Derby County's character and spirit came to the fore with the most dramatic of late equalisers in a pulsating 2-2 draw with West Bromwich Albion at Pride Park Stadium this afternoon.

Paul Dickov's well-taken goal three minutes before the interval looked to have been enough for Derby in a game packed full of commitment, desire and quality.

In the final eight minutes Simon Cox's controversial equaliser had the Baggies on level terms and then Graham Dorrans' injury-time effort looked to have won it for Albion, but DJ Campbell came off the bench to head home four minutes into injury time to ensure Derby got a share of the spoils.

It was the least Derby deserved in undoubtedly the best game of the season at Pride Park.

Derby were forced into two changes for the game with Shaun Barker and Paul Green not recovering from their respective injuries in time to feature, so Dean Moxey and Lee Croft were handed recalls to the side compared to the side which started the 2-1 victory over Reading a week ago.

There was also a surprise inclusion on the bench for Derby, with striker Chris Porter amongst the substitutes after a long spell out with a hip problem.

With a near-capacity crowd packed into Pride Park Stadium the atmosphere was electric and Albion got the game underway in their red and white away colours.

Derby were out of the traps quickly and put the Baggies under early pressure, and had a spill by Scott Carson from Dean Moxey's left-wing cross in the first 2 minutes fallen to Hulse instead of Cech the Rams could have been gifted the perfect start.

After that good spell of early pressure the visitors almost hit Derby on the break when a short free-kick was played perfectly into the path of Simon Cox but the striker's stinging shot crashed back off the post and behind for a goal kick.

Derby's backline were having to put their bodies on the line as Albion enjoyed a strong spell of pressure in the ten minutes following that Cox effort, with centre-back duo McEveley and Leacock both throwing themselves in front of goalbound shots from Cox and Moore.

Derby rode that pressure and showed they weren't simply going to sit back and let the promotion chasers take the game to them, and Teale came close on the volley after good play by Croft and Stoor down the right to work a cross into the box to Dickov who intelligently played the ball back to Teale who blasted wide.

The atmosphere was cranked up a notch as meaty challenges from both sets of players flew in around the half-hour mark.

Derby stepped up their pressure as the half drew to a close and Carson was called into action to make a magnificent save from Teale's free-kick five minutes before the interval.

The wingers' cross-shot from out wide was fizzing towards the bottom corner, but the former Leeds United goalkeeper got a strong hand on the ball to turn it behind for a corner.

Moments later, Carson was given no chance at all as Derby opened the scoring.

A fantastic turn on the edge of the box by Dickov to beat Meite gave the striker enough room to advance into the area and then curl the ball beyond Carson and into the net in off the underside of the bar.

The second period began with the very same high intensity that the first half ended and Brunt headed just wide for Albion following a corner two minutes into the half.

Straight up the other end Dickov tried his luck from long range with a stinging effort that Carson could only parry away and quickly hack away with his feet as Hulse lurked for a rebound.

Derby continued to push for a second rather than sitting on their goal advantage and Pearson was denied by Olsson's fine block from Hulse's low cross.

The defender then charged up the field for an Albion corner but his looping header drifted over the crossbar.

Good hold-up play by Hulse just before the hour saw the big striker lash a shot towards goal but an Albion defender got a block in which resulted in handball appeals, which were waved away.

Bywater was quick off his line on 66 minutes to display some brave goalkeeping to dive at the feet of Cox and claim the ball after Moore's through-ball sent the striker scampering away towards goal.

The atmosphere tensed up all around Pride Park as the game approached the final 15 minutes with Derby agonisingly close to a very welcome three points.

Cramp ended Lee Croft's afternoon with just over fifteen minutes to go and he was replaced by Lee Hendrie.

Albion, looking to maintain their unbeaten run stretching back to mid-October, began to turn the screw and put Derby under pressure as the final ten minutes loomed and a tantalising Brunt cross was only inches away from Bednar at the far post after peeling away from Stoor.

The equalised arrived with nine minutes to go, and when it did arrive there was a real air of controversy about it. Chris Brunt's ball into the six-yard box from the right was diverted into the net from Simon Cox at close range and while he had the Albion following in sheer delight the Rams players chased after the Referee and his Assistant convinced the striker had used his hand to put the ball in the net.

Despite those strong protests, the goal was given to the frustration of the Derby players and staff who were convinced it was a handball.

DJ Campbell replaced Paul Dickov soon afterwards for his debut over a week after joining on loan from Leicester City and he quickly set up a chance for Hulse 18 yards out but he sliced wide with just a minute to go.

Then, the game just went mad.

Four minutes of added time were signalled and Albion crashed ahead in the second minute of them through Dorrans on the break. On the counter attack the ball was swept wide to the midfielder who from a tight angle lashed the ball high into the net to send the away fans into raptures.

That looked to be that to be honest.

But, Derby just don't know when they are beaten. In one final burst forwards and a long ball was thrown into the box and Hendrie managed to get enough on the ball to knock it back across goal and Campbell was on hand to guide the ball home and spark wild scenes.

There was barely time to get the game started again before the whistle signalled the end of the game.

It was a gripping game from start to finish, and had Derby come away with nothing for their efforts it would have been rough justice to say the least.

Derby are back in action on Tuesday evening away at Preston North End.

Derby County: Bywater, Stoor, McEveley, Leacock, Moxey, Croft (Hendrie 73), Savage, Pearson, Teale, Dickov (Campbell 86), Hulse
Subs Not Used: Atkins, Connolly, Addison, Porter, Livermore
Booked: Dickov, Leacock
Goals: Dickov (42), Campbell (90)

West Brom: Carson, Mattock (Tiexeria 57), Olsson, Cech, Brunt, Moore (Bednar 68), Dorrans, Zuiverloon, Meite, Cox, Jara
Subs Not Used: Kiely, Reid, Mulumbu, Martis, Samuels
Booked: Dorrans
Goals: Cox (82), Dorrans (90)

Referee: Mr D Deadman

Attendance: 30,127 (3,065 West Bromwich Albion fans)

Derby County Man of the Match, powered by Collstream: Paul Dickov