Coventry City 1-0 Derby County: Sky Blues beat Rams thanks to Dom Hyam's first-half header
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FA Cup highlights: Coventry City 1-0 Derby County
Coventry City needed just one goal to edge past Wayne Rooney's Derby County into the FA Cup fourth round.
Dom Hyam headed in Todd Kane's 42nd-minute corner to settle the all-Championship third-round tie.
The Sky Blues, 14 places better off in the league table, had earlier hit the post through Jamie Allen.
Mark Robins' City had to quell a late onslaught, including a potentially sensational leveller, a header just over from Rams keeper Ryan Allsop.
Derby, who had won three times in an unbeaten four-game league run, started with the side which finished Monday's 2-2 draw at Reading, when they came from 2-0 down to claim a point.
They again showed the same spirit that has epitomised this season's backs-to the-wall efforts under Rooney - but only had two efforts on target, the best of which was Derby skipper Tom Lawrence's long-range right-foot shot saved low down by Ben Wilson.
Before the deadlock was finally broken, 10th-placed Coventry, playing only their second game in the past 28 days, had two even better chances - as Matt Godden ballooned over after intercepting a misplaced pass back and Kane pulled back for Allen to clip the post.
But when on-loan Chelsea wing-back Kane swung over his corner on 42 minutes, this time Hyam rose to get the telling touch. The centre-half's header went in through a crowded area for his first goal of the season - and it proved enough to end 1987 FA Cup winners City's six-game winless run.
Who's next?
After winning this meeting of two former Manchester United FA Cup winners, Mark Robins' Coventry head for Darren Ferguson's Peterborough next Saturday, when Wayne Rooney's Derby host Sheffield United.
Dom Hyam scored the only goal of the tie as Coventry edged past Championship rivals Derby
Sky Blues boss Mark Robins told BBC CWR:
"The most important thing was to get a game. But we've also won, got a clean sheet and we can be thankful we've got through to the next round against a very good team.
"People look at Derby's league position and think they can't be any good, but they've got some very talented players.
"We've had illness and injuries. And we've got through unscathed. Hopefully we can now get another home tie or land one of the big guns, which would be financially important for us."
Rams boss Wayne Rooney told BBC Radio Derby:
"We need to be clinical. That's all we were missing. But, performance wise, we were excellent.
"We now have to move on from this and our sole focus is now on staying up, which I think we can.
"I believe in this group of players and coaches and I believe we will do enough to stay in this division."
Watch five third-round ties live across the BBC including Manchester United v Aston Villa - plus highlights from every match (UK only). Read the full details here.
