Nathan Morley was at the iPro for the opening day clash against Rotherham and runs the rule over The Rams first match of the season.

On Saturday The Rams welcomed the fiery Steve Evans’s Rotherham United side to Pride Park to kick off the new season, greeted by the roar of a 30,000 strong crowd.

The headlines from the team news were Jake Buxton’s return from injury and Will Hughes retaining the ‘Thorne role’ after looking assured in the Rangers friendly last week. The two loan signings of the week, Leon Best and Omar Mascerall, were on the bench.

The Rams started on the front foot and, for the first few minutes, gave the Millers a torrid welcome to life in the Championship. At that point, my £2 on 4-0 wasn’t looking bad at all!

Soon Rotherham settled down and the match evened out a little. Both sides had their chances and we were even treated to Paul Green, ex-Ram and now the Millers midfield engine, squaring up to Richard Keogh!

The first half ended 0 — 0 which was a fair result, even if both sides should have capitalised on their chances.

It was much clearer who the better side was in the second-half. Derby attacked and attacked, threading some good passes together, but on the other hand, the visitors’ persistence and strong back-line demonstrated their credentials for the season.

Although Rotherham lacked that piece of quality in the final third and in key midfield areas at times, they are a very hard-working, something you expect from a Steve Evans side (you wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of him, would you!?).

It was also good to get a glimpse of how Ben Pringle had progressed since leaving Pride Park, and it’s fair to say he looked dangerous on the rare occasions that he had the chance to whip in a cross.

Omar Mascerall, Leon Best and Jamie Ward were all introduced as the hosts looked to turn their dominance into a winning goal. Eventually that winner arrived with just around ten minutes to go.

As he had done repeatedly during the match, Cyrus Christie charged forward, waited patiently to find the right pass and when he did, found Jeff Hendrick who gratefully steered the ball home with a great finish.

I know I’m not alone in anticipating him being a shining light for the Rams this season and probably scoring a similar amount to Craig Bryson’s impressive total of last season.

Hendrick’s goal sparked a nervy ending for Rams fans with Lee Grant being forced into action with a great save from a Green header and Craig Forsyth making a last ditch clearance off the goal line.

In the end, it was a deserved victory for Derby, even though they weren’t at their best. Had they been up against a side with a little more quality, they could have easily ended up without the three points at the final whistle.

The second 45 saw McClaren’s side have more extended spells of possession, so all in all, there can’t be any real complaints; the side came through a typically tight Championship match with a moment of brilliance, and I can say with confidence that it won’t be the only time.

My man of the match is summer signing Cyrus Chrsitie. Firstly, his attacking mentality and drive to go forward was marvellous. Each time he got in the opponents’ half he looked a threat.

Secondly, he held firm in defence. The 21-year-old can only get better and clearly he’ll continue to develop under the stewardship of the coaching staff. It certainly wasn’t hard to see why he has arrived with such a good reputation already and a high rating for the future.

Also looking good was Will Hughes. Last week he stood out but he was against a much weaker opposition in my view, so the big question was could he repeat it in the highly competitive Championship. This week the England Under-21 international was in good form.

Mascerall, on as a sub, played the majority of the second period. The Real Madrid youngster was always available to receive the ball. Best came on out wide and looked quite sharp, as did Jamie Ward, also a sub. I can see a lot of switching between the players occupying those roles over the course of the season.

In addition, the back four and Grant looked assured today and shut out Rotherham in their advances. However, not everyone impressed to the same extent and there were tough times as the team tried to break down the sturdy Millers defence. It’s early days though.

Come Saturday, The Rams march on to Hillsborough.

Up the Rams!

For more of Nathan's articles you can read his blog at www.derbycountyfan.com and follow him@NathansRamsBlog on Twitter.

Photo: Action Images

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