Craig Ramage will have divided loyalties when he takes his place in the commentary box for tomorrow’s Championship game between Watford and Derby County.

The mercurial midfielder joined Watford from Derby County in February 1994 and established himself as a firm favourite with the fans. It’s fair to say the mid-1990s was not the brightest era in the club’s history but Ramage added a swagger and a touch of verve to the midfield.

Ramage is one of 11 former Hornets who feature in the new book Tales from the Vicarage 3: The Interviews and in it he talks in detail about his time at Watford, the highs and lows and what he has done since injury ended his career.

Having seen two of his former teams lose consecutive play-off finals at Wembley – Watford to Crystal Palace in 2013 and Derby to Queens Park Rangers earlier this year – he’s hoping both clubs can get promoted this time. The season is off to a good start with both sides in the promotion picture and Ramage hopes both sides can avoid having to go through the play-offs.

But he won’t be drawn on who he wants to win when the two sides meet.

“In a way, I can’t lose,” he says, with a smile. “I’m a Derby lad and I grew up dreaming of playing for Derby. But when I first came to Watford it immediately felt like home.”

In the book Ramage talks about how that transfer came about. Having played for Derby in the top flight and, after a call-up to the England Under-21s, he then missed almost two years of his career through serious injury.

He was given permission to speak to Watford’s manager Glenn Roeder and, as coincidence would have it, travelled down to Vicarage Road to see his soon-to-be-side face Derby.

“I came down with my dad and we watched the game. There was a feeling about the place that I really liked and before the game was over I knew I wanted to sign. When Marco Gabbiadini scored a late winner for Derby [who won 4-3], I was gutted. I knew then it was the right decision.”

Ramage was a hit with the fans, although by his own admission he was a luxury player – “I had Hessy [Andy Hessenthaler] to do the running for me, didn't I?” he says with a grin – but he had the ability to change a game with a single pass or mazy dribble.

He was celebrated by the fanzine Clap Your Hands, Stamp Your Feet when they produced “Cool As Craig” T-shirts featuring a illustration by Watford Observer cartoonist Terry Challis.

  • Tales from the Vicarage 3: The Interviews is £10 and is available from The Hornets Shop and John Lewis, WHSmith and HMV in Watford’s Intu Centre as well as online at Amazon. See Talesfrom.com for more details.