Derby County F.C.
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Template:Football club infobox Derby County F.C. is an English football club, currently playing in the Football League Championship.
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History
Early years
The club was formed in 1884 as an offshoot of Derbyshire County Cricket Club. They originally wanted to name themselves directly after the cricket club as Derbyshire County FC, but objections from the local football association (who thought the name was too long) led them to choose Derby County FC. They initially played at the Racecourse Ground.
The Rams, as Derby County are known, were founder members of The Football League when it was launched in 1888. In 1891, they absorbed another Derby club, Derby Midland F.C., who had been members of the Midland League. In 1895 the club moved to a new stadium, The Baseball Ground (so called because it was previously used for baseball, it became their home for the next 102 years), and adopted their traditional colours of black and white.
In 1898, Derby appeared in their first FA Cup final, but lost. They were losing finalists again in 1899 and 1903. Derby's luck didn't get any better and they were relegated to the Football League's Second Division for the first time in 1907, but they regained their First Division place in 1911.
In 1914 they were relegated again, but instantly won the Second Division to get promoted (though World War I meant that they had to wait until 1919 to play First Division football again). After just two seasons, they were relegated yet again in 1921.
However, more successful times lay ahead, instigated by Derby's promotion in 1926. Despite not winning anything, the club became a formidable force, with constantly high finishes, from the late 1920s and all the way through the 1939-1940 season, which was abandoned due to World War II.
FA Cup triumph
The FA Cup restarted in the 1945-1946 season. Derby got to the final again, but this time managed to go all the way and win by beating Charlton Athletic 4-1 after extra time. (Derby's previous lack of success in the FA Cup — they also regularly lost at the semi-final stage — gave rise to a superstition that the club was subject to a gypsy curse, supposedly because of gypsy anger that the Baseball Ground was built on a gypsy camping ground. Prior to the 1946 final, Derby County players went so far as to ask the gypsies to lift the curse.)
The Football League restarted the following season and, despite the Cup win, Derby could not reproduce their pre-War form and were eventually relegated in 1953. Things went from bad to worse and in 1955 they were relegated to the Third Division (North) for the first time in their history. The Third tier proved easy for Derby, though: they finished second at the first attempt and then bettered it by finishing first (and gaining promotion) the following season.
The Clough years
In 1967, the now-legendary Brian Clough took over Derby County (in partnership with assistant manager Peter Taylor) and led them to their greatest glories. They were promoted to the First Division in 1969 and won their first ever Championship in 1972. Though Derby did not retain their title the following season, they did get to the semi-finals of the European Cup, eventually losing to Juventus in a controversial match which was subject to subsequent allegations that the Italian club had bribed the match officials. Clough left under controversial circumstances and, after brief tenures at Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. and Leeds United F.C., Clough joined Nottingham Forest F.C. where he went on to win a First Division championship and two European Cups.
After Clough
Nevertheless, Derby's League success was repeated in 1974-1975 season when they won the title again, this time under Dave Mackay. When Mackay left in 1976, Derby began to gradually decline until they were relegated in 1980.
Though they challenged well in their first season, Derby's stay in the Second Division was not a happy one and they were relegated to the now-national Third Division in 1984, their centenary year and just nine years after their last Championship.
After the relegation, the club appointed Arthur Cox to stop the rot - and stop it he did. After a two year stay in the Third Division (just like last time), they were promoted to the Second Division and won it at the first attempt, returning to the First Division in 1987.
The club was now under the control of controversial businessman Robert Maxwell, who was universally unpopular. With Maxwell dead from suspected suicide, the club was relegated back to the Second Division in 1991 (which became the First Division a year later when the First Division clubs broke away to form the FA Premier League).
The FA Premier League (or, more precisely, the money it brought) made it even more difficult for Derby to gain promotion to the Premier League, let alone stay there. However, this did not appear to trouble Jim Smith, who was appointed manager in 1995. Throwing his brief of 'a top-half finish' out the window, Smith guided the Rams to a second-place finish and, more importantly, the Premier League.
