Next season’s fixture list was released as the club continues to gear up for an instant promotion campaign.

Though fans had new dates to discuss, the schedule of the teams we’ll face brought home the realisation that we’re back in the Championship.

Derby County kick off at home on August 9th and play promoted Doncaster Rovers. Without disrespect to Donny, that will be just as Paul Jewell would have wished and it also gives Rams’ newcomer Paul Green a chance to face his old club.

Derby’s League programme closes on May 3rd away at Watford and the two dates most fans would look for first are the clashes with the Trees of Nothingham F*rest. They visit Pride Park Stadium on 1st November and Derby play at the City Ground on February 21st 2009.

The Trees themselves face an apparently tougher proposition than the Rams for their first game – already put back a day for the Sky TV schedules - with relegated Reading FC visiting TreeTown.

Click here to see Derby County’s full original 2008-09 fixture schedule on the DET website.

However the club enthuses and hopes for a party atmosphere, the lack of Premier League opponents this time around is of course a disappointment but now a hectic, more competitive campaign beckons and the games will come thick and fast.

Come August, we’ll be keen as ever to cheer the lads on! It won’t be easy, that’s for sure - and Paul Jewell will be assembling and adjusting a new team whilst facing opponents who are itching to halt Derby’s expected progress back towards the Premier League.

Fixture changes at the behest of Sky TV schedules weren’t long in coming, as Derby’s first away game at Ashton Gate, home of losing Championship play-off finalists Bristol City, will now kick off at 5:20 pm on Saturday 16th August, so the fans find their traditional 3:00 pm kick-off junked again.

Trips to such as Swansea and Plymouth aren’t beguiling and with Leicester festering in the third division, we'll have the Trees, Brum, Wolves and Sheffield Wednesday and their Yorkshire neighbours for ‘derby’ or local clashes. Nevertheless it will be interesting to see how the season unfolds and which clubs push to the front of the large pack of clubs hoping to better themselves.

With Derby County and Lincoln City clashing in the League Cup in August, the planned pre-season friendly between the clubs was cancelled; the fixture has now been replaced in the Rams’ 2009-09 preparations with a visit to Mansfield on July 26th.

Transfer matters were as close to the headlines and deadlines as ever, with the week’s news and gossip commencing when Paul Jewell acknowledged his interest in WBA striker Kevin Phillips but disclosing that no discussion has taken place, contrary to reports of Kevin’s preference for Derby should he leave the Baggies and media speculation that Derby had tabled a two-year contract.

We will see what happens when Kevin’s WBA contract expires at the end of this month.

Matt McCann at DCFC commented that there are plenty of irons in the fire regarding transfer deals under way and there should be major signings before Derby are done. He also declared that Swansea’s Ferrie did want to move to Derby, the player wasn’t misquoted or confused about his transfer scenario (as Swansea officials have suggested) when he said he expected to leave Swansea for Derby County!

On Tuesday, Hull City agreed to pay the Rams £750,000 for Craig Fagan, who had spent the 2nd half of last season with his admirer Phil Brown at the KC Stadium. It will be more welcome income for Paul Jewell to invest in his own players; Fagan was busy and energetic but ultimately ineffectual. My only memory of him in the Premier League was his dismissal and consequent suspension for trampling on a Liverpool player as the Rams endured one of their regular thrashings.

David Jones and Stephen Pearson are still the subjects of interest from an assortment of clubs and Darren Moore might join Bradford City or Leicester City, as previously reported. Meanwhile, it was reported that the Rams have sold 22,000 season tickets to date.

Swansea Chairman Huw Jenkins was still bleating about Derby chasing midfielder Ferrie Bodde, saying that he could make Bodde honour his present contract. Correct sir - but bigger clubs will always chase the good players, so what’s new? Good players may be still under contract, just like Ronaldo, Bentley, Huddlestone, Rasiak…but when interest is confirmed, the players often desire a move themselves!

Derby haven’t acted improperly regarding this bid so I’m sure Jenkins should attend the player’s wishes to move - and have the courtesy to acknowledge and act on the fact that Derby have matched his required price. Bidding for players you want is not a crime and players can decide to stay put or move; Bodde has put in a transfer request, which was declined by Swansea even though the player wants to talk to Derby.

Some reports suggest that Derby may turn their attentions to Bristol City’s Marvin Elliott as an alternative to Bodde. I expect the Rams to sign a good central midfielder regardless of whether it is Ferrie Bodde or not - and I’d be very surprised if Bodde stayed with Swansea after the club blocked his move to Derby.

