This hope looked to influence Leyton Orient, as the O’s were close to taking the lead in the first 5 minutes through Theo Archibald.
On the half-hour mark after a frantic end-to-end start, the Rams got the breakthrough with a fantastic strike from academy graduate, Louie Sibley. Just 15 minutes later, things got worse for Leyton Orient as Brandon Cooper was shown a straight red card for a foul on James Collins.
After the break, it only took Derby County just over a minute to capitalise on the O’s misfortune, as Nathaniel Mendez-Laing squeezed his shot below Brynn, and into the bottom corner to make it 2-0 to the visitors.
Leyton Orient substitue, Omar Beckles thought he had got one back for the home side, but it was quickly ruled out for offside.
In the 80th minute, Tom Barkhuizen secured the three points for Derby, by scoring their third goal, his first of the 23/24 league one campaign.
4 things we learnt:
Derby County have more attacking options than they once thought
It was a convincing win for Derby County yesterday, as they put three past the Leyton Orient defence.
Louie Sibley and Tom Barkhuizen were able to register their first goals of the 23/24 league one campaign, whilst Nathaniel Mendez-Laing added to his tally a fifth league goal of the season.
At the beginning, there were some concerns around where the goals were going to be coming from for this Derby team but it seems now they have hit a turning point as the goals are coming from across the field.
Despite injuries to Martyn Waghorn and Conor Washington, players like Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, James Collins and Kane Wilson have stepped up to the mark creating chances for the Rams to score. Not forgetting Tyreece John-Jules who since his return from injury three games ago has scored twice off the bench.
Louie Sibley and Tom Barkhuizen are off the mark for the season, and Derby supporters will be hoping that they can build upon this going forward.
Leyton Orient need to capitalise on their positive opening 10 minutes
It has been a difficult run of 6 games without a win for Leyton Orient however; they started the match on the front foot, applying the pressure on Derby’s defence.
They competed well against the dominant Rams team, but struggled to find the opener. The O’s spirits were dampened when Derby were able to get the breakthrough half an hour into the game, against the run of play.
First team coach, Matt Harrold described conceding the first goal as, “giving oursleves a mountain to climb.”
Here, we can understand the frustration of the team and what they will aim to improve going forward in the season.
Harrold also addressed how the key moments have been going against them this season. In order to end their winless run, Leyton Orient will need to focus on addressing these if they want to change their fortunes going forward.
Derby’s defence is not to be overlooked
Derby County currently have the joint first defensive record in League One with Portsmouth. They have conceded only 16 goals this season and registered 9 clean sheets.
Their back line includes Curtis Nelson, who has been described by many Derby fans as the “surprise signing of the season.” His consistency from the back has added stability to the Derby team, allowing midfield players to feel confident focusing on attacking.
The reliability of the likes of Craig Forsyth, Eiran Cashin and Joe Wildsmith has been crucial to the way the Rams have played this season as a more positive style of play has been adopted.
Whilst the forwards have been taking the limelight recently, it is clear that Derby’s defence is not to be overlooked or taken for granted.
The O's substitutes can be crucial
During added time in the first half, Leyton Orient introduced Omar Beckles off the bench. In his post-match interview with the club Harrold admitted they were trying to "time the subs right" so they could make a positive impact in the game.
In the 51st minute, Beckles netted the ball but it was ruled out for offside by the linesman. Despite this misfortune, the fact still stands that it was the substitute who was able to change the game for the home side.
Harrold said, "I thought a lot of the substitutes had a good impact," and he will be hoping for a similar impact in future performances.
