Nigel Clough's Derby maintain home run to end Leeds' revival

Nigel Clough will do everything he can to hold on to his rising star Will Hughes after the teenager orchestrated the club's eighth successive victory against Leeds.

The 17-year-old midfielder was outstanding, setting up the opening goal for Conor Sammon. And although Paul Green equalised against his former club, Jake Buxton and Ben Davies sealed a deserved 3-1 win. "I think a few of the big boys are watching him but if they are we will do everything we can to hang on to him," the Derby manager said.

Neil Warnock thought things could have been different if the Derby midfielder Jeff Hendrick had been shown a red card for a 35th-minute lunge on Ryan Hall. "How Hendrick did not get a red card I will never, ever know," the Leeds manager said. "It's a horrendous challenge, it's a career threatening challenge and to get a yellow card for that, I do not understand the game. ''

"They're even saying Ryan Hall got up quickly, as if that's a crime. What do we tell them to do, stay down and roll around? It was bad at the time but it's even worse when you watch it again.

"I thought we were poor for the first half hour but we withstood that and I didn't think they could improve, but I thought we could be 100 per cent better in the second half and I thought we were.

"The second goal was always going to be the winner today and we couldn't quite manage it. You need the rub of the green at times but it would have been entirely different with 10 men."

Derby took the lead in the 15th minute as Hughes' astute pass sent Sammon in to beat Paddy Kenny 12 yards but Leeds equalised just before the interval when Lee Peltier crossed from the left and Luciano Becchio headed on for Green to turn the ball in.

Hughes almost restored Derby's lead in the 59th minute when he beat two defenders and fired in a shot which Kenny turned away. But Kenny was beaten again in the 66th minute when Richard Keogh drove in a low shot which went in off Buxton before Davies settled the contest in the last minute, bending a shot from just inside the area to keep Derby's amazing run against Leeds going.






source : http://www.guardian.co.uk/

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