Derby travelled to Hartwell Lane, looking to build on their last-gasp win against Bridgnorth.
James Godfrey and Kristian Powell returned to the starting XV, while Ryan Cokayne returned to the bench.
Stoke kicked off on a dry sunny day, on a muddy pitch.
The game could not have started any worse for Derby, with a converted Stoke try after just 2 minutes.
6 minutes later, Derby had possession but spilt the ball. Stoke grabbed it and swept away to score again.
Derby needed to work their way into the game and they started to have more possession, but unfortunately, they were not able to create many opportunities. On too many occasions, this was due to an inability to keep hold of the ball.
Finally, 4 minutes before the break, Derby struck. A good move, saw the ball transferred down the line. Ethan Pearson made progress and the ball went to Ben Wilcox, who touched down.
Derby needed to build on this, but unfortunately lost possession from the kickoff, allowing Stoke to score their 3rd try.
This left the halftime score 17 – 5 in Stoke’s favour and Derby needing to improve.
Derby started the 2nd half well, without being able to trouble the try line.
56 minutes had elapsed when Derby took the ball into contact. Stoke counter-rucked and won the ball. Quick passing led to their bonus point try.
4 minutes later, Derby were again pressing and again the ball was lost. Stoke pounced and a converted try followed, leaving Derby 24 points behind.
8 minutes remained when Derby scored their 2nd try. They moved the ball down the line and McGrath Van Wyk’s pass put Kristian Powell over to score his 1st try for the side.
Was there time to score 2 more tries and gain a 4 try bonus point?
The answer was yes; there was time for 2 more tries. Unfortunately for Derby, they both went to Stoke! One of the tries was converted to complete a deserved victory for Stoke and a miserable afternoon for Derby.
Kenilworth arrive at Haslams next Saturday as Derby look to get back on track.
Come on Derby!
Report by: R. Bambra