Proctor Cars Stadium
Derby County Under-21s fell to a 2-0 defeat against Leicester City in Premier League 2 on Friday night.
Goalkeeper Harley Price was shown a red card after only two minutes at Matlock Town's Proctor Cars Stadium, as he rushed out of the goal and handled the ball outside his penalty area as a Leicester attacker aimed to run in behind.
Harry Hawkins nearly teed up Lennon Wheeldon soon after the incident, but his cross from the left flank just evaded the Rams' striker.
The 10-man Rams held off from relentless attacks by the numerically advantaged visitors, with substitute goalkeeper Jack Thompson making multiple saves and Freddie Turley clearing off the line before the break.
Hawkins came close for Derby after some tenacious pressing from the back saw him intercept the opposition goalkeeper’s clearance, but the ball spun just wide.
Thompson made an excellent save on the hour mark, but the ball ricocheted around the box and the shot that followed was blocked and fell into the path of a Leicester player. Turley was adjudged to have committed a foul, as he looked to clear the danger, which saw the Foxes awarded the penalty and Sammy Braybrooke converted from the spot.
Ryan Donnelly completed the scoring in the 77th minute after a well-worked move opened Derby’s stubborn defence.
Danny Maye’s Under-21s side will look to bounce back from the defeat when they head to face Brighton & Hove Albion Under-21s in Premier League 2 at the AMEX Elite Performance Centre on Friday 19th September (7pm kick-off).
Derby County Under-21: Price (GK) (Red Card 2), Hawkins (Davidson 77), Turley, Canoville, Banks (c), Osayande, Richards (Oguntolu 65), Wähling, Wheeldon, Eames (Tola 65), Wilson (Thompson (GK) 2).
Unused Substitutes: Connell-Webster.
“I’m really proud of the lads tonight,” Senior Professional Development Coach Danny Maye said after the Premier League 2 fixture.
“To play 95 minutes with 10 men showed real character. We did well to keep them at bay until nearly 60 minutes and still created chances.
“The boys showed the behaviours needed with this type of challenge; we recovered quickly as a team, stayed compact and defended the box well, jumping forward when we could.
“It was a real team effort. Although this may not happen too many times in their careers, it was important we showed the right attitude and still tried to find a way to win.”
