Steve Bloomer's Washing

As the Rams prepare for life in League One, Chris, Richard, Tom and Anton ready themselves for the new Derby County era... and a whole new team. We assess the new signings (well, most of them), pick our best XI based on Derby's current squad, and agree that patience will be needed in the gruelling first few weeks as Rosenior's new-look squad try to gel and play catch-up. Which of the new boys are...

It's over! After 285 days in administration, the Rams finally enter a new era as David Clowes' successful takeover is confirmed. A jubilant SBW panel of Chris Parsons, Tom Martin, Jamie Page (@DerbyRetweets) and the Derby Telegraph's Leigh Curtis celebrate the long-awaited news and discuss the club's future under their 'reluctant saviour' new owner. Is the job of permanent manager now Liam Rosenio...

The 2021/22 campaign comes to a close with an anticlimactic 1-0 home defeat to Cardiff City in front of a grateful, emotional Pride Park crowd... but Derby's future continues to be the elephant in the room as takeover talks stall. Chris, Richard and Anton take to the pub after full time to discuss Derby's final game, the possible exodus of players in the summer, and the slightly horrifying thought...

We fought to the end... but it wasn't enough. As Derby's relegation to League One is confirmed, Richard and Tom tell Chris about the emotional scenes from the away end at QPR on Easter Monday, as we look forward to a (hopefully) brighter future. Will Wayne Rooney stay for the long-term Rams 'project'? We assess how Derby's manager has changed in tone, confidence and appearance since first signing...

Progress! A mightily relieved Chris and Richard are joined by Jimmy McLoughlin as Quantuma finally announce Chris Kirchner as their preferred bidder to take Derby County out of administration. With Kirchner being very public on his plans for the Rams, Chris, Richard and Jimmy analyse our prospective new owner's social media Q&A, in which he addressed funding, personnel, points deductions and recru...

As Ravel Morrison's late scissor-kick keeps the Rams' faint survival hopes alive for another week, Chris, Richard and Tom heap praise on Derby's mercurial Jamaican. There's more analysis of the chaotic 1-0 win over Preston which keeps Derby six points from safety with six games to play, as well as chat on Max Bird's red card, along with the small matter of Derby City Council possibly buying Pride...

In this one-off episode, listen to snippets from six of our exclusive bonus podcasts released on Patreon this season. The SBW Patreon is a membership platform where you can support the podcast - and in return you'll receive an extra monthly episode, early access to the regular podcast, as well as sign-up benefits and the chance to join our private Discord community for more content and matchday di...

With the Championship season entering 'The Business End', Derby's survival still hangs in the balance. Nine games to go and five points from safety, can The Greatest Escape still be achieved? Chris and Tom are joined by Ollie Wright (@derbycountyblog) to look back on the essential victory over Barnsley, followed by the somewhat inevitable defeat to Bournemouth. We focus on Ravel Morrison - 'a brea...

The games are running out for Derby County in their improbably quest to avoid relegation, and disheartening defeats against Millwall and Luton havn't helped the Rams' survival cause. Chris, RIchard and Tom are joined by pod newbie Jimmy McLoughlin to assess Derby's last three performances, with one fundamental question in mind - will we stay up? We've also got 'Your Shout' on whether listeners thi...

Is the nightmare finally coming to an end? A key breakthrough off the pitch means Derby County may survive beyond the season - and the Rams are still hanging in there on the pitch too. Chris, Richard and Anton look back on a damaging, but not dispiriting defeat at Middlesbrough, assess Festy Ebosele's game and how he may need to adapt as one of the Championship's quickest players, and wonder - wha...

Onward Krystian's soldiers! As a truly spectacular finish sees Derby rescue a 2-2 draw with Birmingham in the dying seconds, Chris, Richard, Tom and guest podder James Windle assess Bielik's fairytale return* (injury pending), the raw emotion of the pre-match march to Pride Park and where next as the Rams enter the endgame of their existential death spiral. Is February 2022 the most important mont...

* Patreon taster episode! Sign up below to hear the full 40-minute interview * www.patreon.com/stevebloomerswashing As a Radio Derby broadcaster for nearly 30 years and Derby County employee from 2013 until last year, few have been closer to the club than Colin Gibson. A man whose voice is synonymous with the Rams, Colin kindly gave us his time to reflect on his eight years at the club, how it fel...

