3/1 To Win
Rams defeated in a five-goal thriller at the Pirelli Stadium.
Derby County were beaten 3-2 by Burton Albion in the final of the Bass Charity Vase on Tuesday evening, denying them the opportunity to lift the trophy for the 18th time in their history.
The first-ever winners of the Bass Charity Vase in 1890 looked as if they were going to come out on top at Burton’s Pirelli Stadium, after Mason Bennett and Johnny Russell had Derby 2-0 to the good inside 17 minutes.
But Burton hit back either side of half time through Michael Spillane and Michael Symes to level the tie, before Dominic Knowles scored the winner in the final minute.
Manager Nigel Clough and his coaching staff were in attendance to oversee proceedings and he named a strong side to take on the Brewers, with the players taking in a game situation rather than a training session earlier in the day.
Richard Keogh and Craig Forsyth were the only players to have played every minute of Derby’s three first-team fixtures this season to be named in the starting XI, while Adam Smith, Ben Davies, Craig Bryson, Michael Jacobs, John Eustace and Russell started the game.
Youngsters Bennett and Jamie Hanson were also handed the chance to impress, while first-year scholars Charles Vernam and Max Lowe were named on a substitutes bench that included Saturday’s two-goal hero against Brighton, Chris Martin.
The Rams started strongly against a Burton line-up which was completely changed from their weekend victory over Rochdale in League 2, and it took them just seven minutes to take the lead.
Some fine wing play by Jacobs, driving into the box from the left, had Burton on the back foot and when his cross found Bennett at the far post, the 17-year-old made no mistake by lashing the ball into the roof of the net from six yards out.
Derby’s dominance continued throughout the early stages and their second goal duly arrived after 17 minutes, when Russell smartly flicked Bennett’s drilled cross from the right into the far corner from around six yards out.
Burton came back into the game towards the end of the half as Alex MacDonald flashed an effort over from 20 yards with their first chance on the half hour mark, while two minutes later Bennett’s 25-yarder thundered just wide.
However, the hosts’ first serious effort on target, in first-half injury time, cut the deficit to just a single goal.
A free-kick from the left was flicked home by Spillane at the near post, with Saul Deeney in the Derby goal powerless to stopping the ball flash past him and into the back of the net.
The Rams introduced Jake Buxton, Paul Coutts, Martin and Lowe off the bench at half-time, but within a few minutes Burton were back on level terms when Symes expertly got on the end of Knowles’ right-wing cut-back to slot home.
Buxton hit the bar with a powerful header from inside the box just before the hour as Derby pushed to re-take the lead, but clear-cut chances were at a premium for the majority of the second period.
Bennett scooped a shot over from close range midway through the half, before Burton went on to complete their dramatic turnaround in the final minute of the game when Knowles beat the Derby offside trap to advance clear on goal and slot past the advancing Deeney.
Burton Albion: Lyness, Reed, MacDonald, Phillips, Knowles, Dyer, Palmer, Slade, Symnes, Spillane, Currie.
Subs Not Used: Harness, Doyle, O’Brien, Horton.
Derby County: Deeney, Smith (Vernam 81), Keogh (Buxton 46), Hanson, Forsyth (Lowe 46), Davies, Eustace, Bryson (Martin 46), Jacobs, Bennett, Russell (Coutts 46).
Subs Not Used: Morch, Hoganson.
