The Rams had little time to reflect on their defeat at Reading last Saturday, with a Carling Cup date with Leeds United beckoning on Tuesday and the home game against Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday.

Manager Paul Jewell declared on Monday that defensive duo Martin Albrechtsen and Dean Leacock would have to sit out the Leeds cup clash through injury. Jewell aired his hopes at bringing in more loan players to bring ‘one or two fresh faces’ into the squad and add to the cover available.

The football authorities were at it again with token admonishments for anyone daring to question the competence of refereeing. The Football Association told Paul Jewell that he would have to explain his comments about referee Stuart Attwell, who had another nightmare outing in the Rams vs. F*rest ‘derby’ match. He’s the one that gave a goal that hadn’t been scored and chalks off good ones that should stand.

Mr Hackett et al, please note - Mr Jewell was quite articulate in most people’s view; he said that he couldn’t understand the decisions to disallow Derby’s late goals, that the referee’s inexperience was exposed and that the selection of such an inexperienced referee to a high-profile Midlands ‘derby’ was questionable. The impenetrable cocoon of the refereeing hierarchy should be debunked.

Apart from wondering quite what the FA think they will achieve by hauling the manager over the coals, most of us are still waiting for proper explanations from the FA and refereeing authorities about the erroneous decisions Attwell made and why that rookie referee, who denied Derby full points was utilised. 

It is interesting that ex-referees indulge themselves when it suits in matchday TV punditry and radio panel work. The ordinary business of explaining and justifying (and occasionally apologising for) errors and needless controversies that are regularly incurred by errant officials to millions of fans remains a wish.

Jewell later revealed that he’d had contact from refereeing officials who reviewed Attwell’s performance; the Rams’ manager was told that Attwell should have played on and allowed Miles Addison’s headed goal, and that Addison’s 2nd disallowed header should have counted. As most had observed - including this biased, Tree-aversive Rams fan - Atwell made poor, costly decisions; he was still allocated the privilege of being 4th official at last weekend’s Hull-Bolton Premier League clash!

The home 4th Round Carling Cup tie gave Derby a chance to get back to winning ways. The last Rams vs. Leeds clash was at Pride Park Stadium in May 2007, when Leeds were all but relegated and the inventive Ken Bates put Leeds into administration hours beforehand, hoping to minimise the impact of the 10-points’ deduction rule. Boy, did that one backfire, Ken! Derby won 2-0, completing the ‘double’ as they made sure of Leeds’ demotion to division three.

The Rams had not progressed to the League Cup quarterfinal since 1990 and we’ve seen some rather embarrassing defeats and tepid displays from them in that time. Roy Carroll was in goal again and Claude Davis replaced the injured Albrechtsen and partnered Nyatanga (making his 50th appearance) at the back; Kazmierczak replaced the suspended Addison and Ellington started in Rob Hulse’s place up front.

The Rams got at Leeds, Emanuel Villa giving Derby the lead after just 6 minutes with a smart left foot shot. Derby soon doubled their lead after 18 minutes when an exquisite move involving Villa, Ellington, Commons and Kazmierczak was finished off sweetly by the Duke for 2-0.

The Rams sat off Leeds from that point however and the visitors’ possession was made to count when they reduced the arrears through a Becchio header on 40 minutes. The Yorkshiremen dictated play for the remainder of the first half but Derby held out.

No doubt Paul Jewell couldn’t wait for the interval and the walls of the home dressing room had a paint stripping as he endeavoured to wake up his weary troops.

Zadkovich replaced Teale at half time and Derby played a higher line to contain Leeds’ ambitions. A Snodgrass free kick struck the Derby crossbar; Carroll then saved well from Robinson. Hulse came on to replace Villa with the Rams very fitful in attack as they allowed Leeds to play around them, mostly at arms length. Derby saw the game out safely to reach the last eight, after a mediocre performance.

Nevertheless, the Rams have beaten Leeds in the last three meetings. The game saw an 18,500 attendance including almost 3,500 visiting fans. Paul Jewell acknowledged that his team fell away alarmingly after dismantling Leeds in the first quarter-hour. He consoled himself in that the Rams’ luck had turned a little and a Carling Cup quarterfinal rewarded Derby’s ability to hold on to what they had.

Jewell is still seeking loan reinforcements, revealing that he sought Bolton’s Danny Shittu on loan; Adam Pearson also declared that Premier League clubs are reluctant to let players go out on loan, even if they are a wage burden and out of the first team picture at the moment. Jewell thinks that because so many Premier League clubs could get dragged into a relegation battle, they want all their resources at hand.

Certainly, with Stoke and especially Hull City upsetting the applecart since promotion and not becoming the relegation fodder that Derby were last season, unstable clubs like West Ham and others are hedging their bets because of the fear of losing Prem status, rather than shipping out fringe players on loans.

There are reports of Rams’ interest in the young Galway United forward Jay O’Shea and back at home, there is talk of Aussie Ram Mile Sterjovski returning to his former Gold Coast club in the near future.

The Carling Cup quarterfinal draw comprised of 3 Championship sides - the Rams plus Burnley and Watford - and Premier League sides Arsenal, Blackburn, Man United, Spurs and Stoke.

