Derby 0 - 6 Aston Villa

By: MoonPig | April 12th, 2008

Shambles! Absolute shambles! I have two real concerns (I know, you think I’d have more wouldn’t you!)

1. Our total lack of guts. After a really bright start (where we were the better team, not that any of the lazy TV pundits will acknowledge) the 2nd goal ended the game. You ask the 30,000 Derby fans who watched the game, not one of them would have disagreed. How can a team - irrespective of confidence - have so little fight.

2. Despite the fact I am 100% behind Paul Jewell and absolutely positive he is the man to take our club forwards it is totally unacceptable to field a team (5 of which were his own signings) that is so desperately short of competing… and not just that but woefully lacking in spirit. Jewell has been at the club since November and it’s not good enough. Nowhere near. I’m tired hearing about next season and how everyone wants the season to end… There are still games to play. I don’t want to hear about it. I want to hear about the next game.

The fans are all behind Jewell and we might have been singing until the end but I hope the irony of the chants “Let’s pretend we scored a goal” and “Easy, easy, easy…” weren’t lost on the players. We were singing because there was nothing else to do.

Whilst none of the players (OR MANAGEMENT) should escape from the sheer embarrassment of this sort of performance or result I would like to separate the few who tried for 90 minutes from the rest of the XI who clearly don’t give a shit. Savage, Ghaly, Villa, Miller… your efforts were not un-noticed. Some I’m not sure of, and some were just a god damn disgrace.

I’m not a fan of player fines but all we ask is 100% effort and it’s really not much to ask. Some of the players just aren’t putting in anything near that and they need to be weeded out. NOW. I’m comfortable with the fact we’re not having a great season and that we’re going to take the odd kicking but this sort of performance is utterly utterly unacceptable.

Ross Fletcher from BBC Radio Derby said “It wouldn’t be so bad if it wasn’t such a regular occurrence.” So true. So true.
SORT IT OUT JEWELL. SORT IT OUT.
More when I’ve calmed down.
It might be a while…