CHIEF Executive Sam Rush said Derby County re-emerged as a credible force in English football last season.
His statement carried much weight at the end of a memorable campaign.
Third place in the Championship was the club's highest finish in seven years but their promotion dream was shattered in cruel fashion in the play-off final at Wembley.
The image of Bobby Zamora's late strike ripping into the net to give Queens Park Rangers an undeserved victory remains vivid.
But disappointment, acute as it was, did not hide the fact that progress – significant progress – had been made by the Rams.
The players set a new benchmark for themselves.
The Championship's top scorers played a style of football fans appreciated and enjoyed.
The buzz was back and the task now is to build on the foundations and not let the moment slip away.
For the first time in many a year there is genuine expectation of what can be achieved in the months ahead.
Not since the start of the 2002-03 season have Derby been hotly tipped to win promotion.
They are joint favourites to go up with some bookmakers, along with Cardiff City and Wigan Athletic, and odds-on to finish as the top Midlands club.
Season ticket sales are on the increase and people are talking about Derby County again.
It is what head coach Steve McClaren wanted, what he aimed for from the day he was appointed at the beginning of October following the sacking of Nigel Clough.
But a word of warning.
If people are talking about Derby, then opponents will be fully aware of McClaren's men.
The Rams bore the description "surprise package" last season. That is no longer the case and it is something McClaren and his players must deal with, something that should be embraced and not feared.
Last season, McClaren did his very best to deflect talk of a top-six finish and the play-offs.
His words of caution did not convince anybody, really, because from December onwards Derby looked odds-on to challenge for promotion.
They were playing well enough and scoring plenty of goals. Other contenders lacked consistency, which meant they would stutter as they tried to make up ground.
Sir Alex Ferguson was the master of mind games. McClaren might well have picked up a tip or two, having worked under Ferguson at Manchester United, but there can be no mind games this season.
The target is clear – another top-six finish, something McClaren has already admitted.
If expectation is pressure, then pressure is welcome because it means Derby are making an impact at the right end of the table. It means they are seen as serious contenders.
They are also there to be shot at.
However, they showed last season that they are capable of shooting down opponents in this division.
Of course, the road ahead will be tough.
Derby will do remarkably well to repeat or better last season's achievements (third place and a play-off final date), despite the bookies' confidence.
Having said that, there is nothing to fear.
Yes, the relegated trio of Cardiff, Fulham and Norwich City should be strong, along with Wigan.
I expect Bolton Wanderers to have a better season and Gary Bowyer is doing an excellent job at Blackburn Rovers, who finished just outside the top six last season.
Nottingham Forest, under Stuart Pearce, are certain to be tough competitors, as will Ipswich Town under Mick McCarthy.
Middlesbrough began to improve last season. They won six of their last eight matches and Watford will be keen to push on.
And what of Brighton & Hove Albion and Reading, who battled for that sixth and final play-off spot?
The newly-promoted clubs – Wolverhampton Wanderers, Brentford and Rotherham United – will be desperate to make an impact.
The Rams face Rotherham in their opening game and Millers boss Steve Evans is sure to want to lay down a marker early on.
There appears to be plenty of confidence among Derby supporters. Nothing wrong in that.
But there are no guarantees from one season to the next, not in a division as competitive, as unpredictable, as unrelenting as the Championship.
Derby's task is to concentrate on themselves. Forget about what other teams could do, might do.
Teams who win promotion need a number of factors to fall into place.
They have to be fortunate with injuries, as Burnley showed last season. They named the same team time after time until key striker Danny Ings picked up a knock in March.
Derby's top scorer, Chris Martin, avoided injury last season and fingers crossed he does the same again this season because he is a vital cog in the wheel and the Rams need him to stay fit.
Goalkeeper Lee Grant and left-back Craig Forsyth were ever-present, Jake Buxton not far behind, while Andre Wisdom played every game after he arrived on loan from Liverpool.
Craig Bryson, Richard Keogh, Will Hughes, Jamie Ward and Johnny Russell all played 40-plus games.
A team also need their share of the breaks to win promotion, something Derby enjoyed at times until the very last kick of the play-off final.
Have they fully recovered from that shattering blow?
The season ahead will provide the answer.
Can they shake off the body-blow of losing their major signing of the summer, George Thorne, for up to nine months?
Again, the season ahead will provide the answer.
A positive start will help because that would keep talk of a "hangover" at bay.
The key in football for all teams is to keep moving forward because football waits for nobody.
Last season has gone. A new challenge awaits.
