Friday night football returns to Pride Park Stadium as Derby County look to strengthen their hold on the Sky Bet Championship’s automatic promotion spots when they face top-six rivals Bristol City.
The Rams have the opportunity of putting more ground between themselves and the Robins (kick-off: 3pm) and dcfc.co.uk has collated all the information you need ahead of the visit of Lee Johnson’s men…
WHAT’S THE LATEST TEAM NEWS
After signing from Norwich City on Tuesday, Cameron Jerome could make his Derby County debut when they face Bristol City.
The 31-year-old met his new team mates for the first time on Wednesday and has trained in the build-up to the big clash at Pride Park Stadium.
Joe Ledley could also return to the fold after returning to training following a spell on the sidelines.
The midfielder has had a back problem which has forced him to miss the last four matches.
Should he return, Bradley Johnson will be the only player that will be ruled out through injury,
WHAT THE BOSS HAD TO SAY?
Speaking to RamsTV ahead of Friday’s game, Gary Rowett said: “We spoke quite frankly after the game back in September and some of the players gave their views on some of the issues that they felt were a problem over the years.
“I don’t think we played any poorer in that game than we did in some of the games that we’ve won 3-0, but we have shown a tad more belief and a little bit more togetherness.
“It’s a crucial game for both sides on Friday, Lee Johnson has done a fantastic job this season and they should be applauded as a young team in this division that have kept a high standard.
“We need our fans to get behind us, we’re all working towards the same thing, we want success and we all need to be working hard as one to try and achieve that.”
ONE TO WATCH
One of many standout performers this season, Jamie Paterson’s creativity and eye for goal has been significant in Bristol City’s rise up the division.
The 26-year-old has scored six goals in 28 games – including a couple of superb strikes.
The wideman began his career at Walsall and made his senior debut for the Saddlers in 2010, making over 100 appearances for the Midlands club before moving to Nottingham Forest in 2013.
His first competitive goals for the Reds came against West Ham United in the FA Cup where he netted a hat-trick in a 5-0 win.
Paterson was loaned out to Huddersfield Town for the 2015/16 season with a view to a permanent move, but instead he was unveiled as a City player at half-time in a memorable 3-1 victory over Aston Villa.
HOW DO I SECURE MY SEAT
Youngsters between the ages of 2 and 12 will be able to watch Derby County take on Bristol City at Pride Park Stadium for just a quid on Friday evening!
Tickets are available from the following prices:
Adults - £25
Senior Citizens (aged 65+) – £17.50
Under-18s - £14
2 to 12 Year Olds - £1
* Please note that the above pricing is based on Category D & E seating.
Tickets for 2-12 Year Olds are available across all areas of the stadium for the 2017/18 season.
Home Membership Holders receive 10 per cent off their own home league ticket purchase.
Buy your tickets here: dcfc.co.uk/toptix/en-gb/categories/home.
Purchases can also be made by calling 0871 472 1884 (option 1) or in person from the Ticket Office during normal opening hours.
Derby County’s Ticketing Terms & Conditions for the 2017/18 campaign can be found here: dcfc.co.uk/page/ticketing-terms-conditions.
Full details on ticketing pricing and policies is available here: dcfc.co.uk/page/ticket-pricing-policies.
WHAT’S TO COME IN THE RAM
Back on home soil for the first time in more than two weeks, The Ram caught up with midfielder George Thorne for an in-depth chat ahead of Friday night’s showdown with Bristol City.
Over seven-pages, the 25-year-old covers a range of topics and answers your questions, reflecting on making his Premier League debut at Old Trafford, success on the international stage, his time at the club so far and what’s to come over the remainder of the season.
Jam-packed with that and more exclusive features and content, supporters, as ever, can purchase a copy of our 76-page award-winning official matchday programme, which retails at just £3 from all around Pride Park Stadium.
Click here for a review of what else you can expect to find in our latest edition of The Ram.
LAST TIME OUT AT PRIDE PARK?
