This summer has been a very different experience to say the least from a personal perspective.
As I’m sure a lot of you have seen over the last five weeks, I have done a lot of work with RamsTV and have had the privilege of covering Derby County’s pre-season campaign.
On top of that, though, I have seen just how much work has gone into this project – getting it to a stage where supporters, across the world, could watch every minute of Derby’s pre-season matches.
The production team have worked extremely hard behind the scenes to get it to this point and being privy to that has been a real eye-opening experience.
It hasn’t literally just been a case of filming a game either.
The quality of the content has been top drawer too and a lot of progress has been made in a short space of time. More than most, though, I think the supporters have appreciated the bold steps that have been taken to enhance the club’s digital experience.
I have been fortunate enough to get involved with the commentary side of things. Now, I don’t see myself as the next Gary Neville, but I am enjoying it and it’s been a great learning curve working with these experienced people.
Jack Woodward has been a huge help when it comes to the co-commentary aspect – as has Colin Gibson and his vast experience in the broadcast industry when I have been in the studio as a guest – and they have helped me along over the last five weeks.
The real beauty of it, though, is that, like you, I have been able to get a closer look at how Derby’s pre-season campaign has unfolded under Gary Rowett.
The qualities Gary wants to see from his players has been discussed before in this column.
At Burton Albion and then Birmingham City he blooded sides that were, first and foremost, hard workers and were extremely fit.
Work started in earnest during the close-season on this and whilst I’m sure they weren’t saying it at the time, the players have since spoken on numerous times about how they have benefitted from that approach.
It’s something that I discussed with Darren Bent recently too. He joined me in the RamsTV studio for the Hoffenheim match last Saturday and spoke about the great lengths Gary has taken to make sure his players are in prime position and good shape to cope with the demands that come with the Championship.
He confirmed on the same day, unfortunately, that he is going to be out until Christmas with a hamstring injury – a great shame from my perspective, considering that he looked like he was benefitting from Tom Huddlestone’s excellent range of passing.
That brings me to my next talking point.
The movements the club has made in the transfer market are looking very shrewd, particularly with regards to the three players that have come through the door so far.
Two of the three are players we already know.
The aforementioned Huddlestone is someone we know all about. He came through the club’s academy and after leaving as a teenager, he returns a man and boasts a wealth of experience from playing right at the top of the game on a consistent basis.
Renowned for his passing, we have seen what he is capable of in the few games he has played already.
Andre Wisdom was exceptional when he first joined the club on loan from Liverpool and, for me, is the pick of the signings. He’s as a real athlete, is so strong, and, after getting back into the swing of things, has looked like he has never been away.
The first of the signings was Curtis Davies – a proven leader on the pitch and a dependable influence in the backline.
The three of them together add a great deal of stature and steel to the team and are now key cogs in Gary’s mission to make his team harder to beat.
There were times last season when Derby were too flimsy. Gary also mentioned that his side needed more height and aerial strength to cope with strong attacking sides and early doors. We are seeing that this is an area that is beginning to be addressed.
Over seven pre-season games, four clean sheets were recorded and, particularly in the Port Vale, Kaiserslautern and Hoffenheim games, there was a real defensive resilience shown.
The other aspect that I have also been impressed with is the amount of chances that have been created.
Again, this was an evident problem at times last season, but with the direct approach Gary has instilled in his side since becoming manager in March, we are starting to see Derby’s forwards, including Chris Martin, David Nugent, Mason Bennett, Johnny Russell and Andreas Weimann, benefit far more.
What I would like to see in these next few games is Derby back that up by adding a more ruthless touch in front of goal.
That starts against Sunderland on Friday night.
The opening day fixture is, naturally, always difficult, but it doesn’t get much tougher than beginning at the Stadium of Light and playing in front of more than 40,000 supporters.
It’s difficult to know exactly what we can expect from Sunderland.
Yes, they have been through an horrendous time. Yes, they were relegated last season. Yes, they have gone through a period of change and yes, they were beaten 5-0 by Celtic in their final pre-season match.
For me, personally, none of this will matter on Friday. If anything, it has the potential to work in their favour because they will feel they have a big point to prove to Simon Grayson, who is undertaking his biggest job in management yet.
Simon has been successful wherever he has been as a manager and his ethics are very much the same as Gary’s in the sense that their successes are built on hardworking units.
What we cannot forget is that Sunderland have also got some quality players on their books still.
Facing such an opposition, in front of such a big crowd and on the opening day of the season, it can be very easy to get carried away.
That’s the big challenge Derby will have to overcome if they are to kick off the season with a result that would send out an early statement of intent to the rest of the division.
