FOOTBALL Live

Saturday May 3, 2008 Finished Ewood Park

Blackburn Rovers 3 - Logo 1

Blackburn Rovers

  • Santa Cruz 45’, 78’
  • Roberts 48’

Derby County

  • Miller 19’
  1. Blackburn coast past Derby

    Blackburn coast past Derby

    A Roque Santa Cruz double ensured Derby's position as the Premier League's worst-ever team with a 3-1 defeat at Blackburn. More

  • Live Commentary

    Time:90'
    • Blackburn Rovers
    • Derby County
    • - All the Blackburn players are walking round Ewood Park with their kids and applauding the fans - another good season for Mark Hughes could finish with Europe via the Intertoto. With some decent defenders next year they could certainly challenge higher up the table. Cheers for following the game with eurosport.yahoo.com.
    • - The result was probably what everyone expected today. Blackburn had too much quality for Derby when it mattered, and once again the Derby defence has gifted the opposition a goal at a vital time. They will now officially be the worst team, in terms of points total, ever to have graced the Premier League. And we all thought that Sunderland team in 05/06 was bad.
    • 93' And it's all over here at Ewood Park. The camera is focusing on Santa Cruz, and rightly so. What a stunning first season in the Premier League he's having. Blackburn get the three points today, but the Derby players put in a good shift. Bless 'em.
    • 91' David Bentley shows nice skill in beating Kenny Miller and breaking through the middle, but Uriah Rennie does what's expected and blows for a foul by Miller even though Bentley was away. Don't you love those whistle-happy refs, eh?
    • 89' An encouraging Derby break down the right falls apart when Kenny Miller plays the ball into Nelson's legs. Then the Blackburn breakaway falls apart. Literally. This is getting very scrappy - I think both sets of players could do with this ending right about now.
    • 87' Terrible decision from the assistant referee as Derbyshire is flagged offside when he's clearly on. Luckily it shouldn't matter.
    • 85' The pace has slowed right down, with Blackburn playing the ball around. When it breaks down, Tyrone Mears gets a shot away, but it's half-hearted.
    • 81' Derbyshire replaces Roberts for Blackburn. The Derby fans are still singing. Robbie Savage puts a free kick wide. It's a classic minute.
    • 78' GOAL!!! And Santa Cruz almost certainly wraps things up for Blackburn. Excellent work by Bentley on the right as he finds space for the cross, and at great risk to life and limb Santa Cruz piles in at the far post to score his second of the game. Fantasy points for me! With a nice Bentley assist as a bonus.
    • 75' Blackburn are having plenty of the ball in the Derby final third, but it's not quite paying off at the moment. Still, it's the Derby fans who are singing. But if the game stays like this Derby will officially be the worst team in the history of the solar system.
    • 72' The Derby fans are doing the conga. Could they steal the fabled 'best fans in the world'TM title from Newcastle?
    • 70' There's been so much excitement I missed a Derby substitution. Hossam Ghaly is off, and Sterjovski is on. And another - Villa is on for Eddie Lewis.
    • 69' And another! Roberts finds himself clear, tries to fool Carroll with some trickery, but Carroll's having none of it and saves the shot. From the corner Emerton has a clear strike at goal but with the outside of his right boot he puts it wide.
    • 68' And there's an excellent reaction save from Carroll. A big hoof from Friedel, Roberts pushes, sorry, muscles Moore out of the way, and his volley is tipped wide from point-blank range.
    • 67' Great goalkeeping from Carroll as Pederson breaks down the left and fires a ball across goal. If Carroll had spilt it Steven Reid was ready to tap it in.
    • 63' Tugay is on for Blackburn, replacing Vogel. Blimey, he looks old.
    • 60' Derby finally have a chance to put the ball into the Blackburn box with a free kick 40 yards out. Darren Moore heads it tamely towards goal, and Blackburn break. It comes to nothing.
    • 57' Jason Roberts nearly scores the goal of his career. An overhead kick from 12 yards out after a lovely knock-down by Santa Cruz is tipped wide in spectacular fashion by Roy Carroll. Scintillating stuff, and Blackburn are rampant.
    • 55' There's a handball shout against McEvely in the Derby area. But he sees Darren Moore jumping towards him, fears for his life (naturally) and puts his arms out to protect himself from being crushed. It would have been harsh.
    • 53' Derby haven't been out of their own half yet, but Roy Carroll can hoof it clear here. It results in another Blackburn attack - Steven Reid should be fined for that cross. Then the ball breaks for Bentley, who really should have done better from six yards out. Cleared by Derby.
    • 50' More pressure from Blackburn results in Santa Cruz getting his head to a Gamst Pederson cross from the left, but the big Paraguayan can't keep his header down.
    • 48' GOAL FOR BLACKBURN! But it's not Santa Cruz. Roberts tucks it away after some abysmal defending from Derby (heard that before this season?). Two awful effots at clearances simply finish with the ball at his feet in front of goal 10 yards out, and it's an easy finish.
    • 46' And Blackburn get the second half under way. I've nothing against Derby, but I'm looking for Santa Cruz to push on and get a couple more now. Need those fantasy points.
    • - Derby have put men behind the ball and battled well defensively - well, you probably would too if you were striving to avoid the kind of records they're close to achieving. If they get a point today there's still a chance they could equal Sunderland's lowest-ever points total in the Premier League. Go for it lads.
