Tom Lawrence - The Rise.

Well, well, well.

Here we are - discussing Tom Lawrence again.

A stupid error that could have costed Tom Lawrence everything he had - his career, his financial stability, his home.

But could it have been a huge wake up call for him?

Lawrence has played in 14 games so far this season - 7 games before the drink driving incident, and 7 games after that fateful night. The run of 7 fixtures before the incident were against decent opposition; Huddersfield (A), Swansea (H), Stoke (A), Bristol City (H), West Brom (H), Brentford (A) and Cardiff (H). He missed the Leeds (A) game due to suspension - it's so rare to see a player suspended this soon into the season - then was dropped for the game against Birmingham at home just four days after he was arrested. He came back into the fold for the following seven games since; Barnsley (A), Luton Town (H), Charlton (A), Wigan (H), Hull (A), Middlesbrough (H) and Nottingham Forest (A). It hasn't been the easiest of starts to the season for Derby as a club, and this only inflicted more damage to Derby's dignity and reputation - leaving a bitter dent in the club's image.

As much as I strongly believe, personally, that a footballer's personal life should not affect their performances on the pitch; they are paid thousands a week, they need to continue performing to that standard. But in some circumstances, the issues going on at home is just too substantial to ignore as they will have a huge impact on anybody's mental wellbeing. Someone's salary does not define their mental resilience.

I think everyone knows by now that Tom Lawrence is my beloved player at Derby, and as much as I was disappointed by his decisions and actions, I still believed that he would show his worth on the pitch and win back that belief from the fans and to give something invaluable back to everyone who goes to games week in, week out.

Obviously, there has been a lot of occurrences in his personal life such as the sorrowful passing of his mother to sarcoma in early May, just before the play-offs; he still played all three play-off fixtures, which is deeply commendable, and with her funeral coming just days after beating Leeds in the reverse fixture of the play-off semi finals - it would have been a very challenging time for Tom himself. However, in this time, from his mother's diagnosis to her passing, he has not voluntarily missed any training (apart from injuries/international duty), and he has not missed matches. He only missed out on a signing session and the awards ceremony at the end of last season. That shows just how hard working he is as a man.

But, all in all, I think it is extremely understanding that he would have found it difficult to focus and prioritise his career. The huge pressure on his shoulders from the unforgiving fans - I know that a lot of fans will admit that they were harsh on him - would have not made this any easier for him. Disorientated and having lost the focal point of his career, he struggled and, as stated in court, "Lawrence has become quite dependent on alcohol since the death of his mother and to cope with confidence issues."

I don't know about you, but I think that's pretty heartbreaking - to know that the pressure we, as fans, piled onto him to succeed was a factor in him turning to drink.

He played seven games, before being arrested for drink driving on the night of the 24th September - and he was putting in pretty moderate performances, bar that Monday night against Huddersfield. In these 7 games, he played a total of 612 minutes, and scored twice although he bagged no assists; meaning a goal contribution every 306 minutes. But he scored both of these goals in the first game so the six games after that, he scored none and assisted none. He completed 81.5% of his passes, which is a reasonably good average figure, and of his completed passes, 21.3% of them were forward passes, forcing play up the field. He completed only 8.9% of his crosses, a disappointing figure considering he was playing on the wing in this run of fixtures and across the 7 games, he had an average of just one key pass per game - apart from the Huddersfield game, he struggled to get stuck into the side, into the game itself. He had a 38.1% tackle success rate, and averaged a single interception per game - defensive duties are still present in his role, and he carried them out poorly - he had a terrible disciplinary form too, picking up five yellow cards in the seven games, resulting in a suspension ahead of the team's trip to Leeds.

Then the incident occurred, and he received a huge wake up call. No wages for six weeks. Tons of unpaid work. A court date set.

In the seven games played, the 630 minutes played, since (bar Preston North End at home), Tom Lawrence has transformed his game, thanks to Phillip Cocu and Liam Rosenior's guidance. He completed 81.1% of his passes, which is still a good figure considering we had some abhorrent games in this run of 7 games, and he completed so much more of his crosses; 30.9% of them in fact. Every game, he played an average of 1.6 key passes, and 23.7% of his passes were forward passes, a vast improvement in his attacking play. Although disappointingly losing his standards in intercepting the play, having an average of 0.4 interceptions per game, it isn't a crucial aspect to Cocu's and Derby's transformed look. His defensive duties has improved massively too, winning 46.7% of his tackles and consistently tracking back regularly in the brand new diamond formation, where he is the key player. His disciplinary record has improved a lot too since, picking up just a single yellow card - against Nottingham Forest which is very acceptable in my books - and most importantly, he has scored three goals and gotten himself an assist too, meaning a goal contribution every 157.5 minutes - he has made himself twice the player he was before the drink driving incident.

Here are the statistics in full so you can take comparisons -

Key: Before - After

Successful passes:

81.5% - 81.1%

Forward passes:

21.3% - 23.7%

Successful crosses:

8.9% - 30.9%

Key passes:

1 - 1.6

Interceptions:

1 - 0.4

Tackle success:

38.1% - 46.7%

Yellow cards:

5 - 1

Goals (assists):

2 (0) - 3 (1)

Goal contribution:

Every 302 mins - Every 157.5 mins

All statistics taken from Derby County's website

The incident might have been a blessing in disguise as he is twice the player he was before, he is so much more effective in our attacking play, he creates dangerous and threatening counter attacks, he is using his pace with increased damage to the opposition's midfield and defence, and he is just a joy to watch now.

Let's not forget that he is on course to his best season for Derby County yet, having joined us in 2017 under Gary Rowett. In his first season, he hit 6 goals and got 8 assists within 44 appearances, then in the following season under Frank Lampard, he did moderately better, scoring 7 goals but getting 5 assists in 39 appearances. However, he has already hit 5 goals for this season in just 15 appearances, and hopefully will be bagging so much more with the fresh look of a diamond formation.

Now, Tom is reportedly receiving counselling and there is huge support from Derby County, and fans have spoken about how happier he seems now when they meet him, he's more relaxed and comfortable around fans. It's brilliant to know that a footballer is being supported and kept on the right path by his club - a practice that is so widely needed for vulnerable footballers. He has showed remorse for his actions, and is willing to pay for them - that is just as much as we can ask for from him.

Long may his rise continue - for the record, I am bloody proud of him.

"As long as I work hard and help the team, that is what I am aiming for." - Tom Lawrence