It was a difficult call as to any preference - drawing a Championship team may give us the best chance of a semi-final place - or a glamour tie versus a Premier League ‘big gun’ could result in a familiar, comprehensive stuffing. Perhaps the team is now is better equipped to face top-flight opposition; Paul Jewell wasn’t bothered either way - just as well, really, because Derby drew Stoke City away!

Attendance figures again demonstrated the size of Derby County’s support, the Rams topping the Championship table with an average crowd of 29,298 at Pride Park Stadium so far this season, over 4,000 ahead of the next-best supported club, Sheffield United. The Rams also recorded the League’s biggest attendances so far this season, twice topping 33,000. Derby’s average gates exceed that of 9 Premier League clubs.

Attacking midfielder Giles Barnes, whom fans were anticipating seeing back in action by now, has another niggly injury, a thigh muscle tear, preventing him participating in a game as yet. However, the serious knee injury that required surgery is reportedly fine.

Paul Jewell was given a motivational gift before Saturday’s home game against Sheffield Wednesday when opposing manager Brian Laws said that he fancied Wednesday’s chances and that he thought Derby were jaded, whilst his team were fresh and hungry. Could be that Paul Jewell even played up on those assumptions in remarking that a heavy schedule could take its’ toll on the Rams’ improving squad.

Jewell kept Roy Carroll in goal - there’s little to separate the Rams’ keepers as both have done well enough to earn the shirt. Miles Addison and Nacer Barazite returned to the team and Hulse and Villa started up front. Wednesday fielded two ex-Rams in goalie Lee Grant and forward Marcus Tudgay, with Deon ‘Neon’ Burton on the bench.

It was Derby that looked fresh and hungry, anyhow, making Laws eat his words as they played with purpose and power to bury Wednesday with three classy goals. Derby. Kris Commons rapped in his first home League goal for Derby, measuring a crisp low shot in 31 minutes after the Owls had only partly cleared the danger. Derby were creative and dangerous, the Owls tepid and wasteful.

Wednesday, strangely for Brian Laws’ assertions, didn’t seem to be enjoying the afternoon too much after all and suffered more agony when Commons and Miles Addison swapped passes, the young powerhouse strode through and calmly stroked in the 2nd goal after 52 minutes. It was a richly deserved first goal for Miles, so cruelly denied 2 goals by incompetent refereeing in the last home game.

Restoring the central partnership of Miles and Paul Green in midfield had again provided Derby’s focus and drive and Paul Jewell’s men claimed an emphatic and entertaining victory.

The Owls’ beleaguered defence opened up again after 67 minutes, when Kris Commons took a jaded defender for a walk with his decoy run on the wing, inviting Jordan Stewart to race down the middle and plant a left-foot 25-yard piledriver into the top corner of the net for his first goal for Derby County.

Stewart had enjoyed a good game at both ends of the pitch and proved to be the "demolition man", putting the result beyond all doubt with his spectacular goal.  It was all turning into a bit of a hoot for the home fans in another 30,000 crowd.

Brian Laws couldn’t have complained had it been five or six and went away with this message from Derby County - Pride Park Stadium is no longer a happy hunting ground for away sides and you’d be better advised to concentrate on your own team’s frailties.

The Rams consolidated their top-half spot, now standing 12th, 4 points off the top six of the Championship and have a full week’s break before their Championship visit to Ipswich Town.

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The Rams were looking for ‘reasons to be cheerful’ this time last year as the aftermath of the feeble 0-5 surrender to West Ham had raised supporters’ ire on MBs and phone-ins. Next up was Chelsea away…

Billy Davies said he and his staff were working hard to give players the confidence to compete at Premier League level and erstwhile defender Andy Griffin said in interviews that it was no good them all feeling sorry for themselves, as players had to roll up their sleeves and get on with it.  True enough.

Rumours that the Disney empire - more precisely the financial institution of Shamrock Holdings owned by Roy Disney - was taking an interest in Derby County had surrounded new Executive Chairman Adam Pearson’s sojourn to the United States, where he was seeking new financial partners for the club.

It evoked cheap-hack gutter press jibes of the Rams being a ‘Mickey Mouse team’, which sadly Andy Griffin and his colleagues were doing precious little to refute. In other financial and legal news, further names were added to that of former DCFC FD Andrew McKenzie to face fraud charges, as investigations relating to John Sleightholme’s regime progressed.

Jeremy Keith and Murdo Mackay, along with an associate named Mark Walters, were charged with similar financial irregularities to McKenzie as the fraud squad delved into the affairs of Streamline Management and other companies connecting with the Amigos’ tenure at Pride Park Stadium.

Ex-Wigan manager Paul Jewell declined a return to his old club and was linked, along with Joe Royle, to the unstable situation at Birmingham City, whose manager Steve Bruce was in discussion with Latics’ chief Dave Whelan. Meanwhile, ex-Ram Paul Simpson was sacked as manager of lowly Preston North End and flying beanpole Costa Rican Paulo Wanchope announced his retirement at just 31 though injury.

Bob Malcolm went on loan to QPR. Thought you’d like to remember that fondly. Cheered me up at the time!

Photo: Action Images

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