Former Derby County star backs Rams to earn League One promotion

With nine games to go, Derby County are in an excellent position to fight for automatic promotion back to the Championship.

The Rams sit in second place, just five points behind leaders Portsmouth and one point clear from third-placed Bolton Wanderers.

Paul Warne's side are in good form too, winning two games in a row both at 3-0 scorelines. They come off the back of a win against Bristol Rovers where they put in one of the better performances all season.

Former Rams defender Marc Edworthy said whilst appearing on BBC Radio Derby, that he believes they showed promotion-level quality.

He said: "Bristol Rovers was a tough place to go, it really was, they are a tough team to play against but their qualities just shone through.

"It was a really good performance, it certainly looked like a promotion performance to me."

Paul Warne's side have found success playing a variation on the three at the back system with wing backs. He has been chopping and changing these wing backs all season long and struggling to find a consistent pairing.

However, Edworthy believes that he may have found his starters, especially after the Bristol Rovers game.

He added: "I think away from home it works brilliantly, I think Ward and Sibley were brilliant at the weekend.

"They were advanced wingers, the football was excellent, the delivery early on in the game was magnificent to the likes of Gayle, Mendez-Laing and Barkhuizen or whoever it is."

Edworthy knows just what a promotion team looks like as he was a part of the Derby side that won promotion to the Premier League in the 2006/07 season. He made 77 appearances whilst at Pride Park and is now a club ambassador.