retired_confal2

Whizzing through the challenge so far

Quality as usual :thup:

retired_amyslack

Cheers Dave

Season 4 (2004/2005) Continued

New Years Day saw Calhoun’s team suffer a 2-0 defeat at Chelsea in the league. Young striker Stephen McPhee was given a start in the FA Cup tie at home to Third Division Oxford and he made an immediate impact, scoring a hat trick in the 5-0 win. He kept his place and was on target again in the wins over Arsenal and Charlton. The month ended with a 2-0 defeat to Sunderland in the FA Cup 4th round. Midfielder Mica Hyde had been made available for transfer earlier in the season and since that time there had been a running battle between him and Calhoun. The Jamacian international wasn’t happy to be playing in the reserves and he had more than one run-in with the manager on the subject, most of which ended with the player being fined. Both parties were glad when he accepted an offer from Bradford City to join them in the summer.

Stephen McPhee was proving to be a potent weapon in attack and he scored in three of Derby’s four games in February. The team had excellent 3-0 wins over Middlesbrough and Crystal Palace and drew 1-1 at Blackburn. In the final game of the month they suffered a 4-0 drubbing at Sunderland but Calhoun was incensed by what he saw as poor refereeing decisions that resulted in 5 of his players receiving yellow cards and one being sent off. His formal complaint to the FA was upheld but it didn’t exactly gain him many friends amongst the game’s administrators. The situation in the league was interesting – Liverpool and Man United were well out in front and Sunderland had established daylight over the chasing pack. Derby lay 8th but a good finish to the season could certainly give a top-five finish.

But as March moved into April the run of wins that Calhoun was looking for proved elusive. McPhee’s purple patch was short-lived and an injury to the Scotsman allowed Lee Hughes to reclaim his place in the starting lineup. Wins over Everton, Wolves, Wimbledon and Aston Villa were balanced by defeats to Man United, Fulham and Watford but nonetheless Derby entered May clinging on to 6th place with three league games remaining. During April both Lee Hughes and Stephen McPhee made their international debuts. In fact Hughes played twice that month in friendlies, scoring on both occasions. Calhoun’s previous club was relegated from the Second Division and the Hartlepool board dispensed with the services of manager Tim Flowers.

Two wins out of three in May meant that Derby held on to their 6th place, just missing out on European football. The Premiership title went to the wire and was finally decided on goal difference with Man United just edging out Liverpool. Stephen McPhee was Derby’s top scorer with 15 goals and Lucas Cornwall notched 14 from his position behind the striker. Midfielder Paul Evans was voted the Fans Player of the Year.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************ English Premier Division - Wednesday 25th May 2005********************************************** ***********************************************Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1st C Man Utd 38 16 1 2 48 8 11 3 5 41 26 85 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2nd Liverpool 38 15 3 1 27 7 12 1 6 35 25 85 3rd Sunderland 38 14 4 1 41 15 8 2 9 19 24 72 4th Fulham 38 13 5 1 38 14 8 1 10 23 32 69 5th Blackburn 38 12 5 2 38 13 5 9 5 33 31 65 6th DERBY 38 13 1 5 49 25 6 4 9 22 32 62 7th Arsenal 38 12 2 5 40 22 6 5 8 23 20 61 8th W.B.A. 38 12 2 5 41 28 6 3 10 20 35 59 9th Chelsea 38 16 3 0 44 13 1 4 14 16 45 58 10th Crystal Palace 38 11 3 5 32 23 5 2 12 19 34 53 11th Newcastle 38 11 3 5 32 22 5 1 13 23 40 52 12th Charlton 38 11 2 6 28 25 3 4 12 19 34 48 13th Everton 38 8 6 5 28 22 4 4 11 22 35 46 14th Man City 38 9 5 5 32 22 3 4 12 15 38 45 15th Middlesbrough 38 10 2 7 35 21 3 3 13 14 35 44 16th Leeds 38 9 2 8 27 21 4 2 13 16 39 43 17th Aston Villa 38 8 2 9 28 23 4 1 14 20 39 39 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------18th R Wimbledon 38 6 5 8 24 29 2 5 12 17 37 34 19th R Watford 38 4 6 9 28 38 2 5 12 14 32 29 20th R Wolves 38 4 4 11 22 34 2 3 14 14 49 25</pre>

shannon2007

Decent first season up :thup:

mrsevans7177

Nice job so far bob, whats the next stage of the challenge then?

enjikari

Solid effort in your first season up there. Well done :thup:

retired_amyslack

Thanks chaps. Bartley - the next stage is to win the Premiership and get to a European final.

