Gorka Pintado strikes late on to earn the Swans an excellent point as they fight from two down at Derby

FANS VIEWS: Sheffieldjack

What a strange game! We did fantastically well to come from two down to earn a point. Did we deserve it?

On possesssion and completed passes - absolutely. In the second half I would be surprised if our possession wasn't over 60%.

But on clear chances Derby must be gutted. They were two up, hit the post twice with Dorus well beaten and missed several golden opportunities.

One very clear lesson - Serran was a perceived weakness that Derby exploited to the full. If we continue to use him, then unless Roberto can work some magic, he will cost us points. Both Derby's goals were down to his mistakes and he left us open on a few other occasions.

Until we scored our first goal we looked rather jaded, but after we scored one - and a bold double substitution (a quiet and disappointing Dyer and Leon who gave everything as usual, replaced by Pratley and the Bull) - I wasn't surprised that we equalised and we could even have won it with a bit of luck. Orlandi also came on for a tired Gomez who had played really well in the first half but faded in the second.

Some 400+ of the Jack army didn't stop singing - Roberto Martinez' barmy army - even when we we were two down. A point well earned in the end. Onwards and upwards!

Orlandi's Headband

Don't let the scoreline deceive you... this was a terrible performance from the Swans. How we didn't lose by 5 goals + is down to a combination of luck, poor finishing and alot of help from the referee!

It seemed from early on that Derby, like alot of teams lately, had done their homework well on us and new exactly what to expect and how to handle us... press us high up the field (especially our fullbacks) giving us as little time on the ball and little time and space to get the ball flowing.

For the Swans we really never got our game together... I for one am completely baffled to why Butler continues to get anywhere near the side. He offered us nothing all game... and Orlandi changed the game for us when he came on.

Derby hit the woodwork twice, had 2 good penalty shouts turned down and missed 2 open goals and fluffed a couple more good chances. The funny thing is, after we scadged the equalizer both sides had chances to go on and win the game!

And this isn't a knee jerk reaction...ive had a good 3 hour car journey on my own to mull over the performance. And to be honest we haven't really played too well for a good few games now.

Anyway...here's my playing ratings:

DORUS - 7 - Made a couple of excellent key saves to keep us in the game, but could maybe have held the free kick for their first goal. He also scares the hell out of me with crosses and punching.

TATE - 5 - Distribution was very poor today, didnt really get forward that often. And didnt look too comfortable against his winger

WILLIAMS - 7 - Made some key tackles and covered for Serran well

SERRAN - 4 - Looked really really bad tonight...i still have faith he could be a good player though. Think he would do better playing under Monk's leadership which is certainly missing from the back 4 at the moment

RANGEL - 6 - Got beaten often by his winger and looked tired, his distribution wasn't great either. But he wasnt helped by Dyer's lack of movement

DYER - 3 - Terrible terrible performance... his movement, touch and passing was that of park football

BUTLER - 6 - Tries his best but is league 1 standard tops... offers very little

BRITTON - 6 - Looked tired, jaded and not his usual self tonight

ALLEN - 7.5 - Was the talisman controlling the midfield

GOMEZ - 6.5 - Won alot of free kicks, and had a couple of nice forward runs. He seemed singled out by Derby as our main supply to goal and was always crowded out.

SCOTLAND - 6 - As with Gomez, he was marked so tight he never really got in the game. Maybe tried too hard sometimes to create something out of nothing when a pass may have been a better option

SUBS

PRATLEY - 7 - Added some more steel and composure to the midfield

PINTADO - 7 - Didnt look totally match fit or match sharp but made some good runs and of course grabbed the vital goal.

ORLANDI - 8 - Was so frustrating to see him warming up for so long and not being brought on for the ineffectual Butler. But when he did come on he didnt disappoint. He brought width the the side that had be lacking so much. He looked composed and skillful in possession and faster than i remember. It was Orlandi's emergence that brought on the Swans resurgence. Got to start on Saturday.

PAPER REPORT: Blair Wood - Western Mail

GORKA PINTADO’S late strike rescued the unlikeliest of points for Swansea City as they survived a shambolic defensive display against Derby.

The Spanish super-sub was on hand to drill home an 87th minute equaliser at Pride Park as the Swans came back from a two-goal deficit in dramatic fashion.

But their point still owed far more to Derby’s wasteful finishing than El Toro’s sublime strike.

Taking home points they don’t deserve is not a trait you normally associate with Roberto Martinez's talented squad. But, having produced one of their worst performances in the Championship, the Swans should certainly feel very lucky this morning.

