[Archived] Derby County vs Blackburn Rovers Sunday 04/08 4pm kick off (Live on Sky)

[Roverthechimp]

Is it me or does anyone else think that Leon Best looks significantly overweight?

Actually thought he is one of the few that looks to be "premiership" weight ie built like the proverbial brick skithouse...

Compared to the rest of our team (hanley and spurr excepted) then he probably is "overweight"

[Silencio]

He looked very overweight in the training pics the other week but not sure now...

[Al]

Why do players who are well built with a bit of muscle get accused of being overweight?

[Pedderz0912]

Overall I was quite pleased with the 1st game (Even more so as I bet on a draw) but the level of fitness looked good as well as the togetherness of the players and how they celebrated when we scored. We also had good support..... Bring on Forrest - another good test...

Kean 7 - Made a good save.... But didn't really have much to do, also needs to work on his kicking

Kane 6 - Got forward well, caught out of position a few times and quite rash in the challenge

Hanely 8 - Looked rock solid won most 50/50's and how good are his 60 yard+ runs

Dann 8 - Also looked really solid and covered the space in behind kane twice very very well, also his distribution was more than decent - again that ball to judge and the kingone were inch perfect - Good foundation for the team these 2 if we can keep them both

Spurr 8 - Again looked realy up for it, gets stuck in, wins his headers and looks like he can put in a decent cross also... happy with this signing

Lowe - 6 - He got caught out of position 3 times in the 1st ten mins and had to relay on his pace/energy to get back, but does put in a real shift and gets back in the unit very qiuckly making us harder to break down

Marrow - 7 Suprisingly impressed having seen him twice now, pointless penalty to give away though but gets stuck in and shields the back 4 v.well I think

Rochina 8 - Looked a class above other than his chance before going off, Technically brilliant - Going to be a big miss

Judge 8 - Looked dangerous, finds room well and think he will score a few in this league, also puts a shift in

King 7 - Frustrating as bags full of pace but doesn't really use it best he could - Still looks dangerous on break though

Rhodes 7 - Starved of support but still could have had an assist and a penalty also..

Taylor 7 - Great cross for goal, good sub

Best - 8 Looked sharp, held it up well, unlucky with hitting woodwork twice but great finish

Cairney 7 - Has a great touch and would like him to start in the home games along side lowe/marrow.

[BigBar]

Overall I was quite pleased with the 1st game (Even more so as I bet on a draw) but the level of fitness looked good as well as the togetherness of the players and how they celebrated when we scored. We also had good support..... Bring on Forrest - another good test...

Kean 7 - Made a good save.... But didn't really have much to do, also needs to work on his kicking

Kane 6 - Got forward well, caught out of position a few times and quite rash in the challenge

Hanely 8 - Looked rock solid won most 50/50's and how good are his 60 yard+ runs

Dann 8 - Also looked really solid and covered the space in behind kane twice very very well, also his distribution was more than decent - again that ball to judge and the kingone were inch perfect - Good foundation for the team these 2 if we can keep them both

Spurr 8 - Again looked realy up for it, gets stuck in, wins his headers and looks like he can put in a decent cross also... happy with this signing

Lowe - 6 - He got caught out of position 3 times in the 1st ten mins and had to relay on his pace/energy to get back, but does put in a real shift and gets back in the unit very qiuckly making us harder to break down

Marrow - 7 Suprisingly impressed having seen him twice now, pointless penalty to give away though but gets stuck in and shields the back 4 v.well I think

Rochina 8 - Looked a class above other than his chance before going off, Technically brilliant - Going to be a big miss

Judge 8 - Looked dangerous, finds room well and think he will score a few in this league, also puts a shift in

King 7 - Frustrating as bags full of pace but doesn't really use it best he could - Still looks dangerous on break though

Rhodes 7 - Starved of support but still could have had an assist and a penalty also..

Taylor 7 - Great cross for goal, good sub

Best - 8 Looked sharp, held it up well, unlucky with hitting woodwork twice but great finish

Cairney 7 - Has a great touch and would like him to start in the home games along side lowe/marrow.

Agree with majority of these scores but the ones i dont agree with are Marrow and King? 7's for them is very generous, i thought Marrow was poor and almost cost us the game with that ridiculous handball, that was inexcusable in my book, couldnt believe it after the solid first half we had yet went in 1-0 down...

King also very poor i thought, everytime i see him he frustrates me more and more. Would have Taylor ahead of him every week.

