Matty Virtue put the young Reds ahead early on in an evenly-matched Premier League 2 contest at a rain-drenched Academy, before goals by Calum MacDonald and Jacob Butterfield saw the visitors take the lead.
Midfielder Isaac Christie-Davies, who had an effort cleared off the line prior to MacDonald’s leveller, then curled Liam Millar’s cut-back into the top corner to equalise 13 minutes from time.
However, Louie Sibley took advantage of a fortuitous ricochet off Juanma and Neco Williams to prod in a late winner for Derby.
There was little to choose between the teams during an evenly-matched first half, but the period’s high watermark in terms of attacking quality brought about the opening goal for Neil Critchley’s team 17 minutes in.