Recent times
Pride_Park_Stadium_inside.jpg
Derby County made a good Premiership debut in the 1996-97 season, finishing 12th in the final table with a side containing quality players like Aljosa Asanovic, Igor Stimac, Jacob Laursen and Ashley Ward. The club moved into the new 33,000-seat Pride Park Stadium for the 1997-98 season, and it has also hosted several England games. The next two seasons brought ninth and eigth place finishes before a slump in form saw Derby finish 16th at the end of the 1999-2000 Premiership campaign. Another relegation battle followed in 2000-01 when Derby narrowly avoided the drop by finished 17th in the Premiership - one place clear of relegation.
Jim Smith resigned as manager in October 2001 after rejecting an offer to become the club's director of football. He was replaced by assistant manager Colin Todd who remained in charge for just 3 months before he was sacked in the aftermath of a humiliating F.A Cup Third Round home defeat against Division Three strugglers Bristol Rovers. At the end of January 2002, John Gregory was appointed Derby manager less than a week after walking out on Aston Villa. Derby won their first two games under Gregory's management and also held title chasing Manchester United to a draw, suggesting that Gregory might be able to save Derby from relegation. But seven defeats from their final eight fixtures condemned Derby to relegation from the Premiership after six successive seasons of top division football.
Derby County's relegation to the Football League First Division saw the club enter a serious financial crisis - which forced them to sell many key players and build a team mostly of home-grown youngesters like Tom Huddlestone and Lee Grant. An 18th place finish was secured at the end of the season. In late March, Gregory had been suspended from his managerial duties over alleged misconduct and former Ipswich Town boss George Burley was drafted in as a temporary manager. At the end of the season Gregory's contract was terminated and Burley received the job on a permanent basis. The club's parent company went briefly into liquidation in October 2003 and the majority shareholder Lionel Pickering gave way to a new board of John Sleightholme, Jeremy Keith and Steve Harding. Derby finished 20th in the 2003-2004 First Division campaign, but improved dramatically in the 2004-2005 season and finished 4th in the Football League Championship (the new name for the Football League First Division) and qualified for a promotion play-off spot, though lost in the semi-finals to Preston North End. Soon afterwards, Burley resigned citing differences between himself and the board.
Famous players
Many consider the greatest Rams player to have been Steve Bloomer, one of the most prolific scorers in the history of English football who appeared for Derby from the late 19th century to just before the First World War. Other notable players include the FA Cup winning forward line of Peter Doherty, Jackie Stamps and Raich Carter. In the modern era players such as Roy McFarland, Archie Gemmil, Colin Todd, Kevin Hector, Steve Powell, Ron Webster, Alan Hinton and Dave Mackay played in the championship winning sides. More recently, England goalkeeper Peter Shilton, as well as Fabrizio Ravanelli, Taribo West and Stefano Eranio and Igor Stimac played for the Rams.
Though not a player, the club's mascot, a ram named Rammie, is known to all Derby supporters.
Local rivals
Derby County's main rivals are Nottingham Forest, who are based in Nottingham, a city just a few miles north-east of Derby. Leicester City, also based in the East Midlands, come a close second.
There is also a significant amount of rivalry with Leeds United. This is despite Leeds not being geographically close to Derby. The rivalry is due to Derby and Leeds being the two best teams in England in the early 1970s.
