OUR HEADS WON’T DROP
Defiant Rooney: Relegation? No chance
DERBY are kicking their heels in the Championship drop zone – but Wayne Rooney promises it won’t be for much longer.
Rooney was seconds away from seeing his side clamber out of the bottom three for the first time since he replaced Phillip Cocu in November.
But Alan Browne’s winner for Preston with 96 minutes on the clock means the wait goes on and ended the Rams’ six-game unbeaten streak.
However, Rooney ( right) has seen enough in that run to believe that Derby will move up the table. He insisted: “We won’t be in the bottom three at the end of the season.
“Of course, we’ll look to bring in a few in January, but I’m confident in this group of players.
“The lads have been great for me and I believe in our ability to get out of this otherwise I wouldn’t make that statement. I’ve seen enough in our last seven games. Our performances have progressed.
“We were really good beating Swansea 2-0, but we were excellent in a different way against Preston.”
Derby scrapped for their lives after Martyn Waghorn was sent off in the 20th minute and were seconds away from a useful point.
Now their next opportunity to move out of the relegation zone comes in tomorrow evening’s trip to Birmingham.
Rooney’s temporary reign is set to continue as England’s record goalscorer waits for the green light on Derby’s takeover and his permanent appointment as manager.
Preston boss Alex Neil watched his side record backto-back victories for only the second time this season.
But he was not too impressed with the state of the Pride Park pitch.
Neil said: “The Championship is probably the most exciting league in the world because every team can beat every other. But the state of the pitches will not be conducive to good football.
“It may suit teams who look to turn the opposition and play for second balls and make it scrappy the later the season goes on. But you want the better teams in the league to finish where they should finish.”
Marshall 7 Byrne 6, Wisdom 6, Clarke 6, Buchanan 6 Bielik 8, Shinnie 6 Waghorn 2, Knight 6, Jozwiak 6 (Sibley 85), Kazim-Richards 6 (Hector-Ingram 90)
PRESTON: Rudd 6 Fisher 5 (Stockley 60, 4), Huntington 6, Davies 6, Earl 6 Browne 7, Gallagher 6 (Ledson 69, 3) Barkhuizen 6 (Harrop 83, 4), Johnson 6, Sinclair 6 (Bayliss 69, 4) Maguire 6 (Riis 60, 3)