Derby County Away: A view from the back row

Bolton fan and friend of the blog Michael Murray makes his Lion of Vienna Suite debut with a Derby draw postmortem. Continue on for Michael's views on the game, the fans, the players, and the day out in Derby. For those unable to make the trek to Pride Park, this will give you some insight that radio commentary simply could not.

Man of the Match v. Derby: Adam Bogdan

It is with remorse that we return to our MOTM standby, Adam Bogdan....

Dougie Freedman made the correct calls against Derby, they just didn't work out

Dubious Goals Committee takes away Craig Dawson's opener, rule it an own goal

With Jay Spearing standing over the ball and four minutes of additional first half time just about at an end, Bolton Wanderers had just one more chance to go ahead at Pride Park before entering the locker room. The midfielder sent the ball sailing into the box and on target for Craig Dawson and the man marking him: Richard Keogh.

When the ball hit the back of the net, it was impossible to tell who got the last touch. It was Craig Dawson who wheeled away to celebrate though as Bolton were on the scoreboard. That, coupled with every news outlet crediting the goal to Dawson, made it easy to assume that the defender had scored his first goal in a Bolton shirt.

The Dubious Goals Committee didn't see it that way though. They have decided that fun is wrong, candy is sour, and puppies are bad. In doing so, they have confirmed that Craig Dawson did not get the goal and have instead awarded an own goal to Richard Keogh.

Derby County 1-1 Bolton Wanderers: More points dropped

Derby 0-1 Bolton: Craig Dawson header on the stroke of halftime sees Bolton lead

Yawn. That was pretty much the story of the first half. Bolton Wanderers would get the ball, lose it, Derby County would pick it up, lose it, etc. After a bit of back-and-forth with that, Derby would manage to get a shot off that would end up far away from the target. While Bolton had the majority of shots on target, they were mostly soft and easy for the Derby goalkeeper, Adam Legzdins, to deal with.

The breakthrough and the one real bit of excitement in the match would come in first half stoppage time. Bolton were awarded a free kick from distance and Jay Spearing stood over the ball. The midfielder put an excellent ball into the area and, through a mess of bodies, Craig Dawson glanced it into the end of the box. The central defender, who looked a real goal threat in his debut against Burnley, scored his first goal for the men in white.

Everywhere else, it was a very even match, boring match and the stats reflect that:

Derby 0-1 Bolton
Possession: 51%-49%
Shots on target: 3-4
Shots: 8-5
Corners: 3-2
Fouls: 6-8

Derby County v. Bolton Wanderers: lineups and live open thread

Official: Stu Holden named in Bolton team vs. Derby County

Hints point to Stu debut

Match Preview: Derby County v Bolton Wanderers

On the back of Wanderers 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest, the lads head across the A52 to Derby, where they will encounter yet another Championship club struggling to find consistency.