Honours
- Football League First Division
- Football League Second Division
- Football League Third Division (North)
- FA Cup
- Charity Shield
- Winners, 1975-1976
- Texaco Cup
- Winners, 1971-1972
- Watney Cup
- Winners, 1970-1971
- Anglo-Italian Cup
- Runners-up, 1992-1993
Club records
- Record Victory: 12-0 (at home to Finn Harps, UEFA Cup, First Round, First Leg, September 15th 1976)
- Record Defeat: 11-2 (away to Everton, FA Cup, First Round, January 18th 1890)
- Record Attendance: 41,826 (against Tottenham Hotspur, Football League First Division, September 20th 1969)
- Record Goal-Scorer: Steve Bloomer (292 league goals)
- Record Appearances: Kevin Hector (486 matches)
Managers
- Harry Newbould (1896-1906)
- Jimmy Methven (1906-1922)
- Cecil Potter (1922-1925)
- George Joeby (1925-1941)
- Ted Manger (1944-1946)
- Stuart McMillan (1946-1953)
- Jack Barker (1953-1955)
- Harry Storer (1955-1962)
- Tim Ward (1962-1967)
- Brian Clough (1967-1973)
- Dave Mackay (1973-1976)
- Colin Murphey (1976-1977)
- Tommy Docherty (1977-1979)
- Colin Addison (1979-1982)
- John Newman (1982)
- Peter Taylor (1982-1984)
- Roy McFarland (1984)
- Arthur Cox (1984-1993)
- Roy McFarland (1993-1995)
- Jim Smith (1995-2001)
- Colin Todd (2001-2002)
- John Gregory (2002-2003)
- George Burley (2003-2005)
Shirt sponsors
- 1884-1981: No sponsor
- 1981-1984: Patrick
- 1984-1986: Bass Brewers
- 1986-1987: Sportsweek
- 1987-1991: Maxwell Communications Corporation
- 1991-1995: Auto Windscreens
- 1995-1998: Puma
- 1998-2001: EDS
- 2001-2005: Marston's Pedigree
Season-by-season
The table below chronicles the achievements of Derby County every season, from their formation in 1884 to the present day. Details of Derby's final league position is given (from 1888, when The Football League was founded), along with which round they made it to in both the FA Cup, the League Cup (which began in 1960) and any European competitions that they had qualified for.
| Season | League/Division | League Finishing Position | FA Cup | League Cup | European Cup / Champions League | Fairs Cup / UEFA Cup |
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| 1884-1885 | 1st Round | |||||
| 1885-1886 | 3rd Round | |||||
| 1886-1887 | 2nd Round | |||||
| 1887-1888 | 4th Round | |||||
| 1888-1889 | The Football League | 10th | 2nd Round | |||
| 1889-1890 | The Football League | 7th | 1st Round | |||
| 1890-1891 | The Football League | 11th | 2nd Round | |||
| 1891-1892 | The Football League | 10th | 1st Round | |||
| 1892-1893 | Football League First Division | 13th | 1st Round | |||
| 1893-1894 | Football League First Division | 3rd | Quarter-Finals | |||
| 1894-1895 | Football League First Division | 15th | 1st Round | |||
| 1895-1896 | Football League First Division | 2nd | Semi-Finals | |||
| 1896-1897 | Football League First Division | 3rd | Semi-Finals | |||
| 1897-1898 | Football League First Division | 10th | Runners-up | |||
| 1898-1899 | Football League First Division | 9th | Runners-up | |||
| 1899-1900 | Football League First Division | 6th | 1st Round | |||
| 1900-1901 | Football League First Division | 12th | Quarter-Finals | |||
| 1901-1902 | Football League First Division | 12th | Semi-Finals | |||
| 1902-1903 | Football League First Division | 9th | Runners-up | |||
| 1903-1904 | Football League First Division | 14th | Semi-Finals | |||
| 1904-1905 | Football League First Division | 11th | 1st Round | |||
| 1905-1906 | Football League First Division | 15th | 2nd Round | |||
| 1906-1907 | Football League First Division | 19th (relegated) | 3rd Round | |||
| 1907-1908 | Football League Second Division | 6th | 1st Round | |||
| 1908-1909 | Football League Second Division | 5th | Semi-Finals | |||
| 1909-1910 | Football League Second Division | 4th | 2nd Round | |||
| 1910-1911 | Football League Second Division | 6th | Quarter-Finals | |||
| 1911-1912 | Football League Second Division | 1st (promoted) | 2nd Round | |||
| 1912-1913 | Football League First Division | 7th | 1st Round | |||
| 1913-1914 | Football League First Division | 20th (relegated) | 2nd Round | |||
| 1914-1915 | Football League Second Division | 1st (promoted) | 1st Round | |||
| 1915-1916 | Suspended due to World War I | |||||
| 1916-1917 | ||||||
| 1917-1918 | ||||||
| 1918-1919 | ||||||
| 1919-1920 | Football League First Division | 18th | 1st Round | |||
