Cardiff City 4-1 Derby County - Match Report

Following the impressive 2-1 victory over Nottingham Forest on Saturday, an air of expectation returned to Ninian Park as the Bluebirds took on a Derby County side who are widely tipped for relegation, and only have one league point to their name this season.

The supporters got what was expected as goals from Alan Lee, Graham Kavanagh, Robert Earnshaw and James Collins gave City a comfortable 4-1 victory over the Rams.

There was a large element of fortune for City, with Lee's goal being a fluke, Kavanagh's being a penalty, Earnshaw's looking several miles offside and questions over whether or not Collins' crossed the line!

Lennie Lawrence made only one chance from the side that impressively beat Nottingham Forest on Saturday, with young James Collins stepping in to replace the injured Daniel Gabbidon.

City were having more possession in the early exchanges of the game, but failed to create any clear cut chances. Robert Earnshaw blazed a close-range shot over the bar, and Alan Lee headed wide but City could not find the breakthrough.

Derby had chances of their own with debutant Junior blasting a shot wide, but neither side was creating anything to scare either goalkeeper.

It took something special to give City the lead, and it came on the half-hour mark with a stunning opening goal. Alan Lee sent what looked to be an innocuous cross into the Rams penalty area, which amazingly looped it's way over the stunned Derby 'keeper. It was very doubtful that Lee meant the cross to find it's way into the back of the net, but that didn't bother the 14,500 home fans in attendance!

The goal was a real lift to City, who dominated the rest of the half. City came close to doubling their lead when John Robinson whipped in a neat cross into a crowded penalty area, but the ball was taken well by Grant in the County goal.

Brazilian attacker Junior looked most likely to get Derby back into the game, and Neil Alexander was forced into a good save from his snap-shot on the 35-minute mark.

Derby's chances of taking anything from the game took a major set-back, when John Robinson was fouled inside the Rams penalty area by Ian Taylor. Skipper Graham Kavanagh made no mistake from the spot, slotting the ball to the 'keepers right.

The Rams' frustration was clear, and Costa's dismissal moments before half-time all-but finished the contest. The Portuguese youngster lashed out with a boot at City's Richard Langley, after the former QPR midfielder had shielded the ball from him by the corner flag. The County players protested that Costa was going for the ball, but referee Barry showed little hesitation in presenting the red card.

Half Time - Cardiff City 2-0 Derby County

Willie Boland almost extended City's lead only seconds into the second-half when the hard-working midfielder charged through the Derby midfield, only to fire his long-range effort straight at Grant.

10-men Derby then stunned City with a goal that got them back into the game. Svensson picked up on a pass from Ian Taylor, and neatly tucked the ball past Neil Alexander.

The goal gave the visitors a real boost of confidence, and they started to put together some decent spells of pressure, creating a series of worrying chances.

Derby's hopes of an unlikely comeback were shattered moments later though, with Robert Earnshaw restoring City's 2 goal advantage. Alan Lee, who was in a clear offside position, picked up from forward ball and unselfishly passed the ball to Robert Earnshaw, who seemingly did his best to miss, but put the ball in the roof of the net.

The County players were furious that the goal was allowed to stand, but replays show it may have come off a Derby defender, who was challenging James Collins when the ball was played.

Cardiff's excellent evening in front of the live Sky cameras was complete when James Collins capped off a fine performance with the final goal of the game. The Under-21 international headed the ball towards the goal from a corner, but it appeared that it had been spectacularly cleared off the line by Ian Taylor, but fortune shone on City again and the goal was given.

Derby had thrown the towel in, and Richard Langley had a chance to make it 5-1, but his shot was comfortably saved by Grant.

An excellent, if not rather lucky, day for City saw them win their first home First Division game for 18 years, and took them to a high-flying sixth in the league table for at least the next 24 hours.

Full Time - Cardiff City 4-1 Derby County

Cardiff City: Alexander, Weston, Vidmar, Collins, Barker, Robinson, Kavanagh, Boland, Langley, Earnshaw, Lee.
Subs: Prior, Thorne, Bonner, Whalley, Margetson.

Derby County: Grant, Jackson, Mills, Johnson, Boertien, Taylor, Huddlestone, Candido Costa, Morris, Svensson, Junior.
Subs: Oakes, Caldwell, Valakari, Bolder, McLeod.

Referee: N Barry (N Lincolnshire).

Young James Collins was told he would be replacing an injured Daniel Gabbidon only an hour before kick-off, and intense pressure was undoubtedly piled on to the defender in front of the TV cameras.

Collins rose to the occasion brilliantly though, with his first goal since the F.A Cup striker against Tranmere Rovers last season and a solid defensive display.

Alan Lee and Graham Kavanagh were other contenders for the Man of the Match award.

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