Nigel Clough praises Burton’s ‘honesty’ after beating Derby

Burton boss Nigel Clough praised the “honesty” of his players after they boosted their Sky Bet Championship survival hopes with a 3-1 win over Derby.

Liam Boyce scored his first Pirelli Stadium goal only to see David Nugent’s first strike of 2018 level matters just before the half-hour mark.

Luke Murphy’s solo effort a minute before the break handed Albion the half-time initiative before Lucas Akins secured victory midway through the second half.

The Brewers rode a period of second-half pressure that saw Nugent waste a good chance while Matej Vydra’s 89th-minute penalty was saved.

Clough, though, watched on as his side secured their first home win since September as they scored three times at the Pirelli Stadium for the first time this season.

“I don’t think we played as well as we have in a lot of home games recently,” Clough said.

“We got a couple of breaks, we didn’t make mistakes and we managed to get the three points but, in terms of performances, some of them in the last six or eight weeks have been better than that.

“All credit to the players, they have kept going and when you haven’t won at home for 17 games, six months, to go out and keep going the way they have done speaks volumes for their honesty.”

Clough reserved praise for teenagers Jacob Davenport and Joe Sbarra, who both played important roles in his side’s victory.

“The standout thing today for me was having two diminutive 19-year-olds out there who both wanted the ball and to express themselves in the situation that we are in,” he added.

“Sometimes they don’t carry that burden of not having won at home for 17 games. They both left the pitch to a standing ovation and quite rightly so.”

Rams boss Gary Rowett was at a loss to explain a poor performance against his former side that sees Derby drop out of the play-off places.

“You know what the game is going to be like, regardless of whether Burton felt they weren’t playing for much apart from local pride, but it was enough for them,” he said.

“They showed a brilliant appetite. If I say it was embarrassing I am taking the credit away from Burton because they have outworked us with a lot more fight and desire to get the result.

“Today was very similar to the Sunderland game. We have lost 50-50 challenges. We have given away three goals through mistakes. That’s seven goals conceded against Sunderland and Burton, who are both bottom of the league respectively.”