DERBY COUNTY 3-3 BRISTOL CITY
Saturday 11th February 2017
Three second half goals saw a spirited Derby County fight back from three down to secure a point against Bristol City in an enthralling clash at Pride Park Stadium back in February.
Matty Taylor struck on his first start for the Robins to open the scoring, before Tammy Abraham netted twice in a half to forget for the Rams.
A key early goal from Darren Bent set the tone in the second 45 minutes, before Tom Ince cut the deficit to one and then Bent struck again to complete the comeback and extend Derby’s unbeaten record on home soil to 11 games.
Derby County: Carson, Baird (Nugent, 70), Keogh (C), Pearce, Olsson; Johnson (Anya, 30), Bryson (Butterfield, 30), Hughes; Ince, Camara, Bent
Substitutes not used: Mitchell, Shackell, Russell, de Sart
Bristol City: Giefer, Little, Flint, Wright (C), Golbourne, Cotterill, Hegeler, Brownhill, Bryan, Abraham (O’Dowda, 82), Taylor (Djuric, 73)
Substitutes not used: Fielding, Vyner, Pack, Paterson, Tomlin
Attendance: 28,043 (889 away supporters)
WHO’S THE MAN IN THE MIDDLE?
Darren England has been appointed as the Match Referee for Derby County's Sky Bet Championship fixture at home to Bristol City on Friday evening.
England has officiated 24 first-team games so far this term across the EFL, from which he has produced a total of 92 yellow cards and two red cards.
This will be the second time that he has been in charge of a Rams fixture this season after he oversaw the 3-0 home win against Millwall just before Christmas.
England will be assisted by Nick Greenhalgh and John Flynn on the lines, whilst Geoff Eltringham has been appointed as the fourth official.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
Due to international broadcasting rights, RamsTV will NOT be able to broadcast the match live, although a live audio stream of the game will be available.
Here’s a breakdown of what’s coming up on RamsTV:
THURSDAY
- Pre-Match Press Conference: Bristol City (8.30am approx.) – Head over to Derby County’s official Facebook page for LIVE coverage of Gary Rowett’s entire pre-match press conference.
- Bristol City Preview Show (6pm) – Colin Gibson will be joined by former Derby County defenders Roy McFarland and Marc Edworthy as they build-up to another big game for the Rams with stats, exclusive interviews and a closer look at Friday night’s opponents.
FRIDAY
- Matchday Live: Derby County Vs Bristol City (7pm) – RamsTV is the place to be for all the build-up ahead of the game on Friday night. Presenter Colin Gibson will be joined LIVE in RamsTV’s Pride Park studio by promotion winning Rams Michael Johnson and Stephen Pearson as they cover all the key talking points ahead of kick-off (7.45pm).
- Post-Match Extra: Bristol City (5.30pm approx.) – RamsTV’s interactive Facebook Live show will feature the thoughts of Rams fans as well as an interview with manager Gary Rowett.
SATURDAY
- Match Highlights: Bristol City (12pm) – RamsTV’s extended match highlights package will feature all the goals, incidents and key moments from the night before.
- Matchday Relived: Bristol City (6pm) – Watch the entirety of RamsTV’s matchday production including the full 90 minutes of action along with the pre-game, half and full-time analysis from the team in the RamsTV studio.
MONDAY
- Bristol City Review Show (6pm) – Owen Bradley will be back in the studio with Shane Nicholson and Roy McFarland to discuss in-depth the match against Bristol City.
The RamsTV streaming service is available to all supporters who register on dcfc.co.uk.
To access the full RamsTV streaming service will cost the following:
First-Team Match Streaming (outside UK) - £110 annual subscription or £12.50 per month
First-Team Audio Commentary (worldwide) - £45 annual subscription or £5 per month
First-Team Pay Per Game - Match Streaming (outside UK) - £5 for the individual game
A link to packages can be found here.
The two premium services are in addition to the regular pre-match and post-match interviews on RamsTV.
Supporters will also be able to follow all of the action, as usual, across our social media channels.
We will be providing behind the scenes content across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, where we will also provide a blow-by-blow account of proceedings at Pride Park Stadium.
