Andre Wisdom has described Derby County’s convincing 4-0 pre-season victory over Kidderminster Harriers as a ‘good way to start’ as preparations for the 2017/18 campaign were cranked up a notch.
David Nugent, Craig Bryson, Chris Martin and Darren Bent all got on the scoresheet at Aggborough Stadium on Tuesday in what was the Rams’ first pre-season fixture.
Another positive from match saw all of Derby’s first team players – aside from George Thorne, Jason Shackell, Ikechi Anya, and Max Lowe – get 45 minutes under their belts.
Gary Rowett’s men headed into the meeting with John Eustace’s side with the desire to make a mark and Wisdom, making his first appearance in Rams colours since re-joining the club on a permanent basis from Liverpool earlier this month, felt the players did that and gave themselves a good foundation to build on moving forward.
The 24-year-old told RamsTV after the full-time whistle: “It feels good to be back out on the pitch and playing.
“There were a few heavy legs out there, but it was good to get that first 45 minutes of the way.
“We have been training hard and the next step was to taste that real game situation once again and take what we have been working on in training on to the pitch.
“Tonight was a good way to start that. Getting a clean sheet as a defender is always a good start. We got some goals and there were some good finishes too.
“We wanted to make a mark. We want to get clean sheets. We want to score goals. We want to put in performances and tonight, we did all of that.”
With very little time to rest, Rowett’s men have an intense games schedule ahead of them as they gear up for their Sky Bet Championship opener away at Sunderland on Friday 4th August.
Wisdom says he is feeling in great shape after a gruelling first two weeks back for pre-season.
This Saturday sees the Rams head to Macclesfield Town at Moss Rose and the full back is looking forward to further building on the style and values Rowett is instilling in the players.
Wisdom added: “I’m feeling good. The legs feel a little bit heavy from the previous training sessions and Tenerife was tough too.
“In terms of fitness, though, I’m feeling good and hopefully we can build on that in the coming weeks.
“The games will come thick and fast now that the first one is out the way, so it will be good to get the games and get the minutes and make sure we work on the things we need to in order to be ready for the first game at Sunderland.”
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