Johnny Russell’s second half goal kicked off Steve McClaren’s second spell in charge of Derby County in the perfect way as they defeated Leeds United 1-0 at the iPro Stadium.

The 26-year-old stepped off the substitutes bench to slam in a first time shot after the Whites had failed to deal with a corner.

The Rams had a bit of luck along the way as Leeds hit the woodwork on two occasions, whilst McClaren’s men also had to be a resilient best to claim their first home win in the Sky Bet Championship this season.

It also served as a sense of Déjà vu, as the circumstances – under McClaren, the opposition and the three points – was the case three years ago in the Derby manager’s first spell in charge of the club.

Dogged and determined in the second half, the Rams started brightly in Derbyshire and the first thing that was clear in the opening stages of the second McClaren era is that Derby were instantly far more direct with their passing as they took the game to a Leeds side that were one of the form teams in the second tier.

Though there were natural teething issues, it served to show what direction the 55-year-old is looking to take this team in as they bossed the opening 15 minutes and enjoyed plenty of the ball.

The hosts had shown plenty of endeavour with the ball, but were limited to long range openings by a stubborn and well-drilled Leeds backline that was marshalled by a centre back pairing of Kyle Bartley and Pontus Jansson.

Jacob Butterfield, twice, and Bradley Johnson both shot over, whilst Matěj Vydra registered the Rams’ best opportunity, shooting wide from inside the area after collecting a pass from Johnson.

Garry Monk’s side were far from out of it either, however, and came closest to breaking the deadlock with the last piece of action of the first 45 minutes.

Before that, Chris Wood headed well wide from Luke Ayling’s precise delivery from the right, but Derby were indebted to the crossbar as Bartley, unmarked, connected firmly with a inswinging corner that cannoned off the woodwork.

It proved crucial for the Rams. The second half saw Ikechi Anya depart prematurely after sustaining an injury following a crunching challenge from Bartley – giving Russell an opportunity to impress off the substitutes bench.

His impact came five minutes later. Johnson did the hard work by winning a corner from which Leeds could only half clear their lines as the ball dropped perfectly for Russell to hit first time into the back of the net, via a deflection.

The goal served to spark Monk’s side to life in a much more open second half as the contest’s pendulum swung one way, then the other.

Alex Mowatt shot wide from the edge of the area shortly after the hour mark, whilst at the other end, three minutes later, Will Hughes forced Robert Green into a fine save with a strike from distance.

The Rams thought they had doubled their lead too as Vydra appeared to have put the finishing touch to a swift counter attack, but the assistant referee on the near side was quick to raise his flag and chalk off the effort.

As the clock ticked down, a sense of nervousness, naturally, could be felt as Leeds sought an equaliser.

Set plays looked their most likely outlet as Kalvin Phillips, the Whites’ academy graduate, forced Scott Carson into a fine save with a free kick, whilst dead ball situations further out were tossed into the Derby box.

The pressure continued to heighten as Pablo Hernández, the former Swansea man, saw a delicate shot deflected narrowly behind and the hosts were indebted to the woodwork again in the dying stages as Marcus Antonsson’s bent an effort on to the post.

Derby’s doggedness, bravery and backbone saw them over the line in the end as they claimed a significant victory against one of the Championship’s in form outfits.

Derby County: Carson, Christie, Keogh (C), Pearce, Lowe; Johnson, Butterfield (Bryson, 75), Hughes (Baird, 84); Ince, Anya (Russell, 51), Vydra

Substitutes not used: Mitchell, Bent, Wilson, Weimann

Leeds United: Green, Ayling, Bartley (c), Jansson, Taylor, Phillips, O’Kane, Hernandez, Mowatt (Grimes, 80), Sacko (Roofe, 59), Wood (Antonsson, 82)

Substitutes not used: Silvestri, Coyle, Cooper, Vieira

Attendance: 31,170 (3,132 away supporters)