MX23RW : Wednesday, December 18 08:51:24| >> :600:360997:360997:

'Outstanding' debutants Sam Baldock and Phil Jagielka help Derby end winless run

'Outstanding' debutants Sam Baldock and Phil Jagielka help Derby end winless run
© Reuters
Sam Baldock scored the only goal of the game as the Rams won a Championship game for the first time since April.

Derby assistant Liam Rosenior hailed debutants Sam Baldock and Phil Jagielka as the Rams ended their nine-game run without a Championship victory by winning 1-0 at Hull.

Baldock, 32, scored the only goal of the contest in the 57th-minute and ex-England international defender Phil Jagielka, now 39, marshalled the back-line to their first clean sheet in nine contests.

Both players trained with the Rams during pre-season and, with the club going into the MKM Stadium clash with just one point from their opening two fixtures, boss Wayne Rooney handed the pair contracts and was rewarded handsomely.

Rosenior, deputising for Rooney during the post-match duties, said: "They were both outstanding. The pleasing thing from our point of view was that we worked with them in pre-season.

"They know what we want and how we want to play. Jags has obviously played with Wayne and Wayne trusts him and I was fortunate to play with Sam and, even if he's not scoring, he does the unselfish, horrible stuff.

"Jags is a top-class player and, while people might talk about his age, when you understand the game like he does, it makes a huge difference.

"We were pleased with the result and performance and the boys are adapting to the style and structure that we want to play. We were more incisive than we have been in our previous games this season and had more runners in behind.

"Hull kept pushing but we saw out their aerial threat and that was great, because I thought we deserved to be more than 1-0 ahead. I think there has been a hangover from last season with all of the things surrounding the club, but every single player has worked so hard for us since coming back for pre-season and I think they believe in us and what we want to do."

Home manager Grant McCann bemoaned his side's lack of potency in the final third of the field, with Derby goalkeeper Kelle Roos only called on to make two saves all night.

McCann said: "We were not ourselves tonight. We were very safe and didn't pass the ball or break the lines quickly enough.

"We didn't look threatening and we know that we are. We also know there will be games this season when that happens, but then at the very least you have to come away with a 0-0. We didn't because we conceded a sloppy goal from a mistake.

"We've conceded three other goals this season from mistakes and it's cost us. We know we won't have it all our way this season because there are some good teams in this league.

"But we have got a very good group and I want the players to understand that they are, because we're not here just to make up the numbers."

ID:459826:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect3550:
Written by
P A

Click here for more stories about Sam Baldock

Click here for more stories about Derby County

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
West Bromwich Albion's Dara O'Shea celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates on August 6, 2021
Read Next:
Wednesday's Championship predictions including West Brom vs. Sheff Utd
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd21145230111945
2Leeds UnitedLeeds21126337152242
3Burnley2111822681841
4Sunderland21117332171540
5Blackburn RoversBlackburn2011452517837
6Middlesbrough21104735251034
7Watford2010462926334
8West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom2171132416832
9Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds218582630-429
10Swansea CitySwansea217682322127
11Bristol City216962626027
12Norwich CityNorwich216873632426
13Millwall206772018225
14Derby CountyDerby216692626024
15Coventry CityCoventry216692730-324
16Preston North EndPreston2141162127-623
17Stoke CityStoke215792328-522
18Queens Park RangersQPR2141072127-622
19Luton TownLuton2164112337-1422
20Oxford UnitedOxford Utd2046102133-1218
21Cardiff CityCardiff2046101932-1318
22Portsmouth193882134-1317
23Plymouth ArgylePlymouth2045111942-2317
24Hull City2137111930-1116


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!