Tom Ince’s 40th minute goal saw Derby County to a 1-0 victory over the Blues at Portman Road. Town took the game to the Rams in the second half but rarely looked like getting on terms with the visitors, who have climbed to second.
Boss Mick McCarthy named unchanged XI for the fifth successive game, while Luke Varney, who signed a contract to the end of the season yesterday, was on the bench replacing Jonny Parr, who missed out having picked up a knock. Former Blue Darren Bent was on the bench for the Rams.
Freddie Sears, fresh from his 16th second goal at Fulham on Tuesday, struck the game’s first shot in the fifth minute, cutting in from the left and hitting a low effort which Derby keeper Lee Grant, in for the injured Scott Carson, saved down to his right.
The Blues were starting the game positively and on eight Brett Pitman profited from Stephen Warnock’s slip on the Town right and sent over a cross which was just too long for strike partner Daryl Murphy.
Derby gradually began to see more of the ball but without creating a chance until the 12th minute when former Norwich midfielder Bradley Johnson shot wide from just outside the area having been teed up by Johnny Russell.
The Rams continued to see the majority of the possession but didn’t create another opportunity until the 21st minute when Tom Ince escaped in space on the right and laid the ball across to Chris Martin, whose shot was superbly blocked by Tommy Smith.
Town threatened on 25 when Murphy nodded the ball down to Sears who was breaking down the left. The former Colchester man might have cut across to an unmarked Pitman earlier and his eventual cross was blocked.
Following the resultant corner, Christophe Berra picked up the game’s first yellow card for catching Warnock with a high boot as he tried to get a touch on a bouncing ball.
On 29 Pitman found Sears on the edge of the area with a pass from wide on the right but the ex-West Ham man’s first touch let him down and George Thorne was able to close him down and block. At the other end, Gerken saved Jacob Butterfield’s effort without fanfare.
A minute later, after Cole Skuse had collided with referee Keith Hill, the ball broke to Sears, who screwed a left-footed strike well wide.
Referee Hill gave Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Johnson a talking to on 34 after the on-loan Arsenal man had taken umbrage to the former Canary had diving in at him after he had already been tripped by one of his team-mates, leading to a short spell of pushing and shoving involving a handful of players.
Berra cut out a Warnock cross from the left on 38 after a swift Derby break, referee Hill having failed to spot a blatant handball during the build-up.
The half had been evenly balanced with few chances at either end but on 40 the visitors went in front.
Russell ran onto Martin’s knockdown midway inside the Town half and Berra’s challenge deflected straight to Ince, who took the ball into the area before hitting a shot which caught Jonas Knudsen’s studs and beat Gerken. It was Ince's seventh goal of the season and his fourth this week after his hat-trick in Tuesday's 4-0 home victory over Bristol City.
The Blues were unable to find a response before referee Hill, whose somewhat erratic decision-making was increasingly infuriating the Town support, blew his whistle to signal half-time.
There had been little in a not overly entertaining game up to the Derby goal, which as so often this season was one that Town really ought to have been able to defend, even if there had been an element of good fortune for the Rams.
When Town had been in good positions all too often they had been let down by a poor final ball or a bad first touch and Derby keeper Grant had never seriously been tested.
Gerken similarly hadn’t been forced into a significant save prior to the visitors taking the lead.
The Blues made a strong start to the second half, Skuse seeing an early strike blocked just inside the area.
On 50 Knudsen found Sears with a short throw on the left and crossed to Murphy, who flicked a difficult header over the bar.
Four minutes later, after Pitman’s header had been nodded behind by Cyrus Christie, the Danish international shot over after a corner on the left had been played to him on the edge of the box.
A minute before the hour mark Pitman was replaced by Ryan Fraser with the Scotland U21 international making his first appearance since suffering a knee injury in October. The on-loan AFC Bournemouth man took up his usual role on the left of midfield with Sears joining Murphy up front. Kevin Bru replaced Maitland-Niles on 63.
Jonathan Douglas had his named added to referee Hill’s book in the 68th minute for a foul on Russell, the Scotland international appearing to make an awful lot out of very little contact.
The Blues continued to take the game to the Rams but Grant was still to be seriously tested. On 75 the keeper failed to deal with a corner from the left but the ball wouldn’t fall to a Town player.
Derby were lucky not to be reduced to 10 men in the 77th minute when Butterfield hauled down Skuse, then pushed the Blues’ midfielder in the face with the flat of his hand.
Referee Hill showed only a yellow card which the Rams midfielder still protested at length, at one point grabbing the referee’s arm. Three minutes later, Andreas Weimann replaced Russell.
Town continued to press for an equaliser and on 81 Douglas wasn’t far away when his header from a Fraser cross was cleared off the line by Butterfield at the post. The Scottish winger reached the loose ball on the edge of the area on the right but was caught by Ince’s very high boot and the former Blackpool man picked up a yellow card.
Moments later, after his corner on the right had been cleared, Fraser brought the ball back in and fed Sears with a clever pass, the striker hitting a powerful shot across the face of goal.
Butterfield made way for Derby to boos from the home support, Jeff Hendrick taking over, before Varney was handed his second Blues debut against one of his former clubs replacing Douglas.
Town were unable to get on terms during injury time and Johnson’s 20-yard strike which Gerken pushed past his right post was the game’s final significant action.
The Blues had taken the game to the visitors in the second half and had had most of the ball but had been prevented from creating too many notable chances by a resolute Derby defence, Douglas’s header which was cleared off the line - one of only two Blues shots on target all game - perhaps the nearest Town came to an equaliser.
The result sees the Blues, who have now recorded only one home win in nine, remain sixth in the table but again having fallen short when up against one of the division’s top sides. Town next face QPR at Portman Road on Boxing Day.
Town: Gerken, Chambers (c), Smith, Berra, Knudsen, Skuse, Douglas (Varney 84), Maitland-Niles (Bru 63), Sears, Pitman (Fraser 59), Murphy. Unused: Bialkowski, Malarczyk, Coke, Oar.
Derby: Grant, Christie, Keogh, Martin (c), Russell (Weimann 80), Shackell, Johnson, Butterfield (Hendrick 83), Ince (Baird 90), Thorne, Warnock. Unused: Mitchell, Hendrick, Bent, Pearce, Shotton. Referee: Keith Hill (Hertfordshire). Att: 20,161 (Derby: 1,313).