3/1 To Win
Derby County will take to the Pride Park Stadium turf for the final time in the regular 2019/20 Sky Bet Championship season on Sunday afternoon when they take on Leeds United (2pm kick-off).
Derby will be looking to end their home campaign on a high note as they look to record a top-half finish to conclude Phillip Cocu's first full season in charge of the Rams.
Leeds, meanwhile, have already secured automatic promotion back to the Premier League - and also the Championship title - following defeats for West Bromwich Albion and Brentford on Friday and Saturday.
dcfc.co.uk has gathered all the information you will need to know ahead of Sunday's game at Pride Park.
RAMSTV STREAMING INFORMATION…
Sunday's match has been selected for live coverage
by Sky Sports - and supporters are reminded of the usual restrictions
for
streaming on RamsTV as a result.
The match is also available to watch LIVE on RamsTV via dcfc.co.uk or through the Official Derby County App, but ONLY for Season Ticket Holders who opted for Free RamsTV streaming in the club’s Refund & Exchange Policy because under the terms of the broadcast agreement between the EFL and Sky Sports, pay-per-view streaming is not available to live selections in the UK.
Supporters who live in countries classed as dark market territories can purchase the pay-per-view option to watch the match at the EFL mandated charge of £5 per match.
A list of dark market territories can be found here: dcfc.co.uk/page/ramstv-availability-for-tv-games.
For
those supporters that are able to watch live coverage of Sunday's game, the Matchday Live show starts on RamsTV
from 1:30pm - with content being played during the day - ahead of
kick-off at 2pm.
Those watching are requested to make sure they login early to avoid missing kick-off.
Season Ticket Holders who opted for Free RamsTV streaming are advised to ensure their current details are registered with dcfc.co.uk, and to make sure of the following:
- You know your Derby County 8-digit Fan ID
- Your account details with dcfc.co.uk are up to date
- You know your email address registered with dcfc.co.uk
- You know your account password registered with dcfc.co.uk
- You have redeemed your RamsTV voucher code (if you haven’t done so already)
- You are logged into your account well in advance of kick-off to avoid potential matchday streaming issues. RamsTV content will be streaming from earlier in the day and the Matchday Live build-up starts 30 minutes before kick-off
Season Ticket Holders who have redeemed their voucher code already do not need to do anything other than login to their account early ahead of kick-off. Those who have not yet redeemed their voucher code can still do so but are advised to do this as soon as possible.
RAMSTV STREAMING QUESTIONS…
Head over to dcfc.co.uk's FAQs relating to RamsTV live streams, simply by clicking here.
For any additional queries relating to login and account creation on dcfc.co.uk, please email [email protected]
TEAM NEWS…
Striker Martyn Waghorn is available for selection after completing a three-match ban following his red card in the 1-1 draw at home to Nottingham Forest earlier this month.
Waghorn boosts the options available to Derby boss Phillip Cocu as the frontman looks to add to his 12 goals so far this season.
Striker Jack Marriott made his comeback from groin surgery in the closing stages of Derby's 2-1 defeat to Cardiff City in midweek and he is expected to be amongst the substitutes once again.
Defender Andre Wisdom will not be available after he was the victim of an unprovoked assault and robbery at the end of June. He sustained injuries which resulted in him being admitted to hospital and while he is at home, he is still recovering and therefore is unavailable. He is, however, beginning to step up his workload at the training ground.
Attacking midfielder Duane Holmes has missed Derby's last two matches with a hamstring issue, sustained against West Bromwich Albion last week, and could feature in Sunday's game after resuming training this week.
“Duane Holmes has trained with the team today and if
things move forward as planned then he will be available at the weekend,” Cocu
told RamsTV on Friday.
Goalkeeper Kelle Roos was handed a place in the starting line-up against Cardiff in midweek, just his second league start in 2020, and he is expected to keep his place between the posts on Sunday after a solid and assured showing against the Bluebirds.
Polish international midfielder Krystian Bielik remains out of action with a long-term knee injury which he sustained back in January. Bielik is making good progress in his rehabilitation programme but will remain sidelined for the remainder of the season.
PRE-MATCH THOUGHTS…
Speaking to RamsTV ahead of Sunday's game, Derby boss Phillip Cocu said: “It is a challenge for us on Sunday against Leeds United because they are top of the table and champions of the Championship.
“We want to put on a good performance against a very strong side. Leeds deserve to be where they are in the table; they have good structure in the team, quality players, can dominate in their performance and defend well.
“It will be a tough game, but we want to end the season well and we will push to get good results in these last two matches.
“We always use our saying ‘never give up’. The play-offs may not be within reach, but it doesn’t mean we can switch off and relax at all.”
He added: “We must show no fear and have bravery to play, and also
know what we can and can’t do in certain stages of the game.”
More pre-match comments from Cocu, and defender Craig Forsyth, can be found across dcfc.co.uk and
also on RamsTV.
NEW SUBSTITUTE RULES…
There's
a new matchday rule in place for the final nine games of the 2019/20
season when it comes to substitutes in games.