Season 5 (2005/2006)

Centre back Chris Riggott had been starting to put in the kind of performances that Calhoun expected of a player with his potential and the manger was keen to bring in another quality central defender. A number of players were allowed to leave at the end of their contracts including Carbonari and the ageing Paul Williams, lending more urgency to the search for a centre back. An early addition to the squad was a player that Brig new well from his Hartlepool days, Kristian Ravneng. Having failed to establish himself at Man United he was made available for transfer and Calhoun was quick to agree a £1.8M fee.

The Derby board had also been busy and had invested a considerable sum in the infrastructure at Pride Park, expanding the capacity to over 42,000 and upgrading the training facilities and youth academy. Having missed out on a UEFA Cup place, Brig was given food for thought when his team was offered entry to the Inter-Toto Cup. After some though he decided that they should go for it. It would mean bringing the playing staff back from holiday early and they would be far from match-fit but it could be worth it. If nothing else it would serve as a competitive warm up for the league campaign and it would also expose the players to some European experience.

Derby entered the competition in the 3rd round and in mid-July they set off to Croatia for the first leg of their tie against HNK Cibalia. To a large extent it was a journey into the unknown but the team put in a solid performance to gain a scoreless draw. The home leg proved to be just as tight and extra time was required before a penalty award gave Derby a 1-0 aggregate win. The next round followed quickly and Brig called up several of his more promising reserves for the trip to Strasbourg in France to give then some first team experience. He was fairly pleased with their performance in the 1-1 draw but he went for a more experienced lineup for the return leg. With the players now approaching full fitness the team put in an excellent performance, winning 4-0.

Calhoun’s team faced French opposition once more as they took on Monaco for a place in the UEFA Cup. A powerful performance in the home leg resulted in a 4-0 win and a huge step towards Europe proper. Prior to the return leg, Derby started their league campaign with a home game against West Brom and gained a 2-1 win. The game in France ended 1-0 in Derby’s favour and they were entered into the draw for the UEFA Cup. During August Brig brought in a couple of central defenders to the squad – Dane Morten Petersen joined on a free transfer and young Scot Gordon McNab joined on a season-long loan from Rangers. Despite this he was still looking for a quality partner for Riggott and continued to scan the market.

Results were mixed in the league during September. A decent 2-2 draw at home to Newcastle was followed by a poor defeat at struggling Huddersfield. They had a good win at Charlton and came close to upsetting Liverpool, leading 2-0 at half time but conceding three second-half goals for a disappointing defeat. The 1st round of the UEFA Cup was much more productive with wins both home and away against Norwegian side Valerenga. In the away leg young Izale McLeod scored an excellent hat trick in the 4-0 win and Stephen McPhee got a brace in the home tie. There were encouraging performances from several players – Ravneng and Delaney were superb on the flanks, McLeod had impressed playing behind the front man and Evans and Johnson were strong in midfield. Lee Hughes was amongst the goals again, despite missing several games with a knee problem.

retired_amyslack

Season 5 (2005/2006) Continued

October saw little improvement in their league form. They suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at Middlesbrough and their other 4 league games were drawn, including an extraordinary 3-3 draw at home to Arsenal. 3-0 down after 15 minutes, the game was all square by the half hour mark. They recorded the same scoreline in the 1st leg of their UEFA Cup 2nd round tie at Benfica and made progress in the League cup with a defeat of Portsmouth. The playing staff was strengthened that month with the arrival of 24-year-old England international Francis Jeffers on a £3.5M move from Arsenal. Ironically his second appearance from the club came against his old club and the striker scored twice to cap an amazing comeback.

A highly contrasting season was beginning to unfold at Derby County football club. In the league they were in terrible form, losing all three of their games in the Premiership in November and dropping to second-bottom of the table. Their luck was typified by the game at Everton – 1-0 ahead with 10 minutes remaining they lost goal-scorer Jeffers to injury and conceded twice to lose. But in the League Cup wins over Nottingham Forest and Millwall took them to the Semi Finals. It was the same story in the UEFA Cup as they recorded a stunning 4-0 win over Benfica at Pride Park to gain a 7-3 aggregate victory.

Calhoun continued to look to strengthen his squad and in early December he made two significant acquisitions. Experienced Greek international defender Trianos Dellas joined from Roma for £575K and young goalkeeper Chris Kirkland agreed a £2.5M move from Liverpool. Both players were included in the first team and they made an immediate impact. A hectic end of year saw Derby contest no less than 7 league games and they were denied an unbeaten month only by a last-minute goal at Chelsea in their final game of the year. Wins over Luton and Crystal Palace were followed by three consecutive goalless draws with Man United, Newcastle and Man City to lift the team up to 15th. However their UEFA Cup run came to an end in the 3rd round. After securing an excellent 0-0 draw in Lyon they had hope of progressing. But in the home leg they fell two goals behind and looked down and out. However, they staged a fighting comeback and scored twice to square the game but were eliminated on away goals.

