I want to start this week by commenting on a couple of things to do with the financial situation at Derby County that have emerged over the last couple of weeks.
Firstly, in this day and age when football salaries are astronomically high and many professional footballers are seen as greedy and money grabbing, I think it is extremely admirable that the Rams players have collectively agreed to waive their bonuses unless Derby County finish in the top six of the Coca-Cola Championship.
As the players say, "if we don't reach the playoffs then it hasn't been a successful season and we don't deserve a bonus." Whilst applauding this stance by the players, I also take confidence from this because I also think the players collectively must think that a top six finish is feasible.
This, of course, is on the back of a reported £300 per point bonus last season which effectively meant that the players received a bonus payment of £16,000.00 each for narrowly avoiding relegation.
I'd also like to acknowledge the efforts of General Sports Entertainment (GSE) for quietly going about things behind the scenes and delivering on their promises. Derby County's debt is now down to £15 million and that is exclusively the mortgage on Pride Park Stadium. And, as GSE state, the mortgage is on such favourable terms that it doesn't make sense to reduce it in the short term.
Yes, like most Rams fans, I would've liked to have seen more investment in the playing staff but, more importantly, it's refreshing to hear GSE openly admit that reducing the debt was their top priority over and above investing in the team. Now that the debt is where GSE want it to be, they have stated that the priority of investing in the playing staff can be raised.
Whilst performances so far this season haven't been overly impressive, I am more than satisfied with the start Derby County have made to the 2009/10 season. A return of seven points out of a possible 12 sees the Rams sitting 9th in the Coca-Cola Championship with two wins, one draw and one defeat. I'm hoping Derby County will improve on last season and finish somewhere between mid-table and the playoff places this season so it's good to see that the Rams are there already and are not playing catch-up at this early stage of the season.
A 100% home record highlights that once again the Rams are struggling on their travels … so what better way to address that than an away fixture at our local rivals Nottingham Forest this Saturday. Two Rams victories at the City Ground last season under Nigel Clough means that Derby County can make the short trip down Brian Clough way (A52) full of confidence, knowing that somewhere in the region of 4,100 Rams fans will be there to cheer them on.
Finally, I'm delighted to see Robbie Savage wearing the captain's armband. I remember watching the Rams players after Forest scored their second goal in that FA Cup replay last season and the majority of Rams players looked dejected and demoralised at succumbing to a 2-0 deficit so early. Savage's head wasn't down though, he was talking to the players, waving his arms about, geeing them up, getting them going. 2-0 down, but we won 3-2. For me, Savage showed his leadership qualities that evening and I'm delighted he's captain.
As for Saturday, three away wins out of three at the City Ground might be a tad greedy. I'll settle for a draw, but a Rams win would be very nice.
Very nice indeed...