Clough at loss as Derby hit rock bottom

Nigel Clough has admitted that Derby's 4-1 home defeat by Scunthorpe represented a low point for his team and underlined the need to bring in new players. The visitors took a two-goal first-half lead thanks to strikes from Gary Hooper and Garry Thompson, but Kris Commons' deflected effort gave the Rams hope of a second-half comeback. Thompson then curled in from the edge of the area and Jonathan Forte bundled home a loose ball to extend Scunthorpe's lead.

Clough said: "This is as low as we have been for a long time. We just don't seem to have the character out there to get back in the game. Whether it is too much for some of them I am not sure. The loan signings [Nicky Hunt and Lee Johnson] did well. We saw the benefit of fresh people coming in who haven't been part of the losing."

Cardiff drew 1-1 with Blackpool, although the Bluebirds were hanging on in the second half. Mark Hudson gave the hosts a ninth-minute lead but they were overrun after the interval following Charlie Adam's equaliser.

Manager Dave Jones praised his side's spirit after an outbreak of illness at the club. "Sometimes in the second half we had to hang on but it was a hard-earned draw considering the fitness of some of our players," he said.

Coventry manager Chris Coleman was not happy with his side after a 3-1 win over Barnsley at the Ricoh Arena. "That's probably the worst we've played for six weeks," he said.