After their disappointing defeat at a revitalised Leicester City, Derby County next had chance to avenge last season’s poor showings against the under-rated Scunthorpe United.

Chris Porter was due to undergo yet more hip scans to root out the fitness problem that is dogging the Scottish forward.

With Shefki Kuqi returning to his club in December and Nigel Clough wishing to extend the loan of West Brom’s Luke Moore for a further period, the fitness of forwards Porter and Steve Davies could be significant factors in Derby’s ability to sustain their challenge.

The Rams’ reserves suffered defeat at the hands of Nothingham Trees reserves, losing 1-2 at their ‘home’ venue of Christchurch Meadow, the home of Belper Town FC. Goalkeeper Stephen Bywater made his return from injury and Stephen Pearson gave Derby a first-half lead.

Paul Green and Frank Fielding missed out on their midweek international opportunities for the Republic of Ireland and England Under-21s respectively due to injury knocks. It did not prevent the duo for resuming training at Moor Farm to join the Derby squad for the weekend’s clash with Scunthorpe United although a sickness bug disrupted manager Nigel Clough’s plans.

 Shefki Kuqi made a substitute appearance for Finland, collecting his 61st international cap, though he didn’t score as his team rolled over San Marino 8-0. Kris Commons earned his sixth Scotland cap and notched his first goal for his country in the Scottish stroll; he enjoyed his part in a a 3-0 win over the Faroe Islands.

The Derby forward has certainly rose to prominence this season and Rams fans hope that contract talks can be successfully concluded soon in order to dampen speculation that he could speak to other clubs in January 2011.

The Rams have collected another corporate partner, with US Nutrition Limited now being the club’s ‘preferred nutritional partner’. They provide the leading MET-Rx supplements to the club, which Derby’s conditioning coaches assert has helped to boost strength and power and increase performance. Sounds like Popeye’s spinach to us, but keep feeding it to the lads if the performances are going to continue to improve in the way they have in recent months!

The FA has announced the final approval for the Burton football centre. Good news indeed - but I feel a rant is coming on! It’s been a protracted and embarrassing process which has been stretched over three decades.

Procrastination over such progress and the partiality of the various authorities within the English have long impeded the national game’s advancement - and those impediments have been accelerated and reinforced since the inception of the Premier League.

The massive challenges of overcoming ingrained club vs country interests, revolutionising coaching standards and youth football development remain. England’s showing versus a similarly depleted and disgraced French set-up in Wednesday’s 2-1 friendly defeat hardly indicates that progress has been made since last summer’s appalling World Cup debacle.

What’s changed since then? Not a lot...if anything, we’ve gone backwards! England fans are tired of the inconsistency of team selection and unfathomable tactical policy, the lack of emerging stars who can lay claim to world-class status, constant player scandals and media sensationalism.

The fans have been short-changed; with the current ludicrous pay structures, the players and successive managers certainly haven’t! Capello is only committed to England until 2012. Apart from Euro qualification, what’s going to happen in that time?

The Premier League is staffed with some 60% of imported players. Many of the English ‘stars’ are overpaid and over-rated; they lack the hunger for and interest in international football, as their club prioritises a top four placement and Champions League riches. Many of the foreign players in England act out their fat contracts charade without allegiance to our futile national aspirations. 

Remote corporate owners don’t share our national concerns or aspirations either; why should they? For them, it’s more about the acquisition of a premier sports club, the kudos and TV revenues attached and some European networking opportunities.

The home of the ‘best league in the world’ has one of the poorest performing ‘major’ national teams over the past 45 years. Supremo Scudamore and the elite chairmen exhibit a detachment from and indifference to the requirements of international football; self-interest governs our game; the attitudes are obstructive and self-fulfilling.

English football compares badly against visible progress from nurturing home-grown talent and the structural and strategy revision by nations like Holland, Germany and Spain. They are reaping tangible benefits from radical overhauls, with progressive visions being protected and supported by clubs.

Here, we spend twice as much as expected on rebuilding Wembley, and pay lip service to grass roots change; we procrastinate for decades about building essential fulcrum establishments like Burton, and freeze out reformers like Lord Triesman....we pretty much get the team that we deserve. Things must change - soon. How will we engender a football revolution? Who will lead us to progress?

