigel wasn’t convinced of Giles’ ability to play with the team and not just for himself.

Fulham and no doubt our Championship rivals - especially those alongside us in the relegation zone  - will be very pleased to see Derby lose one of their few ‘flair’ players. Would it impact on the Rams’ squad’s fragile confidence to lose such a talismanic player? That’s the gamble but the team are improving steadily and I believe that results will follow from Clough’s measured, mature approach.

Nigel now says: “We haven't got that time or luxury to give him a few games to get him match-fit…we need players and results now.” Some fans worried that Barnes’ move was propelled by financial imperatives.

Derby enjoys average gates of almost 29,000 - by far the best in the Championship. Add to that the bonus of a Carling Cup run culminating in 100,000 people watching the 2-leg Manchester United tie. Then add TV revenue from ties against the Red Devils and the 32,000 Rams-Trees FA Cup clash.

Wage bills, the level of debt, the parachute payments and the financial commitment of the GSE consortium have all been aired and queried afresh on MBs this week.

Adam Pearson, interviewed before Saturday’s game, laid such worries aside, stressing that football reasons and Giles’ keenness to join Fulham made it a straightforward decision. Pearson said that Clough wanted to shift 10 or more players and bring a few in; moving out players on loan and signing Chris Porter was the start of that process. Some other players may need to be paid off to get shut of them.

The Rams have received and rejected approaches for their best players. Pearson disclosed but declared that Derby want Clough to build his team around the pick of the players at the club and that our better players won’t be going anywhere. Roll on the end of the transfer window, so that we can all concentrate on survival and improvement!

It’s known that Nigel wants a committed, tight-knit squad of sensible proportions and the emphasis now seems to be ‘let’s work together’, as evidenced by his so-far successful rehabilitation of formerly vilified players like Teale & Savage. Jewell failed to use them successfully and some fans had demanded their expulsion from the club.

Clough wants people to pull their weight and contribute; he also appears - unlike his predecessor - to have a few clues as to how to actually get it done. Hallelujah!

Maybe the prospect of being sent to Motherwell on loan has sharpened Gary’s appetite for life at Derby, too…Savage has simply been allowed to come in and do what he does best and has fitted in well to the team pattern and style. Maybe that ‘new mentality’ that we were promised a year ago is taking more shape under Nigel already than after all the months of Jewell’s wafflings and promises! We are in for an interesting time ahead.

So the build up for the home game with Coventry City left fans with mixed feelings, hoping for a win, reflecting on Barnes’ departure. Derby players made bold noises. “It’s like a joke really… it’s not even a problem…” said Stephen Bywater on Friday, referring to the prospect of relegation. That presumption of superior quality does need converting into points, Stephen.

I preferred Rob Hulse’s post-match comments after the Coventry game, when he said ‘well, we’re in it now - and it’s up to us to pull together and get out of it’. That does recognise the serious work ahead.

Motherwell striker Chris Porter joined the Rams in preference to Cardiff City for a reported £400,000 price tag as Nigel Clough’s first signing and attended Saturday’s game. The tall 25-year old has scored 9 goals in 21 Scottish Premier League appearances this season and will hopefully add some goalscoring bite up front.

Clough stuck with the team that performed well but toothlessly at Birmingham City on Tuesday - but on Saturday, there was plenty of punch and penetration as the Rams annihilated Coventry in the first half, grabbing an early 2-0 lead though a Hulse header and a Kris Commons strike.

Teale was devastating; the Sky Blues were unable to cope with Derby’s tempo and application. Commons and Teale then both struck the woodwork in the same attack and it seemed that we might avenge City for the horrible recent 6-goal maulings that we endured at Highfield Road and the Echo Arena.

But Derby don’t do easy victories at the moment - the tables were turned after the break as City enjoyed more of the ball and pulled a goal back. The Rams were disrupted by the loss of Miles Addison, with Jay McEveley hardly an adequate stand-by at centre-half. So many players - but so many mediocre misfits…

There was great relief at the victory and the bristling first half display was one of the most enjoyable this season. The win lifted Derby several places away from the bottom three, so a salvage operation has begun. Given a bit more confidence from a result or two, a few genuine first team players returning from injury, plus the prospect of a few goals from Porter and things will look much brighter.

The City Ground beckons with the FA Cup replay on Wednesday, before a trip to Plymouth Argyle in the League. Clough will want the progress maintained and a good week will keep our season alive.

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RamsWeek 5 in 2008 saw fans trying to forget the dreadful FA Cup exit at the hands of Preston North  as they took in the news of another takeover at the club.

The American-led GSE group took over Derby County so there was hope of ‘a fistful of dollars’ to rebuild the club after the financial cracks had exposed the Gadsby regime’s inability or unwillingness to bankroll Billy Davies to the extent the little Scot had expected.

GSE chief Andy Appleby now owned 93% of DCFC and Adam Pearson the other 7%. The new President and Chief Exec, Tom Glick, was introduced in a press conference that also revealed that Messrs. Amott and Gadsby remained only as Associate Directors. So, local influence was all but extinguished.

The new owners aim is to put Derby in the Premier League’s top 10 and the usual effusive tributes were made to the fans. Mystery still surrounded most of the new investors, however, who reportedly came from Canada, China and Korea as well as the USA.

On field, Jon Macken (who?) was sold to Barnsley, Nyatanga was sent on loan to Barnsley and drink-drive reveller Bob Malcolm (who?) had his contract cancelled by mutual consent. Andy Griffin Joined Stoke City. Newcastle United had a £2m bid for Giles Barnes rejected and Jewell signed Glasgow Rangers ‘keeper Roy Carroll and centre half Alan Stubbs.

Loanee full back Danny Mills, injured at Preston, returned to Manchester City, whilst still incurring wages from Derby when City refused to rescind the loan terms. No doubt they wanted to chuck the Sheik’s money at other rich clubs for any available player and couldn’t see fit to extend a bit of help Derby’s way.

Derby’s new owners, in the crowd of 31,400 saw a more spirited Rams display as a midweek 1-1draw at home to Manchester City yielded a rare point. Miller scored early in the second half to raise Derby’s hopes but City levelled through Daniel Sturridge.

The next Saturday, Derby ground out another point as Emanuel Villa snatched a very late equaliser at Birmingham City. At least we had the satisfaction of helping the Bluenoses to relegation alongside us.

Photo: Action Images

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