INCE NOT FAZED BY SPOTS OF BOTHER
Winger’s class the catalyst in romp
TWO goals and a man-ofthe-match performance won’t save Tom Ince from extra training on Monday.
Ince was the architect of an easy Derby win over a hapless Rotherham as they made it three on the bounce, but the former Liverpool man should have been leaving with the match ball.
After scoring from the rebound of a first-half penalty, Ince stepped up again in the second half and with a hat-trick within touching distance, he saw Millers goalkeeper Lee Camp keep another spot-kick out.
The miss had no impact on the result, but ensures an extra session for Ince with coach Kevin Phillips.
“He took his penalty against Wolves well, that’s the confidence of him, it’s a good job he scored from the rebound,” joked boss Steve McClaren.
“I’m surprised Benty didn’t grab the ball off him for the second one but Tom wanted a hat-trick. Don’t worry he will work with Kevin on Monday!
“He has got to be consistent, he is a Premier League player and that has to be every day in training and every Saturday he plays. He has to be relentless and not get too disappointed and keep going.”
The Rams will rarely have an easier afternoon than this one.
They laid the foundations of the win with two goals in four first-half minutes as Ince netted his first as he tapped home the rebound after Camp saved his spot-kick and then Bent drilled home from the edge of the area.
The second half was as comthe fortable as the Rams will ever enjoy at this level and Ince grabbed a second when he coolly slotted home after racing through, with only Camp’s second penalty save of the match denying the Derby man a treble.
McClaren added: “We didn’t start well, and once we got the goal we settled. We could have had more and created chances.
“Five or six games a go we were wondering if we would ever score, but now we are creating chances and credit to the staff. We could have scored four, we missed a penalty but the clean sheet was important. Progress was made. We are not full package, there is still a lot of work, but I am still encouraged by the response of the players.”
It was the same old story for Rotherham, whose inability to defend is almost certain to condemn them to relegation.
The three they shipped at the iPro Stadium sent their goals against tally to a whopping 41 – the highest in the country – and means they have lost 12 of their 17 games so far this season.
Their defensive woes are not lost on Kenny Jackett, who is struggling to get to grips with their failings since his appointment a month ago.
He said: “We are still struggling to find a defensive set-up that can keep us competitive.
“We started the game pretty well in the first 20 minutes, we had a lot of it, we had the ball and made inroads but then we gave two very poor goals away on the break when we were in good positions.
“The second half was similar as we were playing in and around our box and then gave away a very, very poor third goal away.
“The outstanding statistic which is disappointing again is the goals against column. It’s frustrating when you lose the game. The better side won, I can’t say that wasn’t the case.”