Steve Bloomer’s watching and not even gravity can hold us down. Back at Pride Park for the first time since Turki Alalshikh’s takeover collapsed, David Clowes is determined not to let that do so either. A blame game surrounding what Derby County’s reluctant hero called “the ultimate bombshell” which left the club “stunned” and “dazed” will not happen – “it serves no purpose”. His message in the first programme of the season: it is business as usual, he will back “ultimate p

Friendly, what friendly? After a quick glance at the surroundings, it was easy to see why Bundesliga outfit SC Freiburg have adopted the Austrian town of Imst as their pre-season base for two decades. But neither they, nor Derby were there to relax. Among the idyllic coniferous trees and mountains, there was more than a fitting amount of needle. As Julian Schuster’s side took to the pitch for the first time since their Europa League final defeat in May, you wondered if Cr

The Rams got their pre-season started on a glorious evening in Derbyshire (Photo: Archie Brown). From Argentina to Alfreton. The Atlanta Stadium to the Solana. England may be out of the World Cup (who cares about the third-place play-off?) but Derby County are back. First half goals from Joe Ward and Bobby Clark saw Derby through, and fortunately, they didn’t unfurl a banner claiming ownership of the Amber Valley town. This was professional football at the other end of th

How do you sum up the past nine months in one article? It’s a near impossible job. So instead, let me take you back to the seven games, over five weeks (what’s a few days for the purpose of a headline?) that encompassed the lowest point, some of the highest points, and key themes of the men’s first team’s campaign. We must start, I’m afraid, at the Kassam Stadium. Derby County’s worst performance of the season. ‘Outplayed. Outbattled. Outclassed,’ I wrote, in my bluntest as

Southampton already know they’re off to Wembley, but Derby’s hopes of playing under the famous arch this season now hang by a thread. John Eustace has been keen to keep things in perspective, talking about the progress of his side – recently with a view to next season. But after defeat at St Mary’s, his frustration was palpable. “It’s too easy from the free kick, organisation [was] not good enough and we’ve got to improve on that,” he told BBC Radio Derby . Eustace was of

Match Report and Analysis as Derby County draw 2-2 at Ipswich Town in the EFL Championship following a last-gasp penalty.