Rotherham United and Derby County played out a 1-1 draw in a Club Friendly on Monday evening. The match took place at the New York Stadium on 4 August 2026, with both sides using the fixture to test their summer preparations. Szmodics opened the scoring before Ashley struck back for the visitors in the second half.
Szmodics converted a penalty in the ninth minute to give Rotherham the early lead. The home side controlled possession despite the goalless period that followed, with the visitors mounting more attacks but failing to find a way past the defence. By then the game had settled into a rhythm that would persist for the remainder of the first half.
Derby equalised through Ashley in the sixty-fifth minute, responding to the pressure that had been building since the break. The visitors had dominated possession overall but needed to be more clinical in front of goal. Things came to a head when Ashley finally found the net after a sustained period of pressure.
Both managers made several changes during the closing stages. Szmodics was substituted in the forty-sixth minute, while Cover, Johnston, Cann, Travis and Jellis all came on for their respective sides. The yellow cards for Clark, Ashley and an unnamed player in the eighty-sixth minute marked the end of a contest that had grown increasingly physical.
The statistics told a story of Derby's dominance without a winner. The visitors registered 124 attacks to Rotherham's 101 and held 64 per cent possession, yet the scoreline reflected the balance of the game. Many shots with one goal means chances went begging for both sides, and that is what this friendly ultimately showed.
The result leaves both teams with something to work on before the season begins. Rotherham had won two and drawn three of their previous five friendlies, while Derby's form was less consistent with wins against Mansfield and losses to Burton, Valencia and Freiburg. This point divides the two sides, and neither side will be entirely satisfied with the outcome.