Derby - 0 Fulham - 1: The undersoil heating did its job admirably. The players, on the other hand, proved singularly incapable of providing a numbed crowd with many excuses to warm their hands on a bitterly cold night.
An own goal by Horacio Carbonari 20 minutes from the end settled a game of nervy ineptitude. The Argentinian defender turned a low cross into his net while under no pressure at all.
Though Fulham will welcome the points, their failure to score on their own account for the fifth time in seven games will have made it a long journey home for manager Jean Tigana.
The contrast in styles was marked. At times Fulham's neat, intelligent passing and impressive movement looked capable of pulling Derby apart, but as so often this season Tigana's team seemed unable to find the final incisive ball.
But Fulham's passing, though increasingly ragged, still created the odd opportunity. The best fell to Steve Marlet from Steve Finnan's low cross, but the £11.5 million man's shot from eight yards was too close to Poom.
With half an hour to go both managers brought on fresh strikers, to little effect. Marlet got his feet tangled up when Sean Davis's cross reached him and Christie was a yard short of turning in Fabrizio Ravanelli's knock-down.
But with the crowd starting to think longingly of home and other warm places, Finnan broke again down the right, slid in a cross, and Carbonari succeeded where Marlet had failed, sliding the ball past his goalkeeper.
Guardian Service
DERBY: Poom, Riggott, Carbonari (Boertien 87), Higginbotham, Grenet, Ducrocq (Bolder 64), Zavagno, Powell, Carbone (Burton 84), Ravanelli, Christie. Subs Not Used: Grant, Elliott. Booked: Carbonari.
FULHAM: Van der Sar, Brevett, Melville, Goma, Knight, Malbranque, Collins, Davis, Finnan, Marlet, Hayles (Saha 65). Subs Not Used: Taylor, Ouaddou, Stolcers, Harley. Booked: Hayles, Davis. Goals: Carbonari 72 og.
Referee: B Knight (Orpington)
