Boo’s at the final whistle and the odd shout of "Sack Clough", as frustrated fans let off some steam. It’s another dismal Derby defeat at Pride Park.

Derby County 0 v 2 Blackpool
Coca Cola Championship
Pride Park Derby
Boxing Day 2009, 3:00 pm

Match Facts:

Attendance: 30,313

Referee: Mr S Mathieson

Goals: Buxton OG(38), Ormerod (79)

Red Cards: Moxey (2 yellow cards)

Teams:

Derby County: Bywater, Connolly, Buxton, McEveley, Moxey, Croft (Hendrie 60), Savage, Pearson, Teale, Dickov (Hulse 66), Porter (Campbell 75)

Subs not used: Deeney, Stoor, Addison, Livermore

Blackpool: Rachubka, Crainey, Southern, Eardley, Evatt, Burgess (Bouazza 88), Taylor-Fletcher, Baptiste (Edwards 76), Euell, Ormerod, Adam (Demontagnac 84)

Subs not used: Halstead, Bangura, Nardiello, Bannan

Match Report:

Boo’s at the final whistle, the odd shout of "Sack Clough", frustrated fans letting off steam. It’s another dismal Derby defeat at Pride Park.

Not that there were that many fans left at the bitter end, most had left early after a sprightly spring chicken, the 33 year old Brett Ormerod left our central turkeys for dead and with all the time in the world fired past Bywater for Blackpool’s second of the game.

It was a goal which sparked a mass exodus with eleven minutes remaining as fans decided they had better things to do.

A similar approach was taken five minutes later when Dean Moxey decided he had better things to do when he deliberately tripped Ormerod as the striker was otherwise clean through on goal. It earned Moxey a second yellow and arguably perhaps should have been a straight red.

Ten men? We never really noticed he had gone in truth.

Much could be said about the others it would be hard to single out a weakest link.

"Gary what do you do?"

"I’m a winger Anne."

"What does a winger do Gary?"

"Well Anne I run up and down the field and provide crosses for the strikers."

"And how many crosses did you get right today Gary?"

"Two Anne?"

"No you are wrong there, but you weren’t the worst crosser that was you Lee wasn’t it"

"Yes Anne"

"And remind me Lee where did you come from?"

"Norwich Anne."

"And they have tractors in Norwich like Ipswich do they Lee?"

"Yes Anne."

"And did you race them as part of your training? I’d bet you never won though did you Lee? But Lee wasn’t the slowest was he Jake? Do you have to be fast to be a central defender Jake?"
"No Anne"

"Well you’re the proof of the pudding aren’t you. But who keeps picking the team? Whose idea of tactics is a small box of mints? Who is the Weakest Link? It’s time to vote..."

And maybe we will start voting with our feet; "Today’s attendance 30,313" read the Man with the Mike "But how many have paid" shouts a wag in the East Stand. Special offers for loyal season ticket holder’s two hot dogs for a fiver normally £4 each, it’s a bargain and it’s available to every one. Is loyalty stupidity? Somebody clearly thinks so. So much for the rant back to the match.

Derby line up with Moxey, McEveley, Buxton and Connolly as the back four, Stoor whose loan ends this week is relegated to the bench. A strange move unless Stoor is injured as the club still pays his wages.

It seems even stranger as Ormerod exploits the gaps in defence and hits the cross bar with only two minutes gone. Burgess is next up, played straight through the centre the Tangerine controls the ball, steadies himself and then inexplicably pushes the ball past the post and the greatly relieved Bywater.

Derby’s defence are a complete shambles. Buxton is slow and ponderous and McEveley is having one of those "can’t pass to anybody days" we know so well.

To be fair though the malaise affects the midfield also, Savage and Pearson in the centre and Croft and Teale on the wings, hardly a tackle in that lot and so Blackpool control the game.

Even when we fashion a chance we blow it. Lee Croft a wonderful opportunity in front of goal, first time shot and we take the lead, two, three touches later and it’s wasted. We groan and despair.

Unexpectedly Charlie Adam shoots from all of fifty five yards, it’s like watching slow motion, the lofty ball is falling, Bywater is backing, will it, won’t it. The pantomime ends as the ball nestles on the roof of the net. Phew.

It’s one way traffic and Bywater stands tall as Ormerod blasts the ball at the keeper. It can’t last and it doesn’t. Ormerod again this time behind Connolly, tight angle and the keeper is beaten on his near post, the monitors in the concourse show a deflection off Buxton. But we are still one down and it matters not who is credited with the goal.

Second half and its more of the same we gain possession and release it cheaply, over hit passes, under hit passes we give the ball away in the true spirit of Christmas.

Clough replaces Croft with Hendrie, then Dickov for Hulse and finally Porter with DJ Campbell none of which makes the slightest of difference, without service you could have Torres and Rooney upfront.

Blackpool score their second, Moxey is sent off and the final whistle blows.

Newcastle on Monday, Millwall on the Saturday. Never has loyalty felt more like stupidity.

Photo: Action Images

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