    • - It's been a scrappy half, without any consistent quality on show. Blackburn have threatened the most, and will be pleased to go into the break all-square, but I imagine Hughes will have some words to say.
    • 45+3' GOAL!!! And the pressure pays off. Gamst Pederson gets a lucky break on the edge of the Derby box, his shot is saved by Carroll, but he spills it. Roque Santa Cruz follows up and slots it home. Get in! Always gamble. (Eurosport live coverage ed: Never gamble)
    • 45' More pressure for Blackburn as Roberts' header is deflected wide, then Gamst Pederson's volley is blocked. Derby are living dangerously.
    • 44' As the end of the half beckons, Blackburn go on the attack again. Roberts wins a throw in on the right, which Pederson hurls into the box. After a game of head tennis it's cleared.
    • 42' After a frantic game of ping pong in the Blackburn box, it falls to Earnshaw for a volley from 10 yards, magnificently blocked by Nelson. Blackburn breathe.
    • 41' Great defending by Samba as refuses to let Lewis beat him down the left wing, but it's a Derby corner.
    • 39' Ref Uriah Rennie is having one of his calmest games ever. Usually he's card-happy, but he's letting a few tasty challenges go without booking anyone. I think he understands that everyone is simply giving 110% per cent.
    • 36' And now it's Derby's turn to go close, with a ball sent right across the goalmouth from the right. No Derby player could get a toe on the ball, and Blackburn escape. Chances are coming...
    • 34' It's Samba's turn to go close, as he gets his head to a Bentley free kick whipped in from the left, but it's straight into Carroll's gloves.
    • 32' Bentley goes very close with a sublime chip from outside the area which Carroll does well to turn over the bar. Blackburn Bentley needs to start turning on the style.
    • 29' A sweeping move by Blackburn results in a long throw down by the Derby corner flag. But Derby clear - and then Robbie Savage does what Robbie Savage does best. Vogel is left dumped on the turf and Blackburn win the free kick, but replays show that while Savage went in full-bloodied, Vogel had a foot raised.
    • 27' Darren Moore limps off for some treatment. Derby probably won't miss him.
    • 25' Nothing's really working for Blackburn at the moment, despite Derby simply sitting back. Bentley hasn't really got going, and Santa Cruz has been innocuous.
    • 24' Blackburn get a free kick in their own half because of Earnshaw's play acting. His got some moves, this boy.
    • 22' ...which breaks for Emerton on the edge of the box. His drive is deflected out for a corner, but it should really have been a free kick on for a hand ball by the onrushing Derby defender. The resulting corner is headed over by Nelson. What's Santa Cruz doing?
    • 21' Blackburn get hold of the ball again, but Mark Hughes will be furious. Still, Blackburn corner...
    • 19' GOAL!!! Out of nothing, Derby score. Carroll hoofs it upfield, the Blackburn defence steps up and Kenny Miller runs onto the ball. He calmly slots it past Friedel, and Derby take the lead!
    • 18' A bit of magic from Bentley - he turns McEvely inside out before dinking a lovely ball across for Santa Cruz. Derby clear for a corner which comes to nothing.
    • 15' Savage breaks up a Blackburn attack on the edge of his own box, but can't launch a counter. Blackburn have a free kick wide right - Bentley fizzes it in but Samba heads it wide.
    • 13' Hossam Ghaly nicks the ball in midfield and feeds Kenny Miller. He gets a tame shot in - no problem for Brad Friedel.
    • 9' It's Gamst Pederson's turn to have a strike now, after cutting in from the left and letting fly on the angle. It's actually a pretty good game so far. But Santa Cruz has done nothing. Come on Santa Cruz!
    • 8' Blackburn immediately break, and Jason Roberts sprints clear of the Derby defence. He's forced to delay though, and his final shot is over.
    • 7' A woeful backpass by Steven Reid puts Friedel in trouble. His attempted clearance ricochets off Earnshaw and whistles over the bar. Lucky, Blackburn, lucky.
    • 5' Derby are putting long balls into the box, and hoping something breaks for them. 'Put it in the mixer!' shouts Paul Jewewll, presumably.
    • 4' Bentley fires in a free-kick, but it's straight down Roy Carroll's throat and he holds on with ease.
    • 3' Early high balls between the teams are dominating, and a crunching tackle on Gamst Pederson leaves him needing treatment. He'll be ok.
    • 1' Robbie Savage gets the game underway for Derby.
    • - It's a bad start to my day fantasy football-wise as Berbatov has been left out of the Tottenham squad. Come on Santa Cruz - I need you to get a couple today.
    • - It's a first return to Ewood Park for Jay McEveley and Robbie Savage, so I'm sure we can expect a few tasty reducers early doors.
    • - Derby are going all-out attack, with both Kenny Miller and the deadly Robert Earnshaw starting. Let's hope we don't see a repeat of that appalling dance routine he performed last Monday against Arsenal...
    • - It's a standard line-up for Blackburn, who as suspected start with Roberts and Santa Cruz up front. Benni McCarthy didn't make the bench.
    • - Blackburn are hoping that two wins from their final two games can propel them into the Intertoto cup, while Derby continue to play for pride. Which is all they've had to play for since Christmas, it seems. It's all set to be a cracker.
    • - Good afternoon and welcome to eurosport.yahoo.com's LIVE coverage of Blackburn against Derby.

