Red cards and a red-blooded ruckus marked a hot afternoon when tempers boiled over as Derby undermined their challenge for automatic promotion with a defeat that left them with only two points from their past three games and off the top of the Championship.

The result was not settled until the 89th minute when, under intense Ipswich pressure, James McEveley brought down substitute Danny Haynes, who picked himself up and smashed home the resulting penalty.

The tenor of the match had changed just before the half-hour when Derby were leading by Matt Oakley's goal scored against the run of play. At an Ipswich corner, Alex Bruce and Derby goalkeeper Stephen Bywater squared up and both were sent off. They scuffled as they walked off, provoking a mêlée. Derby's manager, Billy Davies, also lost his cool, and had to watch the rest of the match from the stand.

"I have been sent to the stands for, I believe, entering the field of play," Davies fumed. "You see the inconsistency in it when you see Mr Wenger and Mr Mourinho running 45 yards on to the field and nothing happening. Yellow cards were in order for Bruce and Bywater. The red cards sparked a frenzy of activity where yellow cards would have diffused the situation."

Haynes came on with 11 minutes remaining to replace Francis Jeffers, who had been lively throughout and finally forced an equaliser after 69 minutes, slotting the ball home after being put through by Fabian Wilnis.

But while he and his strike partner Jonathan Walters both went close for Ipswich, the visitors countered and took the lead in the ninth minute. Steve Howard reached a long punt forward to nod down to Oakley, who drove in a fine volley from 25 yards.

As a result of the mêlée Derby sacrificed Craig Fagan to bring on the substitute goalkeeper Lee Grant. The pressure built on his goal with Jeffers equalising and Haynes finally settling an unhappy day for Derby.

Kieran Daley (Independent)