In another emotionally draining week which leaves Derby County again staring into the abyss, Wayne Rooney's players responded the only way they know how - with buckets of commitment, energy and defiance. Richard, Tom and Anton react to the superb 2-0 win over Sheffield United, featuring two of the best goals ever seen at Pride Park. There is, of course, also analysis of the latest off-field body b...

What a way to end 2021! As Rams fans are given a glimmer of hope thanks to three consecutive wins to end the year, Chris and Richard are joined by Ollie Wright (Derby County Blog) to revel in the victories which see Derby cross the psychological barrier of double figures. There's praise for the returning CKR ('He's back!'), much-needed contributions from Ravel Morrison and Kamil Jozwiak, and gener...

As Derby fans look back on one of the most eventful and tumultuous years in the club's history, the SBW team digest a frankly absurd 12 months for the Rams. Chris and Richard are joined by BBC Radio Derby's Chris Coles as we relive the most dramatic moments of 2021 for Derby - *that* survival Saturday in May, the failed takeovers, and of course the bombshell administration announcement in late Sep...

Two excellent results against the best teams in the Championship give Derby fans a glimmer of hope... before QPR spoil the positivity party with a late winner at Pride Park, as that gap to safety just keeps getting bigger. Chris, Tom and Anton sigh in disbelief at more points dropped from winning positions and kick themselves for having survival hope in the first place, as we also analyse the wond...

Chris spoke at length to Quantuma CEO Carl Jackson to get an update on Derby County's administration process and the quest to find new buyers for the club. In their first non-club interview since Derby's -21 points deduction was confirmed, we discussed a number of key issues with the administrators, including how Derby's process has been compared to other companies they deal with (2:06), which int...

Can the Rams now pull off the increasingly improbable and beat relegation? After losing to second bottom Barnsley, Derby looked doomed - but a spirited 1-1 draw at Millwall continues to give fans hope. Chris, Richard and Tom look back on an eventful day at The Den, wonder where Festy Ebosele can do the most damage, and assess what's gone wrong with the Rams previously impressive defensive record....

As Derby end the Championship's last 100% home record with a battling draw at Coventry, Richard, Anton and Tom savour their first away day in far too long and drink in those sweet, sweet scenes after Graeme Shinnie's second half equaliser. There's analysis on Luton too - was the draw with the Hatters two points dropped after leading twice at home? We also discuss the impact of Jason Knight, who's...

In our latest Patreon exclusive, Chris Parsons speaks to Rams defender Curtis Davies for an in-depth technical chat on the art of being a centre back. How do you transition into playing three at the back? What's the secret to playing out? And which striker from his career was best at 'the dark arts'? A fascinating tactical interview with a fan favourite, this bonus episode is one of several great...

As the post-points deduction era begins for Derby, Chris, Tom and Anton look back on a positive four points picked up from home games against Reading and Swansea which saw the Rams climb out of a negative points total. With both Kelle Roos and Ryan Allsop showing encouraging form between the sticks, who should keep the No.1 shirt for the Rams? Have Derby been slightly fortunate to go unbeaten (so...

In a podcast we never thought we'd record, Chris, Richard and Tom react to the devastating news that Derby County are entering administration and will plummet to the bottom of the Championship following a 12 point deduction. How terminal will the situation become for our proud club, an institution of English football, and where do we go from here? Then there's Mel Morris, the self-proclaimed 'life...

Two contrasting away performances see Derby pick up a dogged, impressive point at table-topping West Brom, having been bullied into a 2-0 defeat at St Andrews last week. Chris, Richard and Anton discuss Derby's latest defensive masterclass from Davies and Jagielka, dish out well-deserved praise for Kelle Roos... and try to decide once again: Should we continue playing out from the back? There's al...

Chris, Richard and Tom assess a positive start to Derby's season, despite multiple dropped points already - the latest coming against Nottingham Forest. Why are Derby failing once again to kill games off? There's also chat on the Rams' missed penalty shouts against their local rivals - how many spot kicks should Derby have had against Forest? We also look at the contributions of the new boys - who...

As an encouraging Derby County display is ruined by a calamitous injury time collapse at Peterborough to throw away three points, Richard, Anton and Tom stew over another galling away defeat under Wayne Rooney. How will the Rams now cope without the injured Colin Kazim-RIchards? Was the defeat at London Road merely a sign of things to come? And which of the quickly-blooded Derby youngsters can we...