Progress continued in January with a 100% record in the league as West Brom, Southampton and Huddersfield were all beaten and the team moved up to 12th. The return of Jeffers from injury coincided with Derby’s FA Cup 3rd round tie at Arsenal and he opened the scoring against his former employers. Unfortunately Calhoun’s team couldn’t hold on to their lead and were eliminated 3-1. The loss of Steve Thomson for 2 months with a groin strain was a blow for the team as he was a key figure in front of the defence. Then keeper Kirkland also suffered an injury and he was sidelined for a month.

February started in the hardest manner possible with consecutive games against the top two in the league, Man United and Liverpool. United were beaten 1-0 thanks to a goal from Jeffers but that scoreline was reversed in a tough game at Anfield. They were unbeaten in their three other league games that month, beating Middlesbrough and Charlton and drawing at Man City and moved to 9th in the table. But their League Cup adventure came to an end as they went out to Fulham 4-3 on aggregate. The home game of the two-legged Semi Final was drawn 1-1 but Calhoun’s team raced into a two-goal lead through Jeffers in the return only to concede three times and be eliminated. During the month keeper Russell Hoult was sold to Bolton for £1.5M, Brig reckoning that he had enough cover for that position.

In March Derby began a run of games against the teams immediately above them in the table and Calhoun was hopeful of continued progress. That was soon dashed however as they lost both of their matches in an abbreviated league programme – a 2-1 defeat at home to Sunderland and a 3-0 loss at Fulham. During that period they also lost key defender Chris Riggott for a month with a groin strain.

April began promisingly with a 2-0 defeat of Blackburn and then an excellent 4-1 win at Arsenal during which Francis Jeffers kept up his habit of scoring against his old club with two well-taken goals. Four more victories that month gave Calhoun the kind of winning streak that he had been looking for all season and their six straight wins took them to 6th in the table. It also brought the manager his first managerial award in the top flight. A further win and a draw in the final two games of the season, coupled with other results involving teams above them, gave Derby a 4th place at the end of the season, a result that delighted everyone at the club.

On the playing front strikers McPhee and Jeffers were both superb, each man coming close to a goal a game strike rate. Ravneng and Delaney made a powerful pair of wingbacks and Steve Thomson had another fine season in front of the defence with Ian Hughes substituting superbly when required. Dellas proved to be a good buy in the centre of defence and formed a strong partnership with Riggott. Calhoun was more concerned with his midfield. His regular trio of Evans, Johnson and Livermore had not been as effective this season. Youngster Weckstrom had taken over from Livermore midway through the season to some effect but Brig was keen to look for some alternatives. Cornwall played well behind the striker and teenager Chris Hughes broke into the first team to good effect and he looked to have a big future.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************ English Premier Division - Monday 22nd May 2006********************************************** ***********************************************Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1st C Liverpool 38 14 3 2 41 17 11 3 5 29 22 81 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2nd Man Utd 38 17 1 1 38 12 7 7 5 27 21 80 3rd Sunderland 38 15 3 1 48 16 7 5 7 21 24 74 4th DERBY 38 10 6 3 36 19 7 5 7 24 23 62 5th Blackburn 38 13 1 5 33 23 4 10 5 25 29 62 6th Man City 38 9 7 3 25 15 8 3 8 21 25 61 7th Chelsea 38 10 8 1 28 15 5 7 7 21 23 60 8th Arsenal 38 11 4 4 37 23 5 6 8 35 36 58 9th Leeds 38 11 1 7 37 28 6 5 8 31 28 57 10th Fulham 38 12 3 4 38 20 4 5 10 16 31 56 11th Aston Villa 38 9 5 5 39 31 6 3 10 32 35 53 12th Newcastle 38 8 7 4 29 18 4 3 12 27 39 46 13th Crystal Palace 38 6 6 7 23 26 5 5 9 19 31 44 14th W.B.A. 38 5 7 7 18 15 5 4 10 18 33 41 15th Middlesbrough 38 9 4 6 32 19 2 3 14 14 34 40 16th Luton 38 6 3 10 26 36 5 3 11 22 34 39 17th Charlton 38 6 3 10 28 36 5 2 12 23 37 38 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------18th R Southampton 38 8 5 6 26 24 2 1 16 11 43 36 19th R Everton 38 7 6 6 30 27 1 4 14 15 46 34 20th R Huddersfield 38 2 3 14 16 38 7 2 10 27 34 32</pre>

retired_bbcarr

well done on finishing 4th :thup: got a bit of a gap to close up on those above you for next season, though.

retired_amyslack

Thanks Simon - it's going to prove tough to get ahead Man U and Liverpool though.

