This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk’ series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Derby County moved to the bottom of the Championship table for the first time this season on Saturday following a 1-0 defeat to Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.

The Rams’ loss and Luton Town’s first win under Matt Bloomfield sent John Eustace’s side to the foot of the second tier, after losing three straight league games, picking up just two points in their last 12 matches.

It’s been a frustrating season for the East Midlands outfit, and it currently looks as though the team will suffer relegation straight back to League One unless there is a radical change in form, starting against Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.

Eustace will be hoping that he can get one over his former team after leaving them for Derby just a few weeks ago, but he will need his players to show more endeavour and quality to help get him that first win in charge.

Kayden Jackson named in Derby player debate

Supporters were told by CEO, Stephen Pearce, in March 2024 that the club would have a budget that was going to let them compete in the Championship this season, but those that have arrived in DE24 over the course of the campaign have failed to impress for the most part.

Goals have been hard to come by and the Rams have lacked a cutting edge constantly in the final third, something that will cost them their second tier status if they do not find a fix in their remaining 11 games.

Football League World has asked their Derby Fan Pundit, Shaun Woodward, which one player has surprised him most this season, either positively or negatively.

He told FLW: “I could probably sit here and talk for ages about sadly the players that have surprised me in a negative way this season, so many of them have underperformed. None of them have reached the heights that we thought they would do.

“The likes of Ben Osborn coming in, major flop. Nathaniel Mendez-Laing this season, his stats are just horrific from where they were last year. We could probably go through most of our frontline if I’m honest and just say none of them have performed to a level that we need to stay in this league.

“But for me, the one I would probably highlight is Kayden Jackson. He came in and he started the season really well. I think he’s got three goals in his first five games in all competitions and since then I don’t know what’s happened to the boy, but it’s like he has just fallen off a cliff with his form and his confidence.

“Everything he was doing in the first five games he has stopped doing. He’s not positive, he doesn’t try and beat a man, he doesn’t look to get a shot off. Everything that he did in his first five games, he stopped doing for whatever reason.”

Shaun continued: “I know the team has been struggling, but he has not rolled his sleeves up and really tried to pull us out of this mess. I think he’s got one goal in his last 30 odd games, which is just woeful for a player that’s supposed to be one of our attacking stars. He’s just majorly underperformed.

“He looks like he’s nowhere near the levels we need in the Championship, and I think it is highlighted even more because he had a good start. He’s shown nothing since. People were talking about him potentially going on to get 15/20 goals this season, which is laughable now when you think about it.

“I think he’s got four in all competitions, and three of those came at the beginning. So I’ve been really, really disappointed with Jackson. I don’t really want to just pick him out because I think a number of them have majorly underperformed.

“But sadly, I’ve got to pick one and he’s probably the one that stands out for me above all the others.”

Jackson’s form has been notably poor for Derby

While there are a number of players that have not pulled their weight for the Rams this season, Jackson has been particularly disappointing, especially after his explosive start to life in black-and-white.

A header against Luton in December was the winger’s most recent goal for Derby, and he has not looked a threat since then.

He has been played on the wing, up front and as a wing-back, with neither Paul Warne nor Eustace being able to work out which position he is best suited to.

His record at Ipswich Town in the Championship and in his final three League One seasons was not impressive, and this lack of threat in front of goal has followed him to the East Midlands with no end in sight to this new drought.

If the Rams do not see an improvement from Jackson before the end of the campaign, then he may just find himself as another on their way out of Pride Park in what looks to be a huge summer rebuild at Derby.

The Crimson Tide softball team got off to a slow start but has improved, recently setting a program record by winning six games in a row via the run rule. With SEC play starting in two weeks, the team needs to improve in several areas.

Alabama came into the season ranked No. 10 in the nation, but due to a rocky 5-5 record in its first 10 games, it has dropped to No. 22.

The defense needs to improve. With a .960 fielding percentage, the Crimson Tide currently has the 136th-ranked fielding percentage in the country and has committed 20 errors this season.

“Putting all the components of the game together — pitching, defense and hitting — will just make us a complete team,” outfielder Kristen White said. “We have a lot to work on but will get it together.”

The pitching also needs to improve. The team is ranked 233rd in college softball with 6.63 hits allowed per game, near the bottom of the SEC. It is also ranked 78th in the country in WHIP with a 1.37, showing that the team allows too many runners to get on base.