[Pedderz0912]

Looking back maybe I was too kind on Marrow, Having watched the game live I thought he did a v.good job even though it was stupid what he did for the penalty but looking back and watching the game on sky... Maybe a 6.5 for Marrow then

I agree I would also have Taylor in before King but the thing is with King you always have an outlet with pace and that can be v.important playing away from home... but i also agree has he has pace to burn - saying that he was more of a striker wasn't he initially so maybe getting used to the position...???

Against Forrest I would play:

Kean

Kane Dann Hanley Spurr

Taylor Lowe Cairney Judge

Best Rhodes

Nunes, Marrow, King to come on if/when needed...

[rigger]

Why do players who are well built with a bit of muscle get accused of being overweight?

Usually because they become muscle-bound, and are ponderous, so they are slow in initial movement. the human brain equates this to being overweight.

[Amo]

King also very poor i thought, everytime i see him he frustrates me more and more. Would have Taylor ahead of him every week.

Yup, Marlowe contributed more in that match in terms of the nitty-gritty than King, who offered very little out wide and was partly responsible for Kane having a shocker.

[BigBar]

Yes King has pace but he does not use it affectively, ive never seen him skin someone or leave them for dead, hes not using his pace affectively so therefore it becomes null and void...he needs to improve ALOT if hes to continue starting games, at least there is competition there now to take his spot if he continues down this path ive seen too often now...

A win on saturday and id be a very happy bunny...even a draw and id still be content, 2 tough games to start with and to be unbeaten in them would be a promising start..

[Lytham]

When everyone's fit we could see

Kean

Henley/Kane Hanley Kilgallon Spurr

Taylor Evans Cairney Judge

Campbell/Rochina Rhodes

Subs. Robinson, Williamson, Best, King, Dunn, Dann, Marrow, Lowe, Songo'o, Nunes, Pedersen, Formica, Givet, Nunes, Rosado, Etuhu, O'Sullivan, Morris, Olsson in that order!

Bit hard to select from so many, and we haven't seen Kilgallon and Evans play yet, so it's a work in progress.

[BigBar]

When everyone's fit we could see

Kean

Henley/Kane Hanley Kilgallon Spurr

Taylor Evans Cairney Judge

Campbell/Rochina Rhodes

Subs. Robinson, Williamson, Best, King, Dunn, Dann, Marrow, Lowe, Songo'o, Nunes, Pedersen, Formica, Givet, Nunes, Rosado, Etuhu, O'Sullivan, Morris, Olsson in that order!

Bit hard to select from so many, and we haven't seen Kilgallon and Evans play yet, so it's a work in progress.

Looks good to me...looks like a good hard working midfield which will be refreshing, all appear to be grafters with a touch of flair and guile on the wings...if he get the ammo into Rhodsey he will score goals and thats not maybe!

[alexanders]

King got picked for the norwegian national team yesterday when they are facing sweden mid August,.

He has said several times that he prefers playing a striker, but I think he can be a real asset in a 4-2-3-1.

I am surprised people are putting Evans in their team without knowing much abut him.,

[john.leigh]

Just watching full Derby game on Roversplayer and got to say Lowe has been awful. Awful.

[DE.]

Most people seem to have instantly forgotten the minutes between 30-89 once Best's goal went in, which would explain some of the OTT positive comments, particularly regarding Lowe and Marrow.

It was an encouraging performance from Rovers but we had a few of those last season too. The 3-3 with Leeds early in the season springs to mind.

[alexanders]

The 3-3 with Leeds early in the season springs to mind.

Margins Margins Margins

[BigBar]

King got picked for the norwegian national team yesterday when they are facing sweden mid August,.

He has said several times that he prefers playing a striker, but I think he can be a real asset in a 4-2-3-1.

I am surprised people are putting Evans in their team without knowing much abut him.,

Hardly Norways strongest period football wise so im not suprised he is in it...wouldnt let that fool me into thinkin he has been in anyway impressive...he may get used to playin wide or face some time on the bench because he aint gettin in ahead of Rhodes, Best, Ruben and Campbell when fit...

Just watching full Derby game on Roversplayer and got to say Lowe has been awful. Awful.

Big time...all entitled to their opinion but how people are defending him is beyond me, i will never boo or jeer him but i can safely say hes very poor...hopefully with evans and cairney coming his number of appearances will lessen

[DE.]

Margins Margins Margins

It's not a case of margins - for the first 30 minutes of that game we were very good if I recall correctly, then it went to pot until the end when we scraped a draw. Some similarities between that match and yesterday's fixture which should serve as a warning not to get carried away by a decent performance for one portion of a match.

