Match Report: Stevenage 3-1 Derby County

Derby County were beaten 3-1 by a physical Stevenage side on Saturday afternoon.

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing scored his second goal in as many games but it wasn't enough to save the Rams from defeat in Hertfordshire.

Key Moments

Eiran Cashin was handed his fifth yellow card of the season early doors when he brought down Terence Vancooten meaning the centre-back will be unavailable for the Rams' next match-up with Northampton Town on Tuesday evening.

The first big moment of the game saw Curtis Nelson provide an outstanding block to keep the scores level. Elliott List was able to get past Cashin who couldn't foul due to the earlier booking and List's goal-bound effort was vitally cut out by a sliding Nelson.

Derby had a couple of half-chances, both coming from Nelson following set-pieces in the opening 30 minutes but that was as good as it got in a scrappy affair.

Stevenage took the lead just after the half-hour mark and it came direct from a free-kick.

Jordan Roberts stepped up and fired straight through the wall from 22-yards out and beyond a helpless Joe Wildsmith.

The first real forage forward from the Rams brought with it an equaliser and it was clinical from Mendez-Laing.

Louie Sibley played the ball to the winger via a neat dummy from Max Bird and Mendez-Laing cut inside and fired brilliantly into the bottom corner to level things up.

It looked like the teams would go into the break level but the home side were able to retake the lead with the last kick of the half. Another direct free-kick brought another goal and this time it was Alex MacDonald that was able to beat Wildsmith with power from 25-yards.

Derby had huge appeals for a penalty in the opening minutes of the second period when Conor Washington went down under a challenge in the area but the referee was unmoved.

The Rams upped the tempo in the second-half and Bird was denied an equaliser by some brilliant last-ditch defending from the hosts following a cross from Mendez-Laing.

Roberts had an effort deflected just wide up the other end as Stevenage fired another warning sign of their own.

Substitutes Tom Barkhuizen and James Collins combined with the latter bending an effort that was easily held by Taye Ashby-Hammond as the Rams searched for an equaliser.

Boro had a golden opportunity to cement all three points when substitute Ben Thompson shot straight into the arms of Wildsmith from point-blank range.

But the home side made sure of the result just minutes later when another substitute Kane Hemmings prodded home at the back post after a cross from Reid.

The Teams

Stevenage: Ashby-Hammond (GK), Wildin, Butler, Piergianni (C), MacDonald (56' Thompson), List (68' Thompson), Freeman, Roberts (80' Hemmings), Vancooten, Burns, Reid.

Substitutes not used: Hegyi (GK), Smith, Thompson, McNeill.

Derby County: Wildsmith (GK), Wilson (61' Collins), Forsyth (46' Bradley), Hourihane (C), Cashin, Bird, Mendez-Laing, Washington (68' Barkhuizen), Sibley (46' Smith), Nyambe (80' Ward), Nelson.

Substitutes not used: Vickers (GK), Fornah.