- Each team will have a maximum of three opportunities to make substitutions
- If both teams make a substitution at the same time, this will count as one of the three opportunities for each team.
- In a normal 90 minute fixture, once all three opportunities have been used, no further substitutions can be made.
- Unused substitutions and opportunities are carried forward into extra time, where applicable.
- Where Competition rules allow an additional substitution in extra time, teams will each have one additional substitution opportunity; substitutions may also be made before the start of extra time and at half-time in extra time.
WHO’S THE MAN IN THE MIDDLE…
Oliver Langford will be the man in the middle at Pride Park Stadium on Sunday.
Langford has overseen 32 games during the 2019/20 season and produced a total of 127 yellow cards and six reds.
The official took charge of the league fixture between the two clubs earlier in the season as Chris Martin came off the bench to earn Derby a late 1-1 draw at Elland Road.
He
also took charge of the Rams' 2-0 home win over Middlesbrough in
November, with Tom Lawrence scoring both goals for Phillip Cocu's side
against ten-man Boro after George Saville was sent off for a late
challenge on Krystian Bielik in the first half.
Langford's
last
match in charge of Derby was back in November when Phillip Cocu's side
were beaten 1-0 at Blackburn Rovers, whilst his last fixture at Pride
Park Stadium was the 0-0 draw against Stoke City in March 2019.
Langford will be assisted by Matthew McGrath and Michael George on the lines, whilst Dean Whitestone has been appointed as the fourth official.
NEW BACK OF SHIRT LOGO…
Derby County are to pay tribute to key workers across Derbyshire in the remaining matches of the 2019/20 Sky Bet Championship season.
The back of the Rams’ shirts will proudly display the logo of Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity, and the shirts will be auctioned off at the end of the season to help raise funds for the charity.
Derby County’s Chief Executive Officer Stephen Pearce said: “We’re delighted to be showcasing the Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity logo on the back of our match shirts for the rest of the season.
“In addition to our Stay Safe. Stay Fit. Stay Connected initiative, we wanted to find another way to express gratitude and appreciation to key workers across our local community for the outstanding work that they have done, and continue to do, during the COVID-19 crisis, and help raise awareness and funds for the charity.”
Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity provide support for all the sites of the sites under the University of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, including Derby, Burton, Lichfield and Tamworth to provide the highest quality care to patients across southern Derbyshire and south east Staffordshire.
The NHS Trust aims to deliver outstanding care for local people and bring together the expertise of their 12,000 staff across the hospital sites.
The charity’s key aim is to help make patients’ lives better and the amazing donations and support from the local community enables the charity to help provide the extras that cannot be provided from NHS statutory funding but make a huge difference to patients and staff.
Tim Diggle, Director of Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity, said: “It was amazing to hear that Derby County wanted to feature us on their shirts and we are immensely proud to see our logo on the back of such a beloved part of the Derby community.
"It is inspiring to see, and we are so grateful to the club for wanting to say thank you to our fantastic NHS team.
"All of us have been touched by this pandemic in one way or another and to see the club work together with its local NHS lifts the heart.”
All the money raised goes back into the hospital, with 100% of the donation going to the charity, and those supporting Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity have the opportunity to truly support a ward or department close to their heart, as they have over 100 separate funds to choose from.
More details about Derby & Burton Hospitals Charity (Charity No.1061812) can be found at dbhc.org.uk.
THANK YOU TO THE NHS…
Players from across the Championship will wear shirts featuring an ‘NHS Rainbow – Thank You’ emblem for the rest of the season.
Over the past three months, the EFL, its clubs and Club Community Organisations have paid their own special tributes, with many working closely alongside their local NHS Trusts, donating resources, providing facilities for use and organising player or manager content to say thank you.
TEMPORARY RULE CHANGES…
Some temporary rule changes and protocols will be in place for the remainder of the 2019/20 season across all EFL matches.
They include:
Walkout Protocol
- Players and Match Official entry will be staggered onto the pitch.
- There will be no handshakes. Players to take up on pitch positions in the same half as they warmed up ready for kick off.
Matchday Behaviour
- Social distancing measures should be maintained whenever possible including during goal celebrations, in the warm-up, when entering and leaving the pitch, and at all times with the Match Officials.
Technical Area
- Those in the technical area must behave in a responsible manner and maintain social distancing measures with the Fourth Official
STAY AT HOME…
Derby County has joined fellow EFL clubs in urging supporters to stay away from stadiums, and instead watch all remaining 2019/20 season matches from home.
All matches will be played behind closed doors between now and the end of the season with the safety of supporters, club personnel and the frontline services remaining the principle priority at this time.
Consequently, supporters will not be permitted entry to any area of the stadiums and extra security measures around the immediate area including car parks will be in place when staging matches.
Supporters are also urged to maintain social distancing guidelines and avoid congregating outside stadiums or gatherings to watch matches, as part of a new campaign message: ‘When we play, please stay away’ ahead of all EFL matches.
The club and the Derbyshire Constabulary are united in one message to fans - support the Rams by watching from home.