  • Team Stats

    Blackburn Rovers Stats Derby County
    59% Possession 40%
    25 Shots 6
    10 Shots on target 2
    0 Saves 4
    10 Corners 1
    17 Fouls 12
    1 Offsides 2
    0 Yellow cards 0
    0 Red cards 0
    12 Tackles 28
    264 Accurate passes 149
    50 Bad passes 28

  • Player Stats

    G =
    Goals
    S =
    Shots
    SoT =
    Shot on Target
    F =
    Fouls
    FW =
    Fouls Won
    O =
    Offsides
    A =
    Assists
    AP =
    Accurate Passes
    BP =
    Bad Passes
    T =
    Tackles
    • Blackburn Rovers
      G S SoT F FW O A AP BP T
      1 Brad Friedel 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 1 0
      4 Christopher Samba 0 2 1 1 1 0 0 24 2 1
      3 Stephen Warnock 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 21 5 4
      6 Ryan Nelsen 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 27 3 2
      14 Steven Reid 0 0 0 2 4 0 0 22 6 0
      8 Johann Vogel 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 25 4 0
      7 Brett Emerton 0 2 0 3 3 0 0 41 9 3
      11 David Bentley 0 3 2 0 3 0 1 26 7 0
      12 Morten Gamst Pedersen 0 5 1 1 1 0 0 11 4 0
      30 Jason Roberts 1 6 4 1 3 0 0 14 1 1
      9 Roque Santa Cruz 2 5 2 1 1 0 0 13 2 0
      27 Matt Derbyshire 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0
      5 Kerimoglou Tugay 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 5 1
      2 Andre Ooijer 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      32 Jason Brown 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      29 Martin Olsson 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 0
    • Derby County
      G S SoT F FW O A AP BP T
      31 Roy Carroll 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 0 0
      23 Darren Moore 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 8 1 0
      4 James McEveley 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 9 6 2
      24 Tyrone Mears 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 15 1 9
      17 Andrew Todd 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 18 1 4
      32 Miles Addison 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 0 1
      40 Hossam Ghaly 0 0 0 4 2 0 0 23 5 3
      44 Robbie Savage 0 1 0 2 2 0 0 23 1 6
      15 Eddie Lewis 0 1 1 6 0 0 0 11 4 1
      14 Kenny Miller 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 14 5 0
      10 Robert Earnshaw 0 2 0 1 1 1 0 12 3 0
      21 Mile Sterjovski 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 0 1
      9 Emanuel Villa 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 1 1
      1 Lewis Price 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      35 Jason Beardsley 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      22 Benny Feilhaber 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

