Tickle Tackle - Smells Like Team Spirit

I'm almost always full of optimism for the coming season at this time of the year. Sometimes it's totally without foundation but I'm pretty confident that's not the case this time round.

The noises coming from the players are that this summer, pre-season training, which is always tough and can often be boring, has been just as tough as ever but very enjoyable.

This season will of course be Nigel Clough's first full season as the Rams' manager and all eyes will be on him. Will he be able to emulate the kind of success he had at Burton Albion at Championship level?

Well, I have to be honest and say that I was never really in favour of him coming to the Rams for many different reasons but not because I don't think he can't be successful. One of his talents, which he no doubt learned from his dad and which he's honed at Burton is that he knows how to get the best from his resources.

At non-league level that's an absolute must have because resources are nowhere near as plentiful but at any level you have to make the most of what you have. Part of that - a big part- is squad togetherness, you need your players to be able to pull together and find something from nowhere when the need arises.

 

That seems to be a major part of Nigel's plans - to make training and playing together fun so that everyone pulls for everyone else and the whole is greater than the sum of the parts and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that everyone performs better when they're happy.

It's great too that so many players only have good things to say about Nigel and his methods, Robbie Savage for one crediting Nigel with having basically saved his career. I was always worried that some may not fully respect him as what he's achieved in management has so far only been at non-league level. Happily, that seems to be far from the case.

I don't know what level of success the Rams will achieve this season but I know that on a personal level, the one thing I want from them (as always) is to feel that everybody in that Rams shirt really wants to play for the club. That doesn't happen unless everybody's happy.

A not-quite-borrowed song title for this week's column. Nevermind, maybe Rams fans will be in Nirvana by the end of the season.

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Queens Park Rangers 4 - 0 Leeds United - Player Ratings and Reports
If you saw the match, please give us your player ratings and a mini match report.

QPR Awaydaze
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Middlesbrough 3 - 4 Leeds United - Player Ratings and Reports
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Middlesbrough Awaydaze
Our visit to Middlesbrough kicks off at 8pm tomorrow night, once again thanks to our very good friends at Sky TV. We’re not famous any more!

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Leeds United 0 - 1 Blackburn Rovers - Player Ratings and Reports
If you saw the match, please give us your player ratings and a mini match report.

Annual accounts show that the club will have to sell players if we don't go up
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Stuart Dallas thanks the fans as tributes pour in
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