It’s the same story regarding striker Liam Richardson of Stockport County, for whom Derby have bid a ‘derisory’ £250k in Stockport’s reckoning, as they too want to keep hold of their star player.

Mr Pearson declared that he and Jewell know the club cannot afford another disappointing season and though Derby have been very proactive so far this summer, there were still “three key signings to make - a centre half, a central midfielder and a centre forward, saying: “they will be our biggest signings of the summer”.

Although rumours persisted that David Jones could yet agree to join Wolves (with stories of interest from promoted Stoke City being dismissed by Derby) and other sales and bids stalling this week, it was a case of ‘slow turning’ in the transfer market. Negotiations may take a while, Pearson warned and he was talking ‘large sums of money’ for some of these players. He stressed that they wanted to get these key signings right, so the process should be seen as a matter of patience, not a source of frustration.

Defender Lewin Nyatanga only wants to play for Derby, he’s declared, though Adam Pearson commented that it is the manager that decides who stays or goes and that there would be further competition for places. I ruddy hope so, after the fiascos that masqueraded as defending at Derby County last season!

Some fitness news (or more correctly, the lack of it) regarding one so-called defender Claude Davis surfaced last week. He’s been at a summer camp with the international Reggae Boyz of Jamaica but hasn’t participated in their friendlies or World Cup qualifiers as he confesses he’s quite a way from full fitness. Perhaps that’s why Jamaica kept a clean sheet in duffing up the Bahamas 7-0? Davis has a persistent knee injury and Paul Jewell hasn’t really had a look at him yet. Will he prove useful next term?

What with costing Derby £3m and failing to impress (to put it mildly) in the Premier League, next season will demonstrate if Davis can repay any of Derby’s outlay or be just another Billy Davies write-off. His very name on the team sheet struck fear into Rams fans’ minds, and such worry was usually well founded.

There’s no way we’ll carry players that are never fit, who and can’t do their jobs. Hopefully Davis will recover and won’t be up in Claude Cuckoo Land as he was last season. We’ve persevered with Tyrone Mears, who at least seems fit now and looks to be a prospect.

Giles “now you see me, now you don’t” Barnes also needs a good run in the team to contribute properly. We know he can be a match-winner (when available) and is potentially a hot property for those Prem clubs forever sniffing around for him!

Winger Eddie Lewis helped the USA to romp to an 8-0 victory over Barbados, their biggest ever win. Down under, Mile Sterjovski missed out on Australia’s World Cup qualifying campaign whilst he took time out for the birth of his first child. The Socceroos qualified with a game to spare and Mile’s baby boy, Sonny, was born in Australia - so everyone is happy!

Sterjovski and family will head back to Derby this week to join up in the Rams’ return for pre-season training, whilst young Ram Ruben Zadkovich was set to make his full international debut for Australia against China.

The European Championships unfolded in entertaining style as Spain and Italy progressed with some nerves and some flair - the Spanish removing holders Greece and Italy defeating the disjointed French. Holland had swept through their group stylishly with three wins under their belt, as did Croatia.

The relentless Germans then strode through to the semis by eliminating highly fancied Portugal. Defiant Turkey broke Croatia’s hearts after their dramatic extra-time fightback and a penalty shoot-out win. Guus Hiddink’s young Russian side have impressed, looking compact and skilful but faced the ultimate test against revitalised Holland.

Russia pushed the talented Dutch aside 3-1 with their attractive, intelligent football, making it harder than it seemed after missing a host of chances and requiring extra time to suppress Marco van Basten’s men.

The Italy-Spain clash concluded the drama of the quarterfinals last evening when a disappointing 0-0 stalemate was decided by penalties, with the Spanish finally winning through.

So it’s Russia versus Spain and Germany versus Turkey in the semi-finals and by this time next week, new European champions will reign supreme.

Last year, Rams’ new Chief Executive Trevor Birch warned that Derby County would not commit ‘financial suicide’ in attempting to stay in the Premier League. Ambitious clubs were at risk of being on the edge of meltdown, said the ex-Leeds United director. There spoke the voice of experience!

It was announced that La Liga side Espanyol would provide the opposition at the Pride Park pre-season friendly curtain raiser, and whilst Aston Villa cast-off Lee Hendrie declared that a move to Derby would be perfect for him, West Brom’s Jason Koumas was linked with the Rams.

Craig Brown was set to join Billy Davies’ backroom staff but David ‘Ned’ Kelly still had a few weeks of gardening to do on behalf of Preston North End.

As with the current close season, name after name was linked with a move to the club in summer 2007 as the fixtures were announced, and the Rams anticipated an exciting new start at home against Portsmouth.

Photo: Action Images

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