Oxford United were held to a 1-1 draw by the Rams, a fifth consecutive draw for the U’s, with head coach Buckingham unwell in the final half an hour of the Sky Bet Championship clash.
Tottenham Hotspur loanee Dane Scarlett had given United the lead after 12 minutes, but the U’s were pegged back 10 minutes into the second period through a Nathaniel Mendez-Laing strike.
With Buckingham not feeling well, it meant first team assistant head coach Craig Short was on media duty post-game.
Short said of Buckingham’s situation: “He wasn’t feeling well with half an hour to go, and he was backwards and forwards to the bench.
“He’s still not right, so we got him to leave the stadium and get himself home as quickly as possible.
“He didn’t miss any of the action, he stuck at it, and was backwards and forwards. If he got any worse, then the doctor would’ve taken him in.
“He even struggled to shake hands at the end. He was feeling very dizzy and kept holding onto the rail, but he’s in the best hands at the moment. I think it was best for him to get away.
“I asked what he ate today and he said normal pre-match. It came on all of a sudden and he went to the doctor straight away. Hopefully he’s okay, that’s the most important thing.”
On the game itself, Short felt that United had thrown away two points after allowing the match to become more direct, but he still recognised the huge importance of an unbeaten home record which now tallies at six Championship clashes.
Short said: “I spoke to the players then. I thought we played some excellent football in the first half and looked very composed and in control.
“We started to struggle when it got a bit more direct, and it became a bit of a fight game. The last half an hour was a bit of a fight game and a bit chaotic.
“You lose a bit of control and a bit of your structure, but there were still some good performances.
“The positive side is we’re going into November with an unbeaten home record. We want to start picking up wins, of course we do, but this was probably a game where we’ve thrown two points away.”