Derby County bust Millwall myth and what happened to Jerry Yates told its own story

Derby County's Jerry Yates scores
-Credit: (Image: PA)


Derby County picked up their first point away from home in the Championship this season as they were held to a 1-1 draw at Millwall.

Jerry Yates' first goal for the club since his loan move from Swansea had looked to put the Rams on track for all three points but Mihailo Ivanovic rescued a point for the hosts.

Derby started well enough, but the game soon became a drab affair in which both sides struggled to find any real rhythm in the final third. Millwall perhaps looked the more likely to make a breakthrough, particularly when George Honeyman made runs into the box.

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He forced one save from Jacob Widell Zetterstrom before Macauley Langstaff was denied by the upright as Neil Harris' side tried to turn the screw. Derby started to make their own presence felt when Kenzo Goudmijn whipped a terrific cross into the box which just eluded Yates.

And the Rams striker did have an effort at goal before half-time although he blasted his effort over the bar after linking up with Corey Blackett-Taylor. The game's entertainment marginally improved after the break and Derby really should have taken the lead when Blackett-Taylor was put through by Eiran Cashin but scuffed wide of the post. Millwall summoned an immediate response through Langstaff but the former Notts County forward was denied by an outstretched leg by Zetterstrom.

But Paul Warne's side had the breakthrough when a corner from Mendez-Laing was flicked to the back post where Yates scrambled it over the line for his first goal this season. But while Derby were hoping to snatch all three points, Ivanovic levelled when he ran clean through, rounded Zetterstrom and slotted in the equaliser.

Here are all the talking points from the weekend...

Not a classic by any means

Whatever Derby County go on to achieve in the Championship this season, it's safe to assume this drab 1-1 draw won't make the highlights come the end of the campaign.

Derby were involved in better games in League One last season than what we all witnessed at the New Den in a contest that Warne admitted was not a "classic". Nobody could really disagree with that statement, as both sides were as guilty as each other in treating the ball as if it had a bomb inside it.

Neither goalkeeper was seriously overworked, and there were careless passes, plenty of midfield skirmishes, and very little quality in the final third from both teams. But Derby are at least up and running when it comes to picking up points on the road after facing some of the best the Championship has had to offer away from home in these opening 10 games.

Now that the wait is over, Derby head to Oxford on Tuesday, hoping to make further progress in their quest to be the team nobody wants to host. They do so with Warne's advice ringing in their ears: to believe in themselves a bit more, particularly in the final third. Derby registered just one shot on target across the 90 minutes here, and that proved to be the goal. They will need more than that across the course of the season, and the frustrating aspect is we know they have the ability, given some of the performances at Pride Park.

Yates is up and running

Yates has quickly established himself as a favourite on Derby's terraces, which is owed to his incessant work rate and some real intelligence along the frontline. You get the impression the striker would chase a crisp packet in the wind and he epitomises how Warne wants his team to play when it comes to pressing out of possession.

But strikers are always judged on goals and there has been a real clamour to see Yates' hard work be rewarded since moving from Swansea on a season-long loan deal in the summer.

He has come close in wins over Bristol City and QPR and when you are a centre forward you get to the stage where you will take a goal no matter how scruffy it is. While Saturday's scrambled effort won't win any goal of the season awards, it was vitally important for Yates to break that duck.

The celebrations and how the rest of the players lifted him in the air showed how much he is valued in the dressing room and told its own story. Warne said the response was like Caesar had returned victorious from battle. That shows you how highly he is respected by his peers and the fans will always back you as long as you put your bundle in. And he certainly does that.

Millwall myth busted

Millwall have forged a reputation as having one of the most hostile grounds in the country, and there has been plenty of talk about its formidable atmosphere, which has been passed down through the generations. But this game didn't quite have the noise level from the home ends that some might have anticipated.

Maybe the product on the pitch had an impact, given that there was little to shout about in the way of chances. In the main, it was a bitty, tightly contested game that only flickered into life once Yates scored the opener late on in the second half.

Derby were certainly given plenty of backing, having taken close to 3,000 fans in what was a fantastic show of support and only second to Blackburn in terms of the biggest following away from Pride Park this season, They comfortably gave as good as they got when it came to raising the decibel levels.

Millwall had their moments, with the usual chants of 'no one likes us', but it wasn't the kind of atmosphere that left Derby feeling the heat.

Other than that, it was unusually quiet for a club that has always had such vociferous support. The feeling that the New Den is as formidable as it was thirty-odd years ago, and based on this evidence, doesn't ring true.

Nyambe hope

Ryan Nyambe is one of those players who doesn't really come off injured unless there is a serious problem which is why his substitution in the first half was a concern.

He is set to undergo a scan on Monday, and everybody of the black-and-white persuasion will be hoping he has done nothing serious. Paul Warne is usually a pretty good judge, and when asked if it was a contact injury, he shook his head and said he thinks he has tweaked something in his knee.

We will know more in the next few days, but the optics didn't look great. To lose Nyambe for any length of time would represent a huge blow given how well he has started the season.

He is a bonafide Championship defender and pound for pound has probably been one of the best free transfers the club has made in the Warne era. Fingers crossed, he's okay.

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