DERBY once again aim to end county rivals Matlock's recent hold on them at Haslams Lane tomorrow.

Matlock have won the last eight meetings between the two teams in all competitions, spannning three seasons.

They triumphed 30-3 at Cromford Meadows back in September and, this weekend, the sides lock horns again.

Derby are currently one place and one point above Matlock in the Midlands Two East table.

Chris Loeber's Matlock side have lost their last five league games but Derby coach Alan Dickens believes his team go into the match as underdogs.

"I don't think form or confidence will be a factor," said Dickens.

"Matlock have won the last seven or eight games against us, so I think we will go into the game as underdogs.

"They will start as favourites.

"There is only one point between us in the table, so it should be a good game.

"Derby v Matlock is always a bit of a tense affair. There is good local rivalry and, regardless of league position, it is always going to be tough.

"While I have been here, we have only lost once to them, so the recent record is not massively on my mind but I know a lot of the players who have been at the club for a while are well aware of it.

"Hopefully, we can turn that around."

While Derby went down 19-7 at Dunstablians last weekend, Matlock suffered a disappointing 37-18 home defeat against Leighton Buzzard.

"I was surprised to see they lost at home to Leighton Buzzard, so they will be looking to bounce back," said Dickens, who also has an eye on next Sunday's NLD Cup final.

"But we are looking to bounce back too, because we had a poor performance against Paviors a couple of weeks ago and didn't get the right result at Dunstablians last Saturday.

"We have four league games left and we are targeting at least two more wins, including this one."

Ben Marlow (knee) is set to return from injury for Derby, while Darren Hersey is available again after missing last weekend's game, but Ben Gatehouse (groin) remains a doubt.

Matlock duo Alex Powell and Chris Buckley, however, are unavailable.

Matlock coach Loeber said: "This is a big local derby and has always been one of the highlights of our season since we got promoted into this division.

"We looked at Derby as a target of where we wanted to get to.

"At first, they had the better of us but, more recently, we have had the better of them, which is great credit to the lads.

"So, any mystique there was surrounding them when we came into this league has gone now.

"We know that if we play properly, we can beat them."

Loeber is hoping his side can continue their impressive run against Derby.

"Neither side has had a great season but they have picked up a bit of late," he said.

"So, coming into the game, they are probably in better form than us.

"After a poor performance like the one we put in against Leighton Buzzard, this is an ideal game for us.

"It is a big game for both teams – and a big game for the county – so we know we have got to be up for it.

"Of course there is local pride but there are also league positions to play for.

"We are really looking forward to it."