Those in the club will point out you earn your luck in this division. And, having been cruelly denied the points their performances deserved on numerous occasions in the past, maybe they deserve a bit of good fortune.

But for the second game running this was a performance well-below the high standards the club have set this season. They were often second best in midfield and the back four looked a shadow of the defence that recently secured four successive clean sheets.

As is the norm Swansea’s fast and free-flowing football was still very easy on the eye at times. But the key to their recent success has been building their attacks on a solid foundation at the back and, without Garry Monk, that simply wasn’t there last night.

Albert Serran, deputising for the injured skipper, struggled all night to contain the lively duo of Chris Porter and Rob Hulse.

And, considering the number of chances they had, it’s amazing the hosts only had Porter's brace to show for their dominance on the night.

After a below-par performance at the weekend, Swansea were clearly looking to make a positive start and take the game to their hosts. But it wasn’t long before Derby were looking the more dangerous of the two teams, with the lively Steve Davies forcing a good save from Dorus de Vries after 12 minutes.

It was a warning Martinez’s men didn’t heed and the Rams soon took the lead just two minutes later.

Davies was involved again, winning a free-kick on the edge of the Swans box, and, when de Vries was only able to parry Robbie Savage’s low effort, Porter was the first to react and cooly slotted home the rebound.

It was a tough pill for the Welshmen to swallow so early in the game. And Derby hadn’t exactly worked hard for their lead.

The returning Joe Allen, comfortably Swansea’s best player early on, then tried to kick-start the visitors.

And it nearly worked as his mazy run and low cross caused chaos in the Rams box before Stephen Bywater gathered the ball at the second attempt.

But Derby had obviously done their homework and, as unattractive as their route one approach was, it was certainly proving effective.

Swansea were struggling to deal with any high balls at the back and, with the midfield struggling for time on the ball, their attacking game wasn’t much better.

Nigel Clough’s back-to-basics tactics almost worked again in the 21st minute as Swansea’s failure to deal with a hopeful ball forward eventually saw Hulse slotting the ball home.

Fortunately for Martinez and his men the striker’s celebrations were brought to an abrupt halt by the linesman’s flag.

Swansea gradually grew into the game and, as half-time approached, they were enjoying a sizeable share of possession.

But, with chances few and far between, they struggled to test Bywater and the hosts’ lead was looking fairly comfortable.

Derby could even have found themselves 2-0 up at the break as another long-ball move almost bore fruit in the 42nd minute.

Porter made the most of some hesitant defending and looped the ball over the onrushing de Vries on his way to the byline but, with the Dutchman stranded, he failed to find Hulse in the box and Swansea were able to clear.

Clough didn’t have to wait too long into the second half to get the second-goal security he wanted.

And once again the Swans brought about their own downfall as a simple hack forward undid the back four and, having easily beaten Serran for pace, Porter smashed the ball past de Vries and gave the Swans a mountain to climb.

But Swansea aren’t targeting back-to-back promotions for nothing. And, within 10 minutes, it became clear all was not lost.

The key to getting anything out of the game was halving the deficit as soon as possible.

And, through a rare stroke of fortune, they got the goal they needed in the 55th minute.

This time it was the Derby defence guilty of going to sleep as Jordi Gomez whipped in a dangerous free-kick from the right.

The ball eventually came to Angel Rangel and, with the help of a wicked deflection from Davies, the Spaniard’s volley had got his team back in the game.

Swansea immediately looked like an entirely different team going forwards and there was a clear spring in their step as two quickfire efforts from Jason Scotland reminded Derby the game was now far from over.

But, with the same defensive frailties creeping in every time Clough’s men broke forwards, it was anyone’s guess who would get the game’s next goal.

A rampaging run from Gary Teale almost restored the hosts’ two-goal cushion in the 69th minute.

But, with de Vries beaten, Swansea were lucky to see the midfielder’s low drive bounce back off the upright and out to safety. That was the cue for Derby to reassert their domination on the game.

And, despite the arrival of fresh legs in the form of Pintado and Pratley, the Swans were on the back-foot once again.

Wave after wave of attack had Ashley Williams and Co desperately hanging on. And when Davies beat de Vries with 10 minutes to go, the post was once again their saviour.

But the Rams were made to pay for their wastefulness with just three minutes to go as Swansea completed their miracle recovery. Scotland, who until then had had a quiet night, worked his magic in the box before laying on the perfect cross for Pintado to drill the ball past Bywater and level the scores.

Photo: Action Images

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