This is Derbyshire -- CHRIS Martin is hoping to create another memorable FA Cup moment in his career against Chelsea this weekend. Martin's first ever senior goal came in the competition, in a fourth round replay for Norwich City against Blackpool in February 2007. He came off the bench to clinch a 3-2 extra-time victory for the Canaries – to set up a showdown with, coincidentally, Chelsea. The striker, a teenager at the time, also came on as a substitute against Jose Mourinho's side, who triumphed 4-0 and went on to lift the cup. Martin, who also faced Chelsea in the Premier League in August 2011 when Norwich went down 3-1 at Stamford Bridge, enjoyed another FA Cup landmark occasion in 2009. He hit his first senior hat-trick as the Canaries – in League One at the time – thrashed non-League minnows Paulton 7-0 in the first round proper. The front man ended up with four in the match and it remained his only treble until last month, when he netted three times for the Rams in a 5-1 drubbing of Blackpool. Tomorrow, Martin and his Derby team-mates will be aiming to cause an upset against Mourinho's Premier League big-hitters at the iPro Stadium (2.15pm). "The FA Cup has produced special memories for players and fans over the years and, hopefully, we can be a part of one of them," said Martin. "I scored my first career hat-trick in the competition and although it was against the lowest-ranked team left in it, it was still a special moment for me. "Also, my first ever senior goal came in the FA Cup against Blackpool, so the competition holds a few good memories for me. Hopefully, that will continue." Martin is Derby's leading scorer this season with 15 goals to his name. "It would be very nice to add to my tally against Chelsea in the FA Cup but I really want to be contributing to winning games and getting points in the league," he said. "Obviously, it's always nice to score but you want to be doing it as part of a winning side. That would be even more special if I could do that." Seven-time FA Cup winners Chelsea are currently third in the Premier League, only a couple of points behind leaders Arsenal. Derby are fourth in the Championship – and Martin is relishing a break from the gruelling league programme. "It will be a fun test and I think everyone is looking at it as a bit of excitement," he said. "There's no pressure on us and that would work in our favour. We've seen it before in previous cup ties. "The shackles are off. We've not got to worry about getting points on the board or anything like that. "It's a game against a massive team, which we're excited about." Derby have been on fine form of late, going on a nine-game unbeaten run which featured eight wins, before the 1-0 home defeat to Wigan Athletic on New Year's Day. Martin feels the Rams are capable of giving Chelsea something to think about. "We want to see where we're at against one of the best teams in Europe and see whether we can give them a game," he said. "We'll try to play good, attacking, free-flowing football like we have been doing and see where it takes us. "I think the way we play can cause anybody problems, if we get it right. "On the flip side, we need to stop them playing as well, which we could find difficult. "But if we play as well as we have been doing, I think we'll have a bit of success. "Whether you win the game or not is another matter. Hopefully, we can go out there and show everyone what we're all about – and how good a footballing side we are. "I think it will be a good spectacle. We were frustrated with the game against Wigan. There wasn't much football being played but, hopefully, it will be a different story against Chelsea. "I've played against Chelsea a couple of times and I know what formidable opposition they can be," he added. "They've got some great players and also a great manager. "They've got an unbelievable squad and they rotate it all the time. "So there's no such thing as a 'second string' team for them, really, because they change it around so often. "But we're going to enjoy the occasion. Hopefully, the fans will enjoy it too and we can give them something to cheer about."
Reported by This is 14 hours ago.
This is Derbyshire -- CHRIS Martin is hoping to create another memorable FA Cup moment in his career against Chelsea this weekend. Martin's first ever senior goal came in the competition, in a fourth round replay for Norwich City against Blackpool in February 2007. He came off the bench to clinch a 3-2 extra-time victory for the Canaries – to set up a showdown with, coincidentally, Chelsea. The striker, a teenager at the time, also came on as a substitute against Jose Mourinho's side, who triumphed 4-0 and went on to lift the cup. Martin, who also faced Chelsea in the Premier League in August 2011 when Norwich went down 3-1 at Stamford Bridge, enjoyed another FA Cup landmark occasion in 2009. He hit his first senior hat-trick as the Canaries – in League One at the time – thrashed non-League minnows Paulton 7-0 in the first round proper. The front man ended up with four in the match and it remained his only treble until last month, when he netted three times for the Rams in a 5-1 drubbing of Blackpool. Tomorrow, Martin and his Derby team-mates will be aiming to cause an upset against Mourinho's Premier League big-hitters at the iPro Stadium (2.15pm). "The FA Cup has produced special memories for players and fans over the years and, hopefully, we can be a part of one of them," said Martin. "I scored my first career hat-trick in the competition and although it was against the lowest-ranked team left in it, it was still a special moment for me. "Also, my first ever senior goal came in the FA Cup against Blackpool, so the competition holds a few good memories for me. Hopefully, that will continue." Martin is Derby's leading scorer this season with 15 goals to his name. "It would be very nice to add to my tally against Chelsea in the FA Cup but I really want to be contributing to winning games and getting points in the league," he said. "Obviously, it's always nice to score but you want to be doing it as part of a winning side. That would be even more special if I could do that." Seven-time FA Cup winners Chelsea are currently third in the Premier League, only a couple of points behind leaders Arsenal. Derby are fourth in the Championship – and Martin is relishing a break from the gruelling league programme. "It will be a fun test and I think everyone is looking at it as a bit of excitement," he said. "There's no pressure on us and that would work in our favour. We've seen it before in previous cup ties. "The shackles are off. We've not got to worry about getting points on the board or anything like that. "It's a game against a massive team, which we're excited about." Derby have been on fine form of late, going on a nine-game unbeaten run which featured eight wins, before the 1-0 home defeat to Wigan Athletic on New Year's Day. Martin feels the Rams are capable of giving Chelsea something to think about. "We want to see where we're at against one of the best teams in Europe and see whether we can give them a game," he said. "We'll try to play good, attacking, free-flowing football like we have been doing and see where it takes us. "I think the way we play can cause anybody problems, if we get it right. "On the flip side, we need to stop them playing as well, which we could find difficult. "But if we play as well as we have been doing, I think we'll have a bit of success. "Whether you win the game or not is another matter. Hopefully, we can go out there and show everyone what we're all about – and how good a footballing side we are. "I think it will be a good spectacle. We were frustrated with the game against Wigan. There wasn't much football being played but, hopefully, it will be a different story against Chelsea. "I've played against Chelsea a couple of times and I know what formidable opposition they can be," he added. "They've got some great players and also a great manager. "They've got an unbelievable squad and they rotate it all the time. "So there's no such thing as a 'second string' team for them, really, because they change it around so often. "But we're going to enjoy the occasion. Hopefully, the fans will enjoy it too and we can give them something to cheer about."
Reported by This is 14 hours ago.