The 2023/24 season will forever be remembered by fans of Derby County as the year the club achieved automatic promotion back to the Sky Bet Championship.
With Paul Warne at the helm for his first full season in charge of the Rams, Derby finished second behind League One champions Portsmouth and, after just two years away, were able to call themselves a second-tier outfit once more.
It wasn’t just promotion that was achieved throughout the memorable campaign though; this Derby team were able to smash several records out of the park over the course of the season.
Here, dcfc.co.uk looks at some of the key numbers that were ultimately vital in helping the team secure that promotion everyone associated with the club craved.
92
The final day victory over Carlisle United saw the Rams end the season with 92 points to their name, a new club record.
It comfortably eclipsed the previous record that had been set in 2013/14 of 85 points, in the Championship, and saw the Rams ultimately claim automatic promotion by a margin of five points over third-placed Bolton Wanderers.
13
A key element of achieving those 92 points was the number of victories the Rams picked up on the road in the league. Again, this was a new club record.
The final away fixture of the season at Cambridge United was win number 13 on the road for Derby in League One and was ultimately the one that saw the record broken.
The previous record of 12 away league wins had been achieved twice by the club, first in 2004/05 and again in 2006/07, but 13 had never been reached until now.
In total 43 points were achieved on the road, only eclipsed by eventual league winners Portsmouth and they were undoubtedly a huge factor in the Rams’ promotion.
28
Whilst we’re on the subject of records, there was still room for one more - albeit a joint one.
28 was the number of wins the team achieved in the league, a feat that has only been achieved once by a Derby County side and that was way back in 1955/56.
Head Coach Warne has always emphasised his motivation to win every game and take risks to win instead of drawing and that certainly came to fruition in 2023/24.
The Rams’ 28 wins was only matched by league winners Portsmouth and despite the team losing more times than Bolton in third, Derby were able to convert far more of their draws into wins, something that would ultimately see them earn promotion.
20
Departing goalkeeper Joe Wildsmith featured for most of the campaign between the sticks and the clean sheet recorded on the final day of the campaign, in the 2-0 victory over Carlisle United, would mark his 20th of the sseason.
Those 20 clean sheets built on the 17 he earned in the previous campaign and ultimately saw him bag the Golden Glove award for League One on the final day.
Wildsmith was also absent from six games in Sky Bet League One across 2023/24 with Josh Vickers keeping two shut-outs to take the side's return up to 22 in the league overall.
37
Derby conceded only 37 goals from their 46 matches in League One, the best defensive record in the league.
A total of 22 clean sheets were picked up in all competitions, while Derby only conceded more than two goals in a match once in the league - in the 3-1 reverse at Stevenage in October.
The Rams’ defensive record was not beaten by any other team in the EFL during the campaign, with no other side conceding under 40 goals in the league season.
16
A member of the League One Team of the Season, PFA League One Fans’ Player of the Year and a promotion to boot - it wasn’t a bad season for Rams forward Nathaniel Mendez-Laing.
What helped him towards those accolades was the 16 assists he provided over the course of the league season, on top of his nine goals.
Those 16 assists, however, were more than any other individual Derby player in history since they were recorded!
The previous record was held by Craig Bryson back in 2013/14 when he provided 14 across the course of the Championship campaign.
4,140
That incredible number is the amount of minutes defender Curtis Nelson played in the league alone for Derby County - and that’s not even including additional time!
The centre-back started and finished every single league fixture for the Rams in 2023/24 and was the heartbeat of a defence that kept 22 clean sheets across the campaign.
His durability and leadership combined with his near faultless performances across the season played a huge part in the team’s eventual success.
Nelson’s efforts were rewarded at the Rams’ End of Season Awards evening when he was voted for by both the fans and his peers as the Jack Stamps Player of the Season and Players’ Player of the Season, respectively.
32,358
Derby’s attendances were, by some considerable distance, the highest in League One over the course of the season.
The highest attendance of the season in the third tier was achieved at Pride Park Stadium, with 32,358 turning out to watch the 1-0 home win over promotion rivals Bolton Wanderers in March.
Defender Kane Wilson scored the only goal of the game late on to hand Paul Warne’s side a vital victory over the Trotters.
27,278
Derby’s average attendance was the highest in League One, working out at 27,278 from their 23 home league fixtures at Pride Park Stadium.
The numbers are so impressive that Derby sit sixth in the standings for average attendance in the EFL in 2023/24, beaten only by Championship sides Sunderland, Leeds United, Leicester City, Southampton and Ipswich Town.
That return was also higher than Premier League sides Crystal Palace, Fulham, Burnley, Brentford, Luton Town and AFC Bournemouth, placing the Rams as the 20th highest average attendance in the country in the campaign.
41
After bagging 78 goals in 46 league matches, conceding only 37 in the process, Derby ended the season with a goal difference of +41.
That was the highest in League One and four better than champions Portsmouth.
Only three teams surpassed that goal difference in the EFL during 2023/24, Leicester City in the Championship and League Two pair Stockport County and Mansfield Town.
8
Derby ended up with the joint least draws in League One during the season, picking up just eight from their 46 outings.
Four draws came on home turf at Pride Park, with a further four following on the road.
That record of just eight draws was shared with relegated Cheltenham Town who, ironically, the Rams drew 1-1 with on the road in October.
The number of draws was five less than 2022/23, with the Rams drawing 13 times in all.
4
Derby’s promotion was, incredibly, Head Coach Paul Warne’s FOURTH since stepping into management.
His previous three promotions had come whilst in charge with Rotherham United, all from League One.
Success with Derby made it four in management, all of which have come from the third tier of English football.
19
Striker James Collins ended the season as Derby’s leading goalscorer in all competitions.
He scored 19 times in total, with 14 coming in League One – including the crucial second goal in the 2-0 final day win over Carlisle United at Pride Park Stadium to seal promotion.
Collins netted five times in the EFL Trophy, all on home turf, by bagging a hat-trick against Wolves Under-21s and a brace against Fleetwood Town.
His 19-goal haul, which saw him surpass 200 in club football during the campaign, was seven better than his return of 12 in the 2022/23 season.
13
Derby was one of just 13 EFL clubs to be presented with a Family Excellence Gold Award for the 2023/24 season for their exemplary work in engaging families on matchdays.
Overall, 68 EFL clubs achieved Family Excellence recognition – a record high for the scheme this season, with clubs rewarded with either Gold, Silver or Bronze status based on the experience they provide to assessing families.
The EFL’s Family Excellence Scheme assesses the experience clubs provide for match-going families through the use of family matchday assessors, covering a range of touchpoints across ticket purchase, matchday activations and experience, accessibility, facilities and family communications.
