CONVINCING AWAY WIN DESPITE LATE CONSOLATION FOR SWANS

DERBY County secured their third successive away win in the Championship as goals from Joe Ward and Lars-Jorgen Salvesen earned a 2-1 win against Swansea City on Tuesday night.

- By LEIGH CURTIS

The Rams ruined Vitor Matos' first game in charge of the Swans as Ward and Salvesen struck either side of the interval.

There was late anxiety for the visitors after Ethan Galbraith's sweet finish in the 90th minute but it was a deserved sixth win in seven games for the Rams.

Here are some of the talking points from the game:

On the surface, this result would have you believe that this was a tense and difficult night for the Rams but the truth was it was anything but.

As far as 2-1 scorelines go, this was as comfortable as it gets, even if Galbraith did quicken the pulses in stoppage time.

By that stage, the Rams had secured a lead through Ward and Salvesen and had really never looked in any danger of surrendering it either.

Indeed, as far as away performances go, this almost verged on perfection. The only aspect that could cause slight annoyance was that the Rams didn't win this game by a far greater margin, given the chances they created.

Patrick Agyemang and Ben Brereton Diaz could have scored but even when those opportunities came and went, it was not until stoppage time that Galbraith pierced an excellent defensive performance.

Overall, this was an excellent night in a game that, on the surface, looked a tricky proposition, given Swansea's new head coach Matos had only been appointed the day before.

Usually, you would expect a reaction and while Swansea dominated possession, Derby were well organised.

Their shape was terrific out of possession and they were strong on the counter.

Head coach John Eustace's game plan worked a treat for the visitors.