I will admit there was an energy and alertness to the team yesterday that was not been there last season. If we can keep that up then there's no reason we can't push on, but I'll remain sceptical until we turn in a few more performances in a similar vein.

[john.leigh]

Derby highlights didn't show the bit of argy bargy handbags stuff that went on just before Best scored.

Good to be able to see it in the context of the game. We rattled them and pounced while they were unsettled. Nice.

[G Somerset Rover]

I am surprised people are putting Evans in their team without knowing much abut him.,

Well it's either that or watch the combination of Lowe and Marrow take to the field once more. He cannot be any worse than either of those boys.

[BigBar]

Well it's either that or watch the combination of Lowe and Marrow take to the field once more. He cannot be any worse than either of those boys.

TESTIFY!!!!

[saxo1man30]

as far as the team goes(for the next league game), i`d keep the same starting line up(other than best for rochina) until any drop in performances dictate change to the team, that`s what i would do. totally replacing lowe, marrow and king would be massively disruptive(as well as confidence destroying) at the moment. give this team a run of games as long as it`s getting performances and results.

if we want to try things, do it against carlisle in the cup.

[Lytham]

Keep the side that finished the game but bring in Evans for Lowe and hey presto. Then when Kilgallon, Campbell and Rochina are fit, phase them in too. No need for massive disruption. To repeat, we haven't seen Kilgallon and Evans yet but they have good track records.

[Al]

as far as the team goes(for the next league game), i`d keep the same starting line up(other than best for rochina) until any drop in performances dictate change to the team, that`s what i would do. totally replacing lowe, marrow and king would be massively disruptive(as well as confidence destroying) at the moment. give this team a run of games as long as it`s getting performances and results.

if we want to try things, do it against carlisle in the cup.

Who let you back wum? Back on ignore for you my boy.

[RevidgeBlue]

So the defence of Lowe is getting hysterical, but to start comparing him to an olympic long distance runner is what? Reasonable? Sensible? Level-headed?

It's not just about running about, which I think is the point you are trying to make, it's about doing something whilst you are running about. And Jason Lowe definately does that in defence IMO. In terms of attack I can't really argue with any points people make, as he is woeful when it comes to that. But I don't agree with the way people knock him for defence.

It's regularly stated on this board that he doesn't get his foot in, can barely make a tackle etc. Firstly, I don't agree with that, but more importantly, IMO it isn't all about making tackles in modern football. It's about nullifying attacks and danger. That may be sherpherding a player down the wings to stop them getting a shot off, it might mean showing them onto their weaker foot, it might just mean being in a position to mark a man to prevent a defence splitting pass. And I see JL doing all theses things. It isn't just about flying in for crunching tackles like the old days.

In fact, I don't want my DM going in for crunchers very often, particularly in the 1st half when they may end up on a yellow and be walking a tightrope for the next 60 mins or so. I think some people are stuck in the past. The jobs of players on the pitch is very different to what it was even 5 years ago. For example, if Robbie savage was still playing today I think he would really struggle, or would definately have to adapt his style to survive, otherwise he would be a total liability on the pitch. And I think he has admitted as much himself on the radio before.

Jason Lowe has many deficiencies in his footballing ability, but it seems to me that people are letting these blind them to the fact that he also has numerous attributes and qualities that are very useful to our team. And I can only see this trend getting worse with every misplaced pass. Which will be sad to see.

I was going to reply to this post fully yesterday but didn't get chance. It goes without saying that the art of full blooded tackling is a dying dying art these days. The likes of Tommy Smith and Chopper Harris used to cheerfully admit they'd boot their opponent for the day into row 3 or 4 to let them know they were there and in a game. Even skillful players but X rated tacklers like Souness and Jimmy Case would struggle to make it to half rime these days.

Even now though I still feel a top midfielder needs to possess the ability and timing to stick in a toe or foot without necessarily going to ground to break up an opposition attack. I don't feel Lowe possesses that ability.

I also disagree about Savage. He wasn't the best tackler you've ever seen but at his physical peak especially when he was at Leicester he was exceptionally good at pressurising and harrassing the opposition to the point where they lost the ball. I think he'd have adapted fine today if he had to. I don't think Lowe is particularly good at that either at this stage.

[Guest Wen Y Hu]

It's a new season and Parsonblue's match reports are back!

See here for his account of the Derby match.