Derby County and Nottingham Forest have played to a 1-1 draw in the early kickoff in the Championship this afternoon.

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Derby were the dominant side in the opening stages of the first half, Jamie Ward missing an early chance for the home side.

Forest took the lead just after the half-hour mark, when Billy Sharp sent a cross in to Chris Cohen, who found the back of the net with his second attempt.

The hosts finished the half strongly, Ward and John Brayford both seeing shots go wide in the final minutes of the opening period.

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The visitors started the second half strongly, Sharp almost doubling their advantage five minutes in, before losing the ball to Derby.

The missed opportunity proved costly just moments later, as Simon Gillett gifted the ball to Conor Sammon, who closed on the Forest goal then crossed to Ward, who slotted the ball home to level the scores.

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A resurgent Derby almost grabbed another two minutes later, but Karl Darlow was on hand to tip Jeff Hendrick's shot over the bar.

Sharp had a chance for a Forest winner in stoppage time, but Richard Keogh got the block in to stop the striker, before another effort went high and wide for the 26-year-old.

Both teams move up one place in the Championship table as a result of the draw.