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 Early End To Season As Rams Push For Top 10!Sat 28th Apr 2012 06:31 by Daniel J Sewart Remember to leave home early today because the match starts at 12:30pm. Otherwise - if you follow your regular match day routine - you may be just in time to see the after match presentations. Another season comes to a close today at Pride Park stadium and in a nice change to recent campaigns it is not after a period of struggle and flirtation with relegation. Clough has taken what little money his bosses at GSE have afforded him and put together a team of scrappers who at times will fall short but will, in most matches, go down fighting. There is no doubt Clough needs to add some creativity to his midfield and a genuine target man up front season, if the club is to elevate itself from working class to promotion class. Whether money will be made available to add a player of quality or instead Clough will be once again be forced to try and find coal and create his own diamond, remains to be seen. The nucleus has been developing with Fielding, Bryson, Robinson, Ward, Davies (B & S), Shackell, Brayford, Roberts and Buxton providing great service for their team in the second half of the season. If the likes of Naylor, Hendrick, Ball, O’Brien and Bennett can take the next step in their development and mature into regular first team players - that will prove the biggest building block as Derby move forward. All of this type of speculation will unfold over the coming months as the fans pray, hope but will no doubt end up disappointed - as their idea of investment will wildly differs from their American masters. A top 10 finish may silence some doubters who believed the team would once again be battling the bottom end of the league. That said, it still falls short of the promises of a play-off push from Mr. Glick when season ticket sales were being spruiked last off season. When the push was there to be made the chequebook remained untouched in the top drawer. Focus on such matters will reach fever pitch from the moment the season comes to an end but before that - the focus is firmly on the Rams final hit out today at Pride Park stadium. Peterborough are the visitors as Clough and co. will be hoping to end their season in style and also push for a top ten finish to put a full stop on a much improved year. Derby will fancy their chances against a team who have only managed 3 losses and two draws in their last 5 matches. With little to play for you would hope the home team would be able to their loyal home fans something to cheer about one last time. I think the Rams will deliver and deliver an opposition languishing in 18th on the table one last loss before they too close their season. The Rams will just sneak into the top 10 and in doing so raise the stakes for 2012/13 putting pressure on the clubs owners to make sure Clough gets the cattle he needs. The next step on from a top 10 finish that finds you only a few games outside the top 6 – is to actually make it next time around. So to Tom Glick, in the words of a famous American TV show, ‘make it so’! Prediction: Derby 3 – 1 Peterborough
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