Watford Reserves 0 2 Derby Reserves
All Derby eyes were on the tall and imposing figure of central defender Mo
Konjic making his competitive debut last night as the Reserves travelled to
Vicarage Road for the first away game if their season.
Defensive frailties have beset both the seniors and second string since the
start of this term and a fully fit Konjic could only serve to boost
spirits.
Of almost equal importance at this game was the presence of Brazilian
striker Junior whose season has yet to take off.
The Bosnian did all that was asked of him in the opening exchanges winning
every one of his headers. There were though obvious weaknesses down the
left hand side of Derby's defence which the Hornets exploited at every
opportunity only to find Lee Grant ever alert and in the right place to
deal.
The Rams took the lead on 15 minutes with a stunning goal from Junior.
The Brazilian picked up the ball by the left side touchline and lashed in
a shot whose power was too much for Hornets keeper Alec Chamberlain who was
still diving as the ball flew past him into the net.
As if to prove that he had more to offer than mere defensive headers Konjic
ambled into the opposing half before fooling everyone with a late run which
got him into the right place to deflect a Lee Holmes 36th minute corner to
the foot of Gianfranco Labarthe Tome. The Peruvian rifled in the second
goal from 12 yards out with some relish.
Derby chose to retain the same 11 for the start of the second half although
there had been clear problems in the first. Watford continued exploiting
them but thanks to the solidity of Konjic and the ability of Grant they
struggled to make their possession pay.
Konjic showed brief signs of discomfort with his bandaged knee but
continued playing impressively.
The scoreline may have suggested a comfortable win for the visitors , but
there should be no doubt that if Watford had made the most of their
possession and opportunities they could have won by a similar margin to
that of last week s victors at Pride Park - Southampton.
Watford: Chamberlain, Herd, Smith, Blizzard, Demerit, Doyley, Young
(McNamee 73), Fitzgerald (Norville 75), Bouazza, Diagouraga, Ferrell
Unused subs: Collins, Mawer, Gilligan.
Rams: Grant, Doyle, Martin, Wilkinson, Konjic, Mills, Ainsworth (Booth 60),
Barnes, Junior, Labarthe Tome, Holmes.
Unused subs: Nyatanga, Richardson, Young, Llewellyn
Referee Mr B Malone (Wiltshire)
Attendance not given