On Tuesday night, Wales Under 21s concluded a successful international break by gaining an important 2-1 win in Iceland which takes them five points clear of the third placed side they beat (look at Group I in this link to see the current position ). We have one more game left, at home to the Czech Republic, while table topping Denmark take on Iceland in their final game knowing that, because of them taking four points out of six against us, they’ll top the table and qualify with a win in that match.
However, even if Wales miss out on a first placed finish, they know they will qualify automatically if they can be one of the three second placed sides with the best record – at present, they have the second best record of the teams currently in second and so, you’d think a win over the Czech’s would be enough to see us qualify. A Danish win over Iceland would give Wales the consolation that they could not be caught that team and so, the Czechs would become the only side that could overhaul us.
If Wales were to drop out of the top three second placed teams, then they would face a Play Off with one of the other sides that finished outside of the top three second placed finishers for a place in the Finals to be held in Slovenia next year.
Joel Cotterill of Swansea, who is currently on loan to Swindon, was the hero of Wales’ win with both goals in a game played on a G4 surface which was dominated by a strong wind blowing straight down the pitch. Cotterill missed a great chance to give Wales a first half lead when they had the wind at their backs and I was thinking they’d struggle having to play into the elements after having not made a breakthrough in the first half. However, Cotterill got his first goal a couple of minutes into the second half and were the.more dangerous side for long periods after that. A second goal for Cotterill midway through the half put Wales in command and it was only after the home side reduced the arrears in added time right at the end of the game, that things got a bit tense, but Iceland were kept at bay for the last two or three minutes and three priceless points were ours.
Eli King and Joel Colwill started the game in the Welsh midfield and the latter was brought off for the final few minutes as Cian Ashford came on as one of the substitutions during that change – Luey Giles and Tom Davies were unused subs for the game.
It’s a return to club football this weekend with City heading to Derby to face a side which has won its last seven games at Pride Park – will the changes Erol Bulut spoke of after the Middlesbrough game almost a fortnight ago bring about a change in fortunes for his side? I can’t say I’m confident of that, there’s been so few grounds for encouragement in our first four games that all I can see is another defeat – maybe I might feel a bit more optimistic if I hear that we’ve finally got all of our new signings fully fit and available to start.
Here’s the usual seven questions on our next opponents.
60s. You would have thought that someone with his surname would only be a summer visitor to Derby, but besides plying his sporting trade there during the warm weather, he hung around for his winters as well, making him one of a breed you don’t see these days.
Appropriately, he played on the wing in the winter and shifted from the last name on the team sheet to the first one when he played his other sport. A Londoner by birth, he started off representing the area which was home for a 1970s television revolutionary before crossing the Thames to sign for a club that had made a similar journey in its early years. Making his first team debut against City in the top flight, he was a winner that afternoon, but, after failing to establish himself at his first club and moving to Derby, he lost every time he played against us for the Rams, despite scoring on one occasion. Can you name him?
70s. Which current League Two side played in front of Derby’s biggest home league gate of the season in one of the years from this decade in which they won the First Division title?
80s. This defender followed the same career path as the player in the 60s question and did so with more success than his predecessor. That said, although he played at the top level as a defender for his first football team and represented a traditionally strong team from the same area in his other sport, he was never a regular choice for either of those teams. He spent around seven years in both sports, with the last couple in football being with Derby after moving from the town which once had a Football League team called Ironopolis. His one meeting with City as a Derby player came during this decade and ended as a draw.
90s. Version of initially long, scarey eel much in the news lately. (3,7)
00s.Cursed rock, by the sound of it, in midfield.
10s. What links Derby County, Swansea City, Adelaide United and Western Sydney in former City winger Craig Noone’s career?
20s. If he plays on Saturday, which Derby player will be following on from playing against Liverpool and Manchester City in his previous two league appearances?
Answers:
60s. Ray Swallow was far from alone in being a sportsman all around the year in the 50s and 60s, there were plenty who played cricket in the summer and football in the winter. He was a, not very successful, opening batsman for Derbyshire and a winger for Tooting and Mitcham, Arsenal and Derby.who left both games in late 1963 with his final appearance against us coming n a 2-1 defeat at the Baseball Ground in August 1962.
70s. Derby played out a 0-0 draw against an already relegated Carlisle United in front of a crowd of 38.000 on the final day of thew 74/75 season, having won the League Championship the previous week.
80s.Alan Ramage played football for Middlesbrough and Derby and was a sometimes decidedly nippy bowler for Yorkshire – Ramage played for Derby against City in a 1-1 draw at the Baseball Ground in November 1980.
90s. Lee Carsley.
00s. Adam Bolder.
10s. He was sent off while playing against all four clubs – Noone was shown a red card in the game between Derby and City at Pride Park in November 2012.
20s. Marcus Harness played for Ipswich against Liverpool and Man City before being loaned to Derby for the season.