Season 6 (2006/2007)

Calhoun made a few changes to the Derby squad in the off-season. The playing staff was reduced further when a further eight fringe players left the club when their contracts expired, including a handful of graduates from the Youth Academy that were just never going to make the grade. But it wasn’t all one-way traffic as several players were brought in as well. The biggest news was the club-record £9.25M paid to bring the versatile Steven Reid from Millwall. The 25-year-old could play in defence, midfield, or even in attack and Brig saw his flexibility as a great advantage. Other new faces included Cameroonian forward Kalle Stone who joined from Vitesse, Ishmail Yakuba a young defender from Crewe and young Greek centre back Anestis Anastasiadis who moved from Watford.

The new season began with a draw and two wins in Derby’s first three league games in August, a promising start that left them in second place in the Premiership. They opened with a 1-1 draw at home to Portsmouth before travelling to Leeds where they came back from two down to grab a 3-2 win. They finished with an excellent 5-2 defeat of Middlesborough as Calhoun’s side carried on from where they left off last season.

Having made such a strong finish last season they had no need of the Inter-Toto as they qualified for the UEFA Cup by right. In the 1st round of the competition they drew Czech team Teplice, winning both legs 2-0 for a very good 4-0 aggregate. Their league form in September was impeccable – three wins out of three taking them to the top of the table above the mighty Liverpool, champions in three of the last five seasons. David Livermore seemed to have re-captured his best form and, having forced his was back into the team, he was named the Premiership’s Player of the Month.

October saw both Riggott and Jeffers pick up injuries and they were soon joined in the treatment room by Lucas Cornwall. The month started well enough on the pitch with a defeat of Fulham but then it took a good second half fightback at West Brom to retrieve a two-goal deficit and get a draw. Calhoun’s team then suffered their first league defeat of the season as Liverpool showed their class with a 2-0 win at Anfield. Worse was to follow a few days later with an identical scoreline at Newcastle. Brig needed to lift his team for their next match, a visit from Man United, otherwise their promising start was in danger of turning into a demoralising slump. His players responded superbly, and buoyed by the return of Riggott and Jeffers they secured a fine 3-1 win. Derby midfielder Chris Hughes, just turned 20 but now a regular starter in the first team, was voted Young Player of the Month for his good run of form.

Derby managed to keep their good form going into November despite injuries to Thomson, Livermore, Petersen, Hughes and Cornwall at various times in the month. They survived a tricky UEFA Cup draw against Trabzonspor, coming back from the intimidating atmosphere in Turkey with a good 2-2 draw. The home leg saw them run riot, winning 5-0 with McPhee scoring a hat trick. They faced Man United once more, this time in the League Cup, and Calhoun fielded a weakened team that suffered a 4-0 thrashing. But it was their league form that gave the manager most satisfaction, adopting to various changes in personnel as fitness dictated, they still managed to win all four of their games and entered December at the top of the table. But it was very tight at the top, with little to choose between the top half dozen. During the month Calhoun had a falling out with defender Luke Young who had made noises to the press about moving clubs. After a brief conversation with the player, Brig moved him into the reserves and slapped him on the transfer list. Within weeks a deal had been agreed with Crystal Palace and Young was on his way.

With half a dozen league matches to be played, December was a hectic month to say the least. Calhoun’s team was also involved in UEFA Cup action, completing their 3rd round tie with Danish side Brondby. They had a good 1-0 win in the away leg in late November and they completed the job with a memorable 6-2 win at Pride Park. Their excellent progress in the league continued with wins over Charlton, Chelsea and Portsmouth and draws with Sunderland and Leeds. Their only blemish was a 1-0 defeat at home to Man City, a loss that cost them the top spot in the table and they slipped to second. At the midway point of the season the top of the table was still pretty congested but Calhoun was delighted at the progress that his team was making.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************ English Premier Division - Monday 1st January 2007********************************************** ***********************************************Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1st Man Utd 20 8 0 1 18 3 7 3 1 28 10 48 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2nd DERBY 21 7 2 1 21 8 7 2 2 20 12 46 3rd Liverpool 21 8 2 0 25 7 5 3 3 13 7 44 4th Man City 21 7 3 1 17 7 6 2 2 14 7 44 5th Sunderland 21 7 4 0 17 5 5 3 2 17 12 43 6th Blackburn 21 9 1 1 25 11 3 3 4 13 17 40</pre>

mrsevans7177

Nice goin BobBev, excellent chance of the title this season :thup: