Tom Ince hits winner as Derby fight back to shock West Bromwich Albion

Steve McClaren praised his Derby side’s battling character after they knocked West Bromwich Albion out of the FA Cup.

Matt Phillips opened the scoring for the home side but Darren Bent and Tom Ince struck inside four second-half minutes to record the Rams’ first FA Cup victory over a higher-tier side since 1986 and their first triumph over a Premier League team for eight years.

McClaren’s side have lost once in their past 12 games and are seventh in the Championship. Their manager was delighted with their efforts here. He said: “You’ve got to perform to come here and win. You’ve got to fight and show character and you’ve got to stand up, and the team did that. It was a fantastic reaction after Monday [a 3-0 defeat at Norwich].

“That’s what we asked for in terms of performance. There were some heroic performances out there. The performance, fight and character was excellent and the bonus was the result.”

Ince scored his ninth goal of the season when he deceived the West Brom goalkeeper, Boaz Myhill, with a free-kick and McClaren urged the winger to maintain his form. “He has got to keep that going. It is consistency, it is doing it week in and week out, day in and day out, and being relentless, just keep going, keep going,” he said.

“That is what he has done. He has got great ability and can finish and score. I don’t tell him anything we don’t tell other players. Maybe the response is better.

“We just allow him to go and play and he does the work as well, up and down, he has got great fitness and he should be a Premier League player.”

The visitors were the more energetic but lacked the quality in the final third despite some snappy buildup. They dictated the play, but after 35 minutes Albion opened the scoring. James McClean blocked Richard Keogh’s clearance and the ball fell for Phillips 25 yards out. The winger still had plenty to do, and he advanced to drive a low effort past Scott Carson from the edge of the penalty area.

Derby turned the game on its head early in the second half through Bent and Ince. First Bent, who had been quiet until that point, was granted too much time on the edge of the area to lash past Myhill from 20 yards after 51 minutes before Ince won it.

Albion’s players expected a cross from a free-kick that was positioned slightly to the right. Instead, Ince caught Myhill cold, aiming for the near post, and the keeper did not move.

Craig Dawson hit a post for Albion but the home side never recovered from falling behind. Carson tipped Salomón Rondón’s injury-time header over as Albion were dumped out of the FA Cup by a Championship side for the second successive season, following defeat to Reading last year.

Tony Pulis, the West Brom manager, said: “I didn’t see it coming, even after they scored their goals. The two goals are disappointing. I still thought we did enough to not get beat.

“We battered them at times. We got in 60 crosses, had nearly 30 shots. I’m not sure how many were on target. All the stats show we’ve had a right go.

“In cup football you need the breaks and a bit of luck. Derby defended heroically, you can’t take that away from them. We’re really disappointed because the players have played well and given it everything.”