  • Summary

    • 78' GOAL!!! And Santa Cruz almost certainly wraps things up for Blackburn. Excellent work by Bentley on the right as he finds space for the cross, and at great risk to life and limb Santa Cruz piles in at the far post to score his second of the game. Fantasy points for me! With a nice Bentley assist as a bonus.
    • 68' And there's an excellent reaction save from Carroll. A big hoof from Friedel, Roberts pushes, sorry, muscles Moore out of the way, and his volley is tipped wide from point-blank range.
    • 57' Jason Roberts nearly scores the goal of his career. An overhead kick from 12 yards out after a lovely knock-down by Santa Cruz is tipped wide in spectacular fashion by Roy Carroll. Scintillating stuff, and Blackburn are rampant.
    • 55' There's a handball shout against McEvely in the Derby area. But he sees Darren Moore jumping towards him, fears for his life (naturally) and puts his arms out to protect himself from being crushed. It would have been harsh.
    • 48' GOAL FOR BLACKBURN! But it's not Santa Cruz. Roberts tucks it away after some abysmal defending from Derby (heard that before this season?). Two awful effots at clearances simply finish with the ball at his feet in front of goal 10 yards out, and it's an easy finish.
    • 45+3' GOAL!!! And the pressure pays off. Gamst Pederson gets a lucky break on the edge of the Derby box, his shot is saved by Carroll, but he spills it. Roque Santa Cruz follows up and slots it home. Get in! Always gamble. (Eurosport live coverage ed: Never gamble)
    • 42' After a frantic game of ping pong in the Blackburn box, it falls to Earnshaw for a volley from 10 yards, magnificently blocked by Nelson. Blackburn breathe.
    • 32' Bentley goes very close with a sublime chip from outside the area which Carroll does well to turn over the bar. Blackburn Bentley needs to start turning on the style.
    • 19' GOAL!!! Out of nothing, Derby score. Carroll hoofs it upfield, the Blackburn defence steps up and Kenny Miller runs onto the ball. He calmly slots it past Friedel, and Derby take the lead!

Live Team Line-Up

  • Blackburn Rovers

    Manager: Mark Hughes

    Captain: Ryan Nelsen

    On the Field

    • Friedel
    • Emerton
    • Samba
    • Nelsen
    • Warnock
    • Bentley
    • Vogel
    • Reid
    • Pedersen
    • Santa Cruz Goals×2
    • Roberts Goal

    Subs

    • Tugay Substitution In63′
    • Ooijer
    • Derbyshire Substitution In81′
    • Brown
    • Olsson

    Injured

    None

    Suspended

    None

  • Derby County

    Manager: Paul Jewell

    Captain: Robbie Savage

    On the Field

    • Carroll
    • Todd
    • Addison
    • Moore
    • McEveley
    • Mears
    • Savage
    • Ghaly
    • Lewis
    • Earnshaw
    • Miller Goal

    Subs

    • Sterjovski Substitution In70′
    • Feilhaber
    • Price
    • Villa Substitution In70′
    • Beardsley

    Injured

    • Mills
    • Jones
    • Davis
    • Barnes

    Suspended

    None