The final go-ahead for the Burton centre is a step on the right path. The £105m development has been dubbed the ‘University of Football’ and football chiefs want it to become the national centre of excellence for developing England’s young talent.

Despite the rant, it is good to see the project authorised and it may well be ready before England hosts the 2012 Olympics.

Saturday’s home game with Scunthorpe gave the Rams an opportunity to set a Pride Park Stadium record with six consecutive League wins - and it’s good to report that they grabbed the chance with both hands!

Manager Clough had defender Shaun Barker missing suspended; James Bailey was struck down with the virus. John Brayford took up his secondary berth as centre half - he again put in a wholehearted performance and is fast becoming a talismanic player in either position in Derby’s side.

Derby have a couple of other talismans, however - and Spanish maestro Alfredo Bueno, fit again to return to the side, provided a classy pass after just three minutes which Tomasz Cywka lost no time in ramming home to put Derby ahead.

Scunny levelled the scores before the half hour when Roberts was beaten off by Forte, who slammed a fine shot past Fielding. Derby were not to be denied though, and when Bueno was bundled over, the man-in-form Kris Commons stepped up to blast home the penalty and restore Derby’s lead.

United, like Watford before them, had been on a splendid run of away victories and the Iron had a good share of the second-half play as they endeavoured to retrieve the game. Derby’s attack is not to be denied these days however, and Luke Moore gave them some breathing space before the hour mark by crashing in a brilliant shot on the turn from a canny pass from Cywka.

Gareth Roberts had a double wobble to jeopardise Derby’s supremacy, first collecting a booking and then hooking Woolford’s feet from under him to allow O’Connor to peg Derby back to 2-1 from the spot kick. Roberts collected a red card for his offences and the off-colour Dean Moxey managed to fill in at left back for the last 15 minutes and ease his side to victory.

What was especially pleasing, as coach Johnny Metgod observed after the game, was the teamwork and resilience to see the game out safely, especially when Roberts’ dismissal had allowed Scunthorpe to reduce the arrears and encouraged the visitors to chase for a draw.

Derby were without midfield grafter James Bailey and key defender Sean Barker and several other players absent or under the weather, so it was a very satisfying victory for management, staff and players, especially given the dreadful showings against The Iron last season (and lack of success against them for several decades!)

With Brayford deputising so well in defence (not for the first time, of course), and the others in the team working hard as well as displaying their skills, Derby look a compact side able to take goals off the opposition and deny them at the other end. The season is certainly gaining momentum.

The Rams are solidly placed in 4th spot in the Championship with the best home goals tally and third best goal difference in the table.

Kris Commons is second only to new England hopeful Jay Bothroyd in the scorer’s chart. We’re scoring some great goals and cutting down teams that fancy their chances away from home in serial fashion - the house is rockin’!

Derby have some good players still due to return from injury and (hopefully) the club will underline their ambition with squad reinforcement in the New Year. It’s going to be an interesting season!

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RamsWeek 47 last year asked ‘how many more times?’ as the Rams went to Swansea and put on a meek performance, losing more comprehensively than the 1-0 scoreline suggested.

It was one- way traffic - and even though the Swans didn’t break down Derby’s defences until the second period, it was an inevitable defeat with Derby clinging on grimly and posing no threat themselves.

The club reported that it was a ‘harsh’ defeat but no amount of website spin could disguise the fact that the Derby team was woefully inadequate away from home. A season of struggle beckoned.

They had played 9 away games in 2009-10 without a victory, achieving just two draws. It had certainly been an unrewarding time for Derby’s loyal travelling fans and I suggested that the club should throw in free travel and nosh on a future away day, as a gesture of acknowledgement!

The international football headlines were dominated by Thierry Henry’s deliberate handball to keep the ball in play and deliver it for William Gallas to score France’s goal that effectively eliminated the Republic of Ireland from the World Cup.

No doubt Eire fans later enjoyed very much the disarray and disgrace with which the French exited the finals in South Africa!

Photo: Action Images

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