“The defense needs to be better all around. You cannot give up two to three errors a game, and you have to eliminate walking, as many hitters are on the mound,” head coach Patrick Murphy said.

Pitcher Jocelyn Briski needs to get off to a hot start on the mound heading into SEC play to put the Crimson Tide in a good spot. Through 11 games and seven starts, she holds a 3-5 record and currently has a 3.00 ERA, with 41 strikeouts to 21 walks across 42 innings pitched.

Pitcher Catelyn Riley, who celebrated her Senior Day on Saturday, has been a big part of the pitching staff and needs to keep it going in SEC play. Through 11 games and seven starts this season, she has a 5-1 record, a 2.14 ERA, and 18 strikeouts to 13 walks in 36 innings pitched.

Riley said the team needs to work on “Cleaning up the back-to-backs and freebies both on defense and as pitchers.”

The top three hitters in the lineup, Audrey Vandagriff, Larissa Preuitt and Alex Pupillio, must set the tone early and often in conference play. Preuitt currently has the third-highest batting average on the team at .400. Vandagriff has the highest at .462.

Vandagriff and Preuitt also lead the team in hits with 24 and 22, respectively.

A big part of the Crimson Tide’s offense has been the hot start infielder Kali Hevilin has gotten off to. She is hitting .354 with six home runs, 14 RBIs and a 1.175 OPS. If she can keep that going in SEC play, that will be a big boost for the Crimson Tide in the middle of the lineup.

The first thing to note though, are two things that Ipswich Borough Council (IBC) can’t do, but is frequently asked to do.

The first request is for IBC to reduce the rents of commercial properties. This is something that IBC has little or no control over.

IBC can only set rents for the properties we own and most properties in the town centre are owned by private landlords. They are free to charge rent at whatever level they want, and the council cannot tell them what to charge.

The second request is to lower business rates. The level of business rates is not something the council has any control over.

They are set nationally by the government. However, because the council is responsible for collecting the money and businesses receive bills from IBC, many people think we set the rates too.

Last Autumn, the Labour government set out a pathway to permanently lower tax rates on the high street.

This is based on an intention to introduce lower rates for retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties with a rateable value (RV) under £500,000 from April 2026.

This would be financially sustainably by charging a higher rate on all properties with RV of £500,000 and above, which includes the majority of large distribution warehouses such as those used by the online giants.

Until 2026, 250,000 RHL premises will see 40% relief off their bills next year.

The new RHL tax rates will provide meaningful support to RHL businesses of all sizes in recognition of the role they play in attracting footfall to the high-street.

A government discussion paper has also been published to engage with businesses months on how to further reform the system outside of RHL.

Another common question asked is: who allows businesses that are clearly money laundering enterprises to operate in the town centre? This is not an IBC responsibility. Suspicions of Money Laundering should be reported to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040.

Any suspected money laundering activity linked to council-owned premises or businesses in the town centre can be referred to the council’s Corporate Fraud Service for investigation.

The Corporate Fraud Service is contactable at fraud@ipswich.gov.uk. Such investigations are supported by the National Crime Agency and other relevant law enforcement agencies.

Another common question is: why don’t you stop more vape shops or American Candy Stores opening?

The answer? Once planning permission has been granted for a shop, other shops can come along and claim the same rights at the same shop.

Everyone hates to see litter. IBC puts a lot of effort into picking up litter in the town centre. I think the town centre is looking better for that effort.

The town centre team which operates seven days a week, 365 days a year, plus 24 hr call out. Six team members start at 5.30am and put in a shift to clean the town for the day ahead. A smaller shift replaces them in the early afternoon and keeps on top of litter during the day.Ipswich Town-themed bins are placed across the town (Image: Neil MacDonald)

Certain areas of the town centre are pressure washed monthly. A scrub deck on one of the small sweepers completes more regular pavement cleaning. Disinfectant is liberally applied in places where people urinate, such as the alleyway next to the Conservative Club.

ITFC-themed bins put in after the Premier League return look great. The aim is to boost recycling and keeping the town clean.

There’s no magic bullet for Britain’s high streets. Little by little, we can bring life back into Ipswich town centre.