| 1920-1921 | Football League First Division | 21st (relegated) | 2nd Round | |||
| 1921-1922 | Football League Second Division | 12th | 1st Round | |||
| 1922-1923 | Football League Second Division | 14th | 5th Round | |||
| 1923-1924 | Football League Second Division | 3rd | 3rd Round | |||
| 1924-1925 | Football League Second Division | 3rd | 1st Round | |||
| 1925-1926 | Football League Second Division | 2nd (promoted) | 4th Round | |||
| 1926-1927 | Football League First Division | 12th | 4th Round | |||
| 1927-1928 | Football League First Division | 4th | 4th Round | |||
| 1928-1929 | Football League First Division | 6th | 4th Round | |||
| 1929-1930 | Football League First Division | 2nd | 4th Round | |||
| 1930-1931 | Football League First Division | 6th | 3rd Round | |||
| 1931-1932 | Football League First Division | 15th | 5th Round | |||
| 1932-1933 | Football League First Division | 7th | Semi-Finals | |||
| 1933-1934 | Football League First Division | 4th | 5th Round | |||
| 1934-1935 | Football League First Division | 6th | 5th Round | |||
| 1935-1936 | Football League First Division | 2nd | Quarter-Finals | |||
| 1936-1937 | Football League First Division | 4th | 5th Round | |||
| 1937-1938 | Football League First Division | 13th | 3rd Round | |||
| 1938-1939 | Football League First Division | 6th | 3rd Round | |||
| 1939-1940 | Suspended due to World War II | Suspended due to World War II | ||||
| 1941-1942 | ||||||
| 1942-1943 | ||||||
| 1943-1944 | ||||||
| 1944-1945 | ||||||
| 1945-1946 | Winners | |||||
| 1946-1947 | Football League First Division | 14th | 5th Round | |||
| 1947-1948 | Football League First Division | 4th | Semi-Finals | |||
| 1948-1949 | Football League First Division | 3rd | Quarter-Finals | |||
| 1949-1950 | Football League First Division | 11th | Quarter-Finals | |||
| 1950-1951 | Football League First Division | 11th | 4th Round | |||
| 1951-1952 | Football League First Division | 17th | 3rd Round | |||
| 1952-1953 | Football League First Division | 22nd (relegated) | 3rd Round | |||
| 1953-1954 | Football League Second Division | 18th | 3rd Round | |||
| 1954-1955 | Football League Second Division | 22nd (relegated) | 3rd Round | |||
| 1955-1956 | Football League Third Division (North) | 2nd | 2nd Round | |||
| 1956-1957 | Football League Third Division (North) | 1st (promoted) | 2nd Round | |||
| 1957-1958 | Football League Second Division | 16th | 3rd Round | |||
| 1958-1959 | Football League Second Division | 7th | 3rd Round | |||
| 1959-1960 | Football League Second Division | 18th | 3rd Round | |||
| 1960-1961 | Football League Second Division | 12th | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1961-1962 | Football League Second Division | 16th | 4th Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1962-1963 | Football League Second Division | 18th | 4th Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1963-1964 | Football League Second Division | 13th | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1964-1965 | Football League Second Division | 9th | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1965-1966 | Football League Second Division | 8th | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1966-1967 | Football League Second Division | 17th | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1967-1968 | Football League Second Division | 18th | 3rd Round | Semi-Finals | ||
| 1968-1969 | Football League Second Division | 1st (promoted) | 3rd Round | Quarter-Finals | ||
| 1969-1970 | Football League First Division | 4th | 5th Round | Quarter-Finals | ||
| 1970-1971 | Football League First Division | 9th | 5th Round | 4th Round | ||
| 1971-1972 | Football League First Division | 1st (champions) | 5th Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1972-1973 | Football League First Division | 7th | Quarter-Finals | 3rd Round | Semi-Finals | |
| 1973-1974 | Football League First Division | 3rd | 4th Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1974-1975 | Football League First Division | 1st (champions) | 5th Round | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | |
| 1975-1976 | Football League First Division | 4th | Semi-Finals | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | |
| 1976-1977 | Football League First Division | 15th | Quarter-Finals | Quarter-Finals | 2nd Round | |
| 1977-1978 | Football League First Division | 12th | 5th Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1978-1979 | Football League First Division | 19th | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1979-1980 | Football League First Division | 21st (relegated) | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1980-1981 | Football League Second Division | 6th | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1981-1982 | Football League Second Division | 16th | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1982-1983 | Football League Second Division | 13th | 5th Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1983-1984 | Canon League Division Two | 20th (relegated) | Quarter-Finals | 2nd Round | ||
| 1984-1985 | Canon League Division Three | 7th | 1st Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1985-1986 | Canon League Division Three | 3rd (promoted) | 5th Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1986-1987 | Today League Division Two | 1st (promoted) | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1987-1988 | Barclays League Division One | 15th | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 1988-1989 | Barclays League Division One | 5th | 4th Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1989-1990 | Barclays League Division One | 16th | 3rd Round | Quarter-Finals | ||
| 1990-1991 | Barclays League Division One | 20th (relegated) | 3rd Round | 4th Round | ||
| 1991-1992 | Barclays League Division Two | 3rd | 4th Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1992-1993 | Barclays League Division One1 | 8th | Quarter-Finals | 3rd Round | ||
| 1993-1994 | Endsleigh League Division One | 6th | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1994-1995 | Endsleigh League Division One | 9th | 3rd Round | 4th Round | ||
| 1995-1996 | Endsleigh League Division One | 2nd (promoted) | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 1996-1997 | FA Carling Premiership | 12th | Quarter-Finals | 2nd Round | ||
| 1997-1998 | FA Carling Premiership | 9th | 4th Round | 4th Round | ||
| 1998-1999 | FA Carling Premiership | 8th | Quarter-Finals | 3rd Round | ||
| 1999-2000 | FA Carling Premiership | 16th | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 2000-2001 | FA Carling Premiership | 17th | 4th Round | 4th Round | ||
| 2001-2002 | Barclaycard Premiership | 19th (relegated) | 3rd Round | 3rd Round | ||
| 2002-2003 | Nationwide Football League Division One | 18th | 3rd Round | 2nd Round | ||
| 2003-2004 | Nationwide Football League Division One | 20th | 3rd Round | 1st Round | ||
| 2004-2005 | Coca-Cola Football League Championship2 | 4th | 4th Round | 1st Round | ||
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1 At the beginning of the 1992-1993 season, the clubs in the Football League First Division broke away to form the FA Premier League; as a result, the Football League's three remaining divisions were renamed: the Second Division (which Derby were playing in) became the First Division, the Third Division became the Second Division and the Fourth Division became the Third Division 2 At the beginning of the 2004-2005 season, the Football League renamed its divisions: the First Division (which Derby were playing in) became The Championship, the Second Division became League One and the Third Division became League Two | ||||||
External links
- Official site (http://www.dcfc.co.uk/)
- Unofficial site (http://www.therams.co.uk/) by the Derby Evening Telegraph
- Derby County-Mad (http://www.derbycounty-mad.co.uk/)
- We Are The Rams website (http://we-are-the-rams.tripod.com/)
- Ramsportal (http://www.ramsportal.com/)
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League competitions |
Cup competitions | |
| FA Premier League | FA Cup | |
| The Football League (Champ, 1, 2) | England (men) | League Cup |
| Football Conference (Nat, N, S) | FA Community Shield | |
| Northern Premier League (Prem, 1) | (women) | Football League Trophy |
| Southern League (Prem, 1W, 1E) | List of clubs | FA Trophy |
| Isthmian League (Prem, 1, 2) | FA Vase | |
| English football league system | Records | FA NLS Cup |
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no:Derby County F.C. simple